Fasting

                                             

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                                               Fasting                                                 

Fasting- A spiritual discipline and a willingness to give up something important such as food, drink, phones, TV, electronics, ect., to spend time with the Lord

One main reason for fasting is to give up something important to spend that time with God in any situation. A lot of people fast to help them make a difficult decision where they need God's guidance

100%. Fasting helps you feel closer to God and can help give you a clearer perspective. 

A common story in the Bible about fasting is when Moses received the commandments. 

                                                                         Deuteronomy 9:9-18

Moses fasted for 40 days when he went upon the mountain to receive the commandments 

Fasting is not an easy thing. You have to be strong against temptation and you have to have willingness. If you don't want to fast it wont be as effective. You don't have to start out with 40 days of fasting, maybe start out with skipping one meal a day. Then skip more. Then skip a day, and so on. Below is a list of bible verses about fasting:

Isaiah 58

2 Samuel 12:23

1 Kings 21:9

Nehemiah 9:1

Ester 4:3

Ester 9:31

Psalm 35:13

Psalm 109:24

Isaiah 58:1,3,4,6

Jeremiah 36:6,9

Daniel 9:3

Joel 2:12

Zechariah 7:1

Matthew 4:2, 6:16,18, 9:14

Mark 2:18

Luke 2:37, 5:33

Acts 13:2, 14:23

      

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Fasting

Fasting, in my opinion, is a very beneficial and life giving thing to do in our spiritual lives. It brings us closer to God and removes any distractions we have from getting closer to Him. But, in order to effectively do this, we must have the right posture of heart. We must go into fasting with a willing heart and intentions to sacrifice one certain thing in our lives and fill it up with spending time with God.

Also, many people think that fasting has to be cutting out a meal or anything having to do with food. But this is not necessarily true. Fasting can involve cutting out anything that takes the place of God. For example, my electronics are a huge time waster and distraction for me. Whenever I am in an awkward situation or have spare time (and a lot of the time when I actually am supposed to be doing something else), I revert to using my phone, watching YouTube, or watching TV. But that is precious time that can be spent in fellowship with the Lord. It can be used as a decompression and re-focusing time to spend with God. It helps us to stay "in reality" and keep our minds focused on God. Also, God will show us incredible things and even show us His will during that time sacrificed and dedicated to God. When we are completely focused and in-tune with God, we can hear His calling and the things He deeply desires to share with us. What joy we can find when we encounter and fellowship with our loving God!

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