My Revelation in Fasting

As many of you know, my church has been fasting all month.  Each week we are asked to give up a different thing.  Week one was favorite beverage.  Week two was television.  Week three was phones and week four is only vegetables or no meat.  We were also asked to pray at noon everyday.  Honestly I sometimes forgot to pray at exactly 12 o'clock everyday and didn't fast as I should have in weeks 1 and 4.  Nevertheless I tried to stay focused on the bigger picture and strengthen my relationship with God.

In my fast, I was able to see things clearer.  While I do not always understand what God is doing, I trust that He is doing it and it will all work out in the end.  By the end of week two, I started to notice a positive change in my marriage.  I could see a stronger bond growing with my church family.  After week three, I realized that the electronic gadgets we value were just distractions that pull us further from God.  By the end of week four (this week), I can testify that God heard my cries and saw the sincerity in my heart.  I write this blog in awe of God's greatness.  When my prayers changed, my blessings changed.  I stopped praying for worldly possessions, but for an internal change with the possibility of an external reward. 

Case in point, my husband received some really good news today.  I know that God was at work because the news he received was just what I prayed for him to receive.  Only God saw fit to bless him beyond our imagination.  I am thankful that God does not work for me.  I work for Him.  I am His creation, personally designed by Him to do what He wants me to do, when and how he wants me to do it.

I am not writing this to boast or brag, but to encourage you to seek God for help.  Submit your will to His and release your own inhibitions.  God hears the prayers of His children.  He knows us each by name.  God wants His children to be happy and live a blessed life.  What are you waiting for?  God can and will supply all of your needs. 

I challenge you to spend a week with God.  Give up something that is a distraction or takes up a lot of your time.  God is not a replacement to fill a void in time.  Instead, think of it as a chance to be fed by your Provider, be healed by the Healer, and be taught by the Master.  I urge you not to go into it with the expectation that a blessing will come by the end of the week.  Remember God wants your heart, not your timeline.  Do it because you trust Him and know that He will never leave nor forsake you.  Do it because you love Him.  I know I do.