That's yokes, not yolks. And conception? No pun intended.
After my ten-day Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur fast, I took a week or so just to decompress, but I knew I had more work to do. A call to some form of ministry has nagged my husband and me for years, but there are some obstacles in the way. I felt I needed to dig in deeper and to broaden the scope of my prayer focus, so a 21-day Daniel fast seemed ideal.
After my ten-day Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur fast, I took a week or so just to decompress, but I knew I had more work to do. A call to some form of ministry has nagged my husband and me for years, but there are some obstacles in the way. I felt I needed to dig in deeper and to broaden the scope of my prayer focus, so a 21-day Daniel fast seemed ideal.
I should probably take this opportunity to express that I don't believe prayer is a way to twist God's arm. Nor do I believe that fasting is a magic potion that makes God answer prayer. Prayer is simply communion with God, and although bringing our petitions to Him is certainly part of that, the goal is to strengthen our relationship with Him, to "acknowledge Him in all our ways." (Prov. 3:6) We shouldn't be the ones doing all the talking, though; we need to listen, too. Hearing God requires knowing His word, through which His Spirit sometimes whispers (sometimes yells) the truth He wants us to apply. Sometimes that happens while we're studying the Bible, and a verse just jumps out and grabs us in a way we've never experienced before; sometimes our hearts are pierced with conviction by the very thing we didn't want to hear from a loved one.
When my prayer life has suffered due to busy-ness and distractions, God seems to think 4 am is a good time to talk. Not audibly. Just by nudging my conscience in a particular direction. Usually rather uncomfortably. So... fasting.
Fasting is not us manipulating God; it's a reminder to US that we need to seek God more earnestly. Every unfulfilled craving serves as a cue to acknowledge Him more readily during the hours we're normally awake, though that doesn't necessarily quell the 4 am chats. It is a tool with which we have been equipped: a magnifying glass, which enables us to see Him and His will for us more clearly, and to focus His light on a particular problem with powerful results (You're picturing fried ants, aren't you?). It is a tool which often lies on the mantle, collecting dust. To many Christians of our day, fasting is a completely foreign concept. That was me just two years ago. It seems very few churches ever even mention it, much less advocate its use. True, it is nowhere required of Gentiles in the Bible, but countless examples of its benefits are given throughout scripture. There are many excellent resources on fasting, so I won't belabor the particulars, but as I mentioned in my previous post, the book of Daniel lays a foundational example of a partial fast in chapters 1 and 10. I used the books: Fasting, by Jentezen Franklin (Charisma House), as preliminary inspiration, and The Ultimate Guide to the Daniel Fast, by Kristen Feola (Zondervan) as my daily guide, devotional, and cookbook. Both are filled with practical examples and testimonies, and really helped to get me started and to keep me going.
When my prayer life has suffered due to busy-ness and distractions, God seems to think 4 am is a good time to talk. Not audibly. Just by nudging my conscience in a particular direction. Usually rather uncomfortably. So... fasting.
Fasting is not us manipulating God; it's a reminder to US that we need to seek God more earnestly. Every unfulfilled craving serves as a cue to acknowledge Him more readily during the hours we're normally awake, though that doesn't necessarily quell the 4 am chats. It is a tool with which we have been equipped: a magnifying glass, which enables us to see Him and His will for us more clearly, and to focus His light on a particular problem with powerful results (You're picturing fried ants, aren't you?). It is a tool which often lies on the mantle, collecting dust. To many Christians of our day, fasting is a completely foreign concept. That was me just two years ago. It seems very few churches ever even mention it, much less advocate its use. True, it is nowhere required of Gentiles in the Bible, but countless examples of its benefits are given throughout scripture. There are many excellent resources on fasting, so I won't belabor the particulars, but as I mentioned in my previous post, the book of Daniel lays a foundational example of a partial fast in chapters 1 and 10. I used the books: Fasting, by Jentezen Franklin (Charisma House), as preliminary inspiration, and The Ultimate Guide to the Daniel Fast, by Kristen Feola (Zondervan) as my daily guide, devotional, and cookbook. Both are filled with practical examples and testimonies, and really helped to get me started and to keep me going.
On the first few days of the fast, I tried to make a concession for my coffee. I like a little coffee with my cream and sugar, so the prospect of drinking it black was worse than going without, but I was very reluctant to part with the caffeine, so I allowed myself one cup each morning with agave nectar and coconut milk. On day 3, my conscience still wasn't appeased, so I let go of the coffee altogether...and the sweetener. On the last day of the fast, I broke the fast early to celebrate my dad's birthday with some cake. However, I felt a nagging sense that there was still an unswept corner to address, so I decided to take the weekend off and then fast for five more days (which made up for the days I "cheated").
Isaiah 58 is the recipe for a fast that God honors. Verse 6 says, "Is this not the fast that I have chosen: To loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke?" Fasting breaks spiritual bondage.
At the end of those last five days, my prayer burden subsided, and my husband later announced to me that he had quit using tobacco. He hasn't used it since. I just have to praise God for that, because it was one of those glaring obstacles between us and effective ministry.
Isaiah 58 is the recipe for a fast that God honors. Verse 6 says, "Is this not the fast that I have chosen: To loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke?" Fasting breaks spiritual bondage.
At the end of those last five days, my prayer burden subsided, and my husband later announced to me that he had quit using tobacco. He hasn't used it since. I just have to praise God for that, because it was one of those glaring obstacles between us and effective ministry.
My course of Bible study for the fast and afterward was to read methodically, a chapter or more a day, beginning with Genesis. As I was reading through Genesis chapter 2, about the rivers in Eden, I pulled out a map of Iraq that I had photocopied and scribbled on several years ago. My note had indicated that Eden was probably near modern-day Baghdad, because that's about where the Tigris (in some versions referred to as the Hiddekel) and Euphrates rivers were closest together, and both of those rivers are cited as running through Eden. I read the passage about the rivers out loud to my children, "Now a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted and became four riverheads." (Gen. 2:10, NKJV) Now, I don't know how many times I've read that verse, but it wasn't new to me. Yet, as I looked again, I realized my map was wrong; the Tigris and Euphrates should BEGIN in Eden, not just run through it. Thus began the journey to find the true location of Eden...with all the rabbit trails you could ever want, including the search for the other two rivers.
Throughout the fast, I prayed for God to show me what to do with the discoveries I made as I continued to search the scriptures. I thought just jotting down the passages I found wouldn't really make for a very exciting read, and I lack a stack of degrees behind my name to render my opinion of much value to the general population, Christian or otherwise. However, as a veteran homeschool mom with a desire to impart study skills, rather than just head knowledge, I felt confident that, with God's direction, I could put together a treasure hunt that would serve as a curriculum for studying the Bible in its geographical and historical context, and the students would discover the location for themselves. Voila! Map the Bible was conceived! Oh, but birth is still a long way off.
So many rabbit trails, so little time.
No comments:
Post a Comment