Daily Office Day 2 - Fast with Purpose...to minister to the needs of others

Daily Office Day 2

*Fast with Purpose…to minister to the needs of others

1 ) Silence, stillness, and centering before God (2min)

2) Scripture Reading – Isaiah 58:6-7

“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?”

3) Devotional
Those who think the spiritual rhythms foster tendencies of introspection or independence should consider the above passage. In the most extensive passage in Scripture dealing exclusively with fasting, God emphasizes fasting for the purpose of meeting the needs of others. The people originally addressed in this section had complained to the Lord that they fasted and humbled themselves before Him, but He had not answered them. But the reason why He had not heard them was their disobedience. Their lives were in hypocritical contrast to their fasting and praying, “Yet on the day of your fasting,“ says the Lord in verses 3-4, “you do as you please and exploit all your workers. Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.” Fasting cannot be compartmentalized from the rest of our lives. Spiritual rhythms do not stand alone. God will not bless the practice of any rhythm, including fasting, when we reject His Word regarding relationships with others. The kind of fasting that pleases God is one that results in concern for others and not just for ourselves.

4) Questions to Consider

How could you minister to the needs of others with the extra time or money fasting could provide?

Would you consider bringing a bag of non-perishable groceries to church this Sunday, so as a church we can help others? Click here for more information and for a suggested list of food donations

5) Prayer

LORD, give me wisdom on how to use either my time or money in order to help someone. May the results of fasting lead me to impact another in a way that is pleasing to you. Help me make good choices regarding my time and/or money to be bring glory to your name. Continue to lead me Lord Jesus. In Your Name, Amen.

*portions of today’s Daily Office have been taken from “Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life” by Donald S. Whitney

Daily Office Day 1 - Fast with Purpose...to strengthen prayer

Daily Office Day 1

Fast with Purpose…to strengthen prayer  *

1 ) Silence, stillness, and centering before God (2min)

2) Scripture Reading – Ezra 8:21-23

“There, by the Ahava Canal, I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions. I was ashamed to ask the king for soldiers and horsemen to protect us from enemies on the road, because we had told the king, ‘The gracious hand of our God is on everyone who looks to him, but his great anger is against all who forsake him.’ So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer.”

3) Devotional
When Ezra was about to lead a group of exiles back to Jerusalem, he proclaimed a fast in order for the people to seek the Lord earnestly for safe passage. They were to face the many dangers without military protection during their nine-hundred-mile journey. This was no ordinary matter to be brought to God in prayer.

There’s more to a biblical fast than abstaining from food, without a spiritual purpose for your fast, it’s just a weight loss fast. “Whenever men are to pray to God concerning any great matter, “ wrote John Calvin, it would be expedient to appoint fasting along with prayer.”

There’s something about fasting that sharpens the edge of our intercessions and gives passion to our supplications. So it has frequently been used by the people of God when there is special urgency about the concerns they lift before the Father.

The Bible does not teach the fasting is a kind of spiritual hunger strike that compels God to do our bidding. If we ask for something outside of God’s will, fasting does not cause him to reconsider. Fasting does not change God’s hearing so much as it changes our praying.

4) Questions to Consider

Will you consider fasting with purpose?

Are there self-centered reasons or fears you need to confess about entering into this fast?

Are there changes you need to make in your prayer life or in your prayers?

5) Prayer

LORD, help me to fast with a purpose. Fasting is not about what I cannot do or what I cannot eat. This time is about You – about who You are and what You care for. Holy Spirit continue to lead me to give up what I must in this time of fasting in order to strengthen my prayers this day. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

*portions of today’s Daily Office have been taken from “Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life” by Donald S. Whitney