2. Jesus taught that fasting, praying and giving are 3 defining characteristics of the God-first lifestyle: Matthew 6

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Everett King
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1 Why Fast? 5 Biblical Reasons to Fast: 1. Jesus said His disciples would fast. Matthew 9: Jesus taught that fasting, praying and giving are 3 defining characteristics of the God-first lifestyle: Matthew 6 3. God asks His people to include a period of fasting in every year for selfexamination and consecration: Jeremiah 36:6. Therefore, go, and read the scroll and the words of the Lord, in the ears of the people in the Lord s house upon the fasting day. In other words, God said, I want you to set aside a certain time every year that you fast and seek Me. And here s the purpose for it For self examination and consecration. In other words, when you do this fast, you need to ask these things. God, I m doing a spiritual checkup. How am I doing? Do I love Your Word? Do I love my church? Do I love connecting with others in connect groups? Do I love prayer? Do I love You like I loved You when I first met You? Have I drawn closer to You this year, or have I lost my passion? God, is my worship what You desire? Am I living it before my children? Has my family seen Christ in me? What about my temper? What about my words? What about my attitude? Am I negative? Am I ugly to people? Lord, I m bringing myself to You because I really do want to be more like You and I need a self-examination. I m seeing some things in my life that are not like You, and I want You to help me deal with them on this fast. 4. Fasting is a spiritual discipline. It is done not so we can change God s mind or get Him to move, but rather to get quiet before Him, so we can hear what He is speaking. When we satisfy our flesh with everything that it demands we tend to drown out God s voice because we become very preoccupied with self-gratification. During fasting we take charge of our flesh, making it a servant to our spirit, and thus we are able to get in tune with what the Holy Spirit is speaking to us. I Corinthians 10:7 Be ye not as the idolaters as some of them were. For they sat, they ate, they drank, and they rose up to play. Philippians 3:19 And they made their bellies their god. Their bellies were their gods. How? Why did He accuse them of idolatry, of worshiping other gods? And he said, I m going to name your god. Your belly is your god. I Corinthians 9:27, I bring my body under subjection. My body must submit to God. At some point, every year, we need to bring our body and present it to God and say, cleanse this body, and deal with the habits - and deal with things get this nicotine out of me get this lust out of me get this stuff this flesh tells me everything.

2 And I m presenting this flesh on this Fast to You to let it know that Jesus is Lord in this temple! 5. Participating in a fast at the beginning of the year to ask God to actively participate in our journey this year: Ezra 8:21 Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from Him the right way for us and our little ones and all our possessions. Three powerful reasons to begin the year with a fast. 1: To seek of Him a right way for us. You see, God will reveal to you the right way. He ll help you at the transitions. He ll give you the wisdom you need. He ll give you the direction that you need. Should I take that opportunity? Should I go for that job? Should I go to that college? Should I be this? Or should I do that? 2: We re fasting for our little ones = our children. That little ones reference that s our children. He said that you can raise up a foundation for many generations by fasting. Something begins to happen in the home of a faster that absolutely will go from generation to generation to generation because somebody in that family laid a foundation in fasting and through prayer. 3: For our substance, our resources, our finances. God, we re bringing before You at the beginning of this year, the fact that You are our Source and we re fasting and praying that You will bless us financially materially so we can be a blessing to Your Kingdom; that You will be the God of our substance.

3 Fasting Tips Ø Fasting requires reasonable precautions. Consult your physician first if you take prescription medication or have a chronic ailment. Some persons should never fast without professional supervision. Ø Physical preparation makes the drastic change in your eating routine a little easier so that you can turn your full attention to the Lord in prayer. o Prepare your body. Eat smaller meals before starting a fast. Avoid high-fat and sugary foods. o Eat raw fruit and vegetables for two days before starting a fast. o Remove caffeine from your diet three to five days before you start the fast. Ø Prepare yourself for temporary mental discomforts, such as impatience, crankiness, and anxiety. Plan on resting more during the first few days of your fast and go to bed early. Ø Expect some physical discomforts, especially on the second day. You may have fleeting hunger pains, dizziness, or the blahs. Withdrawal from caffeine and sugar may cause headaches. Physical annoyances may also include weakness, tiredness, or sleeplessness. Ø The first two or three days are usually the hardest. As you continue to fast, you will likely experience a sense of well-being both physically and spiritually. However, should you feel hunger pangs, increase your liquid intake. Ø Be kind to others during your fast by making sure your breath is OK. Use a natural mouthwash but avoid gum or mints as they will actually increase your hunger pangs. Ø Participate as often as possible in the small group and corporate gatherings. You ll find encouragement and strength when you join with others doing the same thing. Ø Take as many days as you fasted to return to your normal eating routine. For instance, if you fast 3 days, take at least 3 days to slowly re-introduce meats into your diet. Begin with small snacks instead of big meals. Ø Declare a personal purpose along with our corporate purpose for your fast. For instance, I will gain a greater sensitivity to the Word of the Lord or The Lord will reveal some keys for a harvest of better relationships. Ø When you are fasting, set time aside for prayer, worship, meditation and Bible study. Keep a journal of your revelations, of what God is speaking to you. Invite the Holy Spirit to guide you and to reveal areas in your life that need purification. Ø Before you begin, get with God and declare a personal purpose for your fast, then commit to Him and ask for the Holy Spirit s help to complete your fast. Expect supernatural help as you honor Him with this time of fasting and prayer.

4 TYPES OF FASTS: The Bible teaches at least 7 different types of fasts. Below is a summary of the more common ones. Choose from one of these and join with the rest of your church during our 21-day fast. COMPLETE FAST This fast calls for drinking only liquids, typically water with light juices as an option. This is a great way to begin a 21-day fast even if you don t intend to do a Complete Fast the entire 21 days. Start your 21 day fast with a 1 to 3, or even 7, day complete fast. For helpful info if you intend to do a complete fast check out: SELECTIVE FAST This type of fast involves removing certain elements from your diet. One example of a selective fast is the Daniel Fast, during which you remove meat, sweets, or bread from your diet and consume water and juice for fluids and fruits and vegetables for food. (See the specific Daniel Fast Food List for more info on the Daniel Fast.) PARTIAL FAST This fast is sometimes called the Jewish Fast and involves abstaining from eating any type of food in the morning and afternoon. This can either correlate to specific times of the day, such as 6:00 am to 3:00 pm, or from sunup to sundown. SOUL FAST Choose something from your daily routine (i.e. specific foods or beverages, television, other technology, etc.) and fast in that manner for the length of the fast. This fast is common for those who do not have much experience fasting food, who have health issues that prevent them from fasting food, or who wish to refocus certain areas of their life that are out of balance. For instance, someone might select to abstain from using social media or watching television for the duration of the fast, and then choose to carefully bring that element back into their life in an orderly fashion at the conclusion of the fast. This is a good alternative for including your children in a fast ask them to choose some type of food or entertainment they normally enjoy everyday and fast it to join with you and their church in the fast.

5 The Daniel Fast: Daniel 1:12 & 10:1-2 give us vegetables to eat and water to drink...i ate no pleasant food, no meat or wine came into my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled. Eat no meat, no sweets and no bread. Drink water and juice. Eat fruits and vegetables. Daniel Fast Foods: All fruits. These can be fresh, frozen, dried, juiced or canned. Fruits include but are not limited to apples, apricots, bananas, blackberries, blueberries, boysenberries, cantaloupe, cherries, cranberries, figs, grapefruit, grapes, guava, honeydew melon, kiwi, lemons, limes, mangoes, nectarines, oranges, papayas, peaches, pears, pineapples, plums, prunes, raisins, raspberries, strawberries, tangelos, tangerines, watermelon All vegetables. These can be fresh, frozen, dried, juiced or canned. Vegetables include but are not limited to artichokes, asparagus, beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, chili peppers, collard greens, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, garlic, ginger root, kale, leeks, lettuce, mushrooms, mustard greens, okra, onions, parsley, potatoes, radishes, rutabagas, scallions, spinach, sprouts, squashes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, turnips, watercress, yams, zucchini, veggie burgers are an option if you are not allergic to soy. All whole grains, including but not limited to whole wheat, brown rice, millet, quinoa, oats, barley, grits, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat tortillas, rice cakes and popcorn. All nuts and seeds, including but not limited to sunflower seeds, cashews, peanuts, sesame. Also nut butters including peanut butter. All legumes. These can be canned or dried. Legumes include but are not limited to dried beans, pinto beans, split peas, lentils, black eyed peas, kidney beans, black beans, cannellini beans, white beans. All quality oils including but not limited to olive, canola, grape seed, peanut, and sesame. Beverages: spring water, distilled water or other pure waters. Other: tofu, soy products, vinegar, seasonings, salt, herbs and spices. Foods to avoid on the Daniel Fast: All meat and animal products including but not limited to beef, lamb, pork, poultry, and fish. All dairy products including but not limited to milk, cheese, cream, butter, and eggs.

6 All sweeteners including but not limited to sugar, raw sugar, honey, syrups, molasses, date honey, agave, stevia and cane juice. All leavened bread including Ezekiel Bread (it contains yeast and honey) and baked goods. All refined and processed food products including but not limited to artificial flavorings, food additives, chemicals, white rice, white flour, and foods that contain artificial preservatives. All deep fried foods including but not limited to potato chips, French fries, corn chips. All solid fats including shortening, margarine, lard and foods high in fat. Beverages including but not limited to coffee, tea, herbal teas, carbonated beverages, energy drinks, and alcohol. Remember, READ THE LABELS!

7 What to expect when participating in a 21 Day Fast: During a 21 Day Fast your body will undergo some changes and being aware of these will help you stay focused on completing your fast. Many people quit a fast because they aren t aware that the things they are experiencing are normal and healthy during a fast. The following is provided to help you understand some of the things you may experience as you fast. During the fast your body may rebel against the change in your diet. You will get an opportunity to experience and win this battle over the flesh, which might prove to be one of the most powerful lessons of the fast. You might experience detoxing from food addictions, such as: caffeine, processed or unnatural foods, chemicals and sugar. The symptoms that accompany detox process might be light or more pronounced: headaches, leg cramps, fatigue, nausea and even light depression. As the body will detox, the symptoms will alleviate and you will experience more energy, better sleep, clearer and sharper mind, and many other benefits. So, take the time to ride it out. You may experience headaches, stomach aches, nausea, foul tastes in your mouth, or a pasty tongue, and your bodily fluids may be temporarily different in color and smell. Expect to visit the facilities more often as you increase your intake of fluids. You may experience a case of the physical blahs during the first few days. If so, sip water and juices frequently and rest while seeking strength in prayer, worship, and God s Word. By the end of the second day, you may discover that you are very hungry in your stomach and in your mind but by the end of the third day you may no longer feel hungry. However, you may feel a little weak. You would think that the longer you fast the weaker you would become. But healthy persons report that during extended fasts they actually experience a new vitality. As the body cleanses itself of toxins and begins to feed off of its reserves, the stomach stops demanding food and there is often a sense of physical well-being. After fasting several days, dizziness may be caused by a sudden change in position, such as rising suddenly from a chair. To remedy this, stop for a second or two, recover, and remember to move slowly. Sleeplessness and an overactive mind sometimes accompany a fast due to toxins in the blood stream. Prayer, meditating in the Word, and a nice walk around the block should help. Hang in there. Surround yourself with encouragers and those who are also fasting. And expect results! If you sincerely humble yourself before the Lord in repentance, intercession, and worship, and consistently meditate on His Word, you will experience a greater awareness of His presence. Your confidence and faith in God will be strengthened. And you will feel mentally, spiritually, and physically refreshed.

NEW BEGINNING Though your beginning was small, Your latter days will be very great. Job 8:7 (ESV)

Gideon Baptist Church NEW BEGINNING Though your beginning was small, Your latter days will be very great. Job 8:7 (ESV) The FAST will begin on Monday January 4th and will end immediately following service