Day 6
It’s still early in my fast, but I have had some amazing experiences with God already. In my worship yesterday, I felt God opening up the eyes of my heart/eyes of my spirit (Ephesians 1:18) even more. I began to see in the supernatural. An incredible fear overtook me with the realization that at any time or given moment, I am surrounded by both angels and demons. A new reality of my need for God overtook me as I realized that the spirit realm is much larger and more significant than the natural realm.
A religious spirit which is not of God wants us to reject this realization. The occult world has known, accepted, and operated in this spirit realm, but ALL POWER comes from God. The occult world is twisting this power and using it for their own will and not to do the will of God. Jesus said that He is the door into the kingdom of God. He is the door into the power of God, the 4th dimension, and the spirit realm. In the same chapter (John 10), he says that He that enters in not by the door but climbs in some other way, the same is a thief or a robber. The occult has climbed into this realm through another way and taken hold, stolen some of this power.
It is the same as in the old testament, where the pharoah’s magicians and soothsayers exercised in a certain amount of power. But the power of God knows no end. According to Ephesians 2:6, He has made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. This means that we are seated with Him in authority. We have all authority in the spirit realm (Eph 1:19-22) if we are completely submitted to God and His will.
Think about it! It’s an amazing realization. Do not let the spirit of religion deceive you. The spirit realm is very real. Anything that you have heard of or know of occurring in the occult world or in the world of magic is just a small measure and a twisting of God’s power. The spirit world is in full blown operation all around you. Right now, you are in the midst of heavenly (angelic and demonic) armies. And you, who are the sons of God, have all authority in this realm for you are seated with Christ (Eph 1:19-22).
October 30 2009 | Fasting and My Life | 1 Comment »
by Dana Candler
Fasting on a weekly basis might be for many a new idea…if not a disturbing idea. Why disturbing? We have preconceived ideas and perhaps past experiences that have left us on the skeptical side of how this really works as a lifestyle. Yet it must be made clear from the start that this sort of fasting routine requires and mandates a very essential element in you and me, a necessary ingredient that must be incorporated into the mix for all to work as intended. Simply said, this crucial component is DESIRE. The heart holds the central affections and passions that drive us from day to day and unless love is the push behind our motivation, unless desire for Jesus is that which fuels our fasting, we will end in burn out and disillusionment over time.
When Jesus said, “Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast,” He opened up an invitation to mourn and long and fast out of a heart that misses Him, desires His nearness and longs for His Return (Matt. 9:15). He described a day that He would be taken from us, the Bridegroom would be taken away, and in His delay the friends of the Bridegroom would mourn for Him…would long and ache for His return. Jesus predicted what would seem normal in those days for those who love and miss the Bridegroom—fasting consistently out of a perpetual desire for Him. In our day, our role to play is not ambiguous or uncertain but very clear and evident. The eyes of Jesus are searching for friends who love Him so deeply that they do more than just ascribe faith in Him, they actually live their days in an incessant longing for His Return.
We fast with a twofold longing, a dual desire. First, we groan for Jesus’ Return and second, we desire to experience His manifest love and presence now. Fasting for the Bridegroom plays a joint role of expressing our mourning and discontentment with Jesus’ absence while simultaneously sensitizing us to His presence by the Holy Spirit. Through this yearning for Jesus through fasting—our hearts become enlarged to experience His divine love and presence.
Such a lifestyle of fasting, coupled always with the tenderness of prayer, is also the place of preparation—the place where voices of authority are formed in the fires of refinement and the place of encounter. Thus, desire for Jesus leads to fasting, fasting enlarges our hearts for greater experience of Him, and these greater encounters of Jesus lead to a yearning for His Return coupled with a true authority to speak of Him and make Him known to others. Truly, this lifestyle of consistent fasting, fueled by desire, is our gift to embrace. As we do this over time, experience of the Lord will give way to greater longing for Him and we will become gripped by His love, eager for His Return, and equipped to prepare others to receive and respond to Him in fullness.
Source
April 16 2009 | Fasting | No Comments »
Fasting is a call to embrace voluntarily weakness in order to experience more of God’s presence. Mt. 6:1-23 points to five expressions of “voluntary weakness” in which we invest our natural strengths (food, time, money, words, energy and influence) in our relationship with Jesus.
Fasting is VOLUNTARY weakness in your areas of natural strength. Voluntarily you make the choice to give up the energy and pleasure that food gives you. Voluntarily, you forfeit the compliments that that new dress would give you when you choose not to buy it. Voluntarily, you give up a large portion of your income to give to charities, the poor, and those who need it more than you. Voluntarily, you give up ten percent of your earnings to God. It is a choice. You have to first make the decision to not buy the shoes, not spend your money on things that give you pleasure, not eat the food that would give you ectasy, not saying exactly what you want to say to your boss, not buying that new car & making due with driving the lemon for a time, not date the hot guy that would not meet God’s standards but DeFinItEly meets the worlds, not going out and instead choose to stay in and worship God …study God. These are choices that you make. Living fasted is ON PURPOSE. Yes God will give you Grace. This involves dedicating a large slice of your time to praying, praying for that grace, and drawing from God’s strength. It involves most of the time, making yourself lesser to make God greater. But it always begins with a decision that you make on purpose and with purpose. Fasting means giving away your strength with faith that God will return it to you in one way or another, in this age or the age to come.
We are called to love God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. Loving God with All our Strength means loving God with our resources: time, money, physical strength & abilities. God doesn’t need these things. But when we offer these things to Him in love …when we PRESS to obey Him by giving above and beyond to the point where we FEEL the weakness…something happens inside of us in the STRUGGLE , in the REACH to obey. We are brought into a deeper love & revelation of God. He gives us the ability to love Him deeper. You will never mature in love for God without endeavoring to love God with all of your strength. Until the area of our strength is intentionally part of our pursuit in loving Him, we will always come up short and immature in our love.
During this reach, we encounter many moments of uncertainty & humility. Still God wants us to press on and fast in these arenas. This is the fasted lifestyle (Matt 6: 1-23). This is the life Christians are called to live. Fasting is non-negotiable if you want to mature in your relationship with God. God understands the dynamics of the human spirit, psychology, and physiology, and He has commanded us to live a fasted lifestyle to position our mind, heart, and spirit to interact with His spirit and receive more of Him along with being able to love Him as deeply as He loves us. And when we can love Him in this way, we will be ready to do powerful things in our lives and in the lives of others. That is so exciting, and what Christ-lover does not want this? This is the greatest reward to be able to have love poured into you by the Holy Spirit and to pour your love out to God just as deeply.
Asking God for the grace of fasting should be a common prayer. Not just food. Sometimes food seems to be the easiest to fast when I am reaching into my wallet or stifling my pride. One of the things that I have to pray most often is for the grace to live fasted with my money and time. God has certainly given to me grace in these areas since I began asking of Him this. It is difficult when financially I continue giving and tithing and just when I am down to a very uncertain bank account balance he asks me to give once again. This stretch is certainly felt throughout my spirit. God knows me and loves my obedience and faith. I feel this makes a statement to God that everything I have is His, is because of Him, and everything I have is to be used to glorify God. Is it difficult to give that tithe every month or give to those who need it rather than going to Starbucks when I want? Yes. I love Starbucks. But my reward is in heaven, and it is much better than a latte. Just as the elders lay down their crowns of gold (hard-earned rewards) because God is deserving of the glory, just as the woman wasted her inheritance and showered Jesus with her perfume, I will lay down my income, my time, appetites, pride, and all offerings to my God.
7 A thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure…8 I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. 9 My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness (voluntary weakness). Therefore…I boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest on me. (2 Cor. 12:7-9)
February 25 2009 | Christianity Today and Fasting | No Comments »
A High Vision is Necessary in Fasting
Anyone who desires to live a life characterized by fasting must begin with a high vision, a vision to experience the fullness of what God wants to give each of us in this age. We fast because we
cannot endure living in spiritual barrenness. The person who fasts understands the gap between what God wants to give them and what they are actually experiencing. The lack in our experience causes us
to be discontent and to mourn. When we recognize that there is a realm in God to which we are invited but not yet experiencing, we become ruined. We must have this fullness. This state of “ruinedness” is an essential part of the lifestyle of fasting. Without a vision or hope for attaining more in God, we will not fast.
The Church today needs a renewed vision of fasting. We need to recognize it as a gift from God that leads the human spirit into fascination and exhilaration before Him. God has given us the grace of the Bridegroom fast that we might maximize the privilege of encountering the Bridegroom God, Jesus. Fasting is not intended by God to be something we hate. It is a gift meant to tenderize
our hearts and bring great change in our lives. Fasting expresses our vision and determination to have more of God, and the pain of recognizing the ways in which we fall short. We fast because we believe God desires to take the vision He has marked us with and bring it to fruition over time. We believe in Jesus’ promise that there truly are rewards given by His Father, and we refuse to live as though this promise were not true (Matt. 6:17, 18).
Taken from The Rewards of Fasting by Mike Bickle and Dana Candler
January 22 2009 | Christianity Today and Fasting | 1 Comment »
I absolutely adore the church International House of Prayer in Kansas City. People like Lou Engle, Misty Edwards, and Dwayne Roberts. These people speak and live with the urgency that most of the church is lacking.
During these next 19 days of fasting, I have found that the OneThing conference held in Kansas City has posted their teaching archives from these great men and women of God. For these teaching session archives click here: session teaching archives
Also, IHOP is full of free resources to study and go deeper with God including teachings on fasting:
ihop.org/free
IHOP is offering a free worship cd for download, click here and enter a valid email address for this free worship cd:
Forerunner Music Free Worship cd
Enjoy!
I hope that God is increasing your spiritual sensitivity. Speak with the Spirit that God has placed inside you- His spirit. Jesus very feelings, thoughts, and emotions- you can know them, now. Crave Him. He is so worth giving up what your flesh desires. Don’t give up. Press in. And ask God to feed you on His substance. To satisfy you with his essence.
L
January 10 2009 | Fasting | No Comments »
Corporate Fasting
I don’t know how to explain what I am feeling. I am so excited because of the nearness to God that I have felt in my fast times before. I have that same nervous feeling that comes from worry of breaking the fast and letting God down. This time it is a corporate fast which means that I will be doing this along with most of the members of the church. This kind of group support is so supportive. It makes me even more excited too. What will God do when so many of us are fasting together in unison? And it turns out, searching on the web, there are many churches across the nation that are fasting corporately in January. I’ve always had an excitement about what God will do with me, personally, but I have never had this excitement about what he will do with the Church. I am so thankful that our pastor is leading us into this time.
Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them … then they will fast.
— Matthew 9:15
January 08 2009 | Fasting | No Comments »
