Day 3 | Prayer & Fasting
Pastor Andrew Owen
Dear eNews friends, church members and all ‘Count Me In’ partners,
Day 3Prayer & FastingFollow Our Champion
It has been often said that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach!
Evidently Satan thought that this was equally true for a woman, for it was Eve he tempted with food, the forbidden fruit, and having given in and eaten, she then gave this food to her husband who ate also.The cry of man’s stomach helped to drown out the voice of God.The pattern continued, we read,"Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the Land of Egypt, when we sat by the fleshpots and ate bread to the full"
Exodus 16:3
Remarkably the thought of Egypt’s food was more enticing than the Promised Land that God was taking the Israelites on into. A land we know full of ‘milk and honey’ - God wanted them blessed more than they could imagine, or at least more than their stomachs would allow them to hear.The press for immediate gratification is often the step over which destinies trip.This is NOT a week of prayer, it is a week of prayer and FASTING, and I am encouraging us all to see the difference and involve, both for our own breakthroughs and the church's.We sometimes miss the connection in other places.Sodom was judged we think for gross sexual immorality, and even today the term ‘sodomy’ still stands.But we actually read,"Behold this was the guilt of your sister Sodom, she had arrogance, abundant food, careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy"
Ezekiel 16:49
Once you start seeing it, the stomach problem is everywhere:
- Esau sold his birth right for a bowl of soup
- Esau become Isaac’s favourite son because he cooked Isaac great food, even though God had already told Isaac that Jacob was the one chosen. (see Genesis 25:28)
- It even affected the house of God in Samuel’s day when Eli’s sons (who were in the important ministry of the priesthood) used the opportunity to get well fed and fat
"Why then look with greedy eye at my sacrifices and my offerings which I commanded, and you honour your sons above me by fattening yourselves upon the choicest parts of every offering of my people Israel?"
1 Samuel 2:29
Our ChampionIsn’t it then interesting that Jesus’ first temptation was to turn stones into bread, and this happened not in the luxury of the paradise of Eden, but in the wild backsides of the desert, AFTER He had fasted 40 days and 40 nights. At His weakest our Champion overcame this temptation and said NO! Not only defeating Satan, but His own flesh and personal desires. It was this that took Him to the cross and so die for us.Jesus from this moment moved in power and anointing, His ministry took off.On another occasion when He and all His disciples were hungry, Jesus sat by a well waiting for them to go and buy the food. He took an opportunity to set free the woman at the well and said to the returning disciples I have food you know nothing about, it’s to do my Father’s will.Make no mistake, fasting compounds the power of prayer ten thousand times.Need a Word from God or new direction - Fasting added with prayer.Need your ministry or business to take off - Fasting added with prayer.Got a long-term sickness needing healing - Fasting with prayer.God loves it when with the right motives, we turn down our appetites and turn up our hunger for Him.And we are fasting and praying because we want our families saved, our city won, our church to grow and the Word of God to prosper.Pray today:
- That the fire of God will burn within our hearts like never before.
- That our determination to obey His voice will supersede any fear or doubt.
- That God will extend our reach with the gospel, pray for places or nations He has placed on your heart.
- Pray for the pastors, staff, volunteers and leaders.
- Pray for our children and young people.
IF YOU HAVE NEVER FASTED BEFORE-GO ON - MAKE A START, MISS A MEAL, MISS A DAY, AND IF YOU HAVE, WHY NOT GO ONE STEP FURTHERLook forward to seeing you all tonight at the Holy Spirit night.Love you guys,Andrew
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