One of my favorite scriptures on fasting is found in Acts 13:2-3, "As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away."

The Holy Spirit will begin to speak to you about your purpose and your destiny when you fast and pray. God has a specific destiny planned for you, one that your choices and your response to Him will unlock. Fasting is an intentional choice to press into the depths of God’s heart to hear His plans and move forward in your divine destiny in the power of His Spirit.

I never cease to be amazed by how God can connect people to accomplish His purposes. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, God gives men and women talents, gifts, discernment and insight that—when brought together with what has been given to someone else—can change the world.

That is what the fast that God has chosen accomplishes. It breaks the bondages and limitations off of your life so that God can release His power through you to help others. God chooses a fast that loosens bonds of wickedness, lifts heavy burdens, frees those who are oppressed and breaks every yoke.

There is a list of ordinary people in the eleventh chapter of the book of Hebrews who did extraordinary things for God because they never lost the vision, and they refused to turn back even in the worst of times. When you follow God, not everybody will go with you. Go with God when He is calling you out of your comfort zone. Continue to trust Him to lead and guide you into the purposes and plans that He has for your life.

READING: Hebrews 11

No trip to Israel is complete without a visit to the Garden Tomb, the location believed to be the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea where they laid the body of Jesus after He was crucified. When you go inside, you can see a little sign that reads, “He is not here, He is risen.” Jesus only borrowed that tomb for a few days. He rose from death to life–so that we may live in Him.

Resurrection power! We are dead to sin and alive in Christ by the same power that raised Him from the dead. The book of Romans tells us, “And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you” (8:10-11).

As you approach the end of your fast, reflect upon the power of God to bring life—to resurrect those things in our lives that are dead. It could be your marriage, your job, your passion for God. The Lord can raise to life what the enemy has tried to destroy. Hold fast to His promises.

When you fast and pray in alignment with God’s will, He hears. You can rest assured that you have set something in motion in the supernatural even if you are not able to discern them in the natural, Sometimes you can pray for something but you don’t see the answer right away. Keep praying. Don’t let go of your faith and do not cast aside your confidence! It may be that the thing you are praying for is just not ready or in God’s timing yet. Your prayers will not be ignored or discarded. Prayers don’t have an expiration date!

READING: Romans 8

Have you felt like giving up and just throwing in the towel? Maybe you have grown tired of all the battles and struggles because all the disappointments have caused your hope to fade. I understand that. What is more important is the fact that Jesus understands, too. Don’t forget that He was tempted to take short cuts and quit when He was fasting in the desert for 40 days. But He pressed on. He did not quit. The number one thing the enemy would like to get us to do is to quit. It may be quitting your marriage, quitting your dream or even quitting your walk with the Lord.

There are times when we all go through the pit of life and we all go through times when it feels like we’ve hit bottom. But Deuteronomy 33:27 says, "The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms." No matter how low you feel—you are still in His arms, never out of His reach.

I have had prayers answered and I have had prayers go unanswered. I have had miracles happen and I have endured huge disappointments. I have had high mountains where God gave me things, showed me beautiful insights into His Word and in specific situations, amused me in amazing ways. I have also had low, low valleys where I felt God had forsaken me. But I am not in this for what I can get out of Jesus. I’m in this because He loved me first and gave Himself for me. Scripture says, "Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).

He will not forsake you. He will never leave you (Deuteronomy 31:6). As you’re drawing close to Him, He’s drawing close to you. Be encouraged as you are fasting and praying for more of His presence.

READING: Psalm 23

Have you ever taken time to search God’s Word and mark down some of His promises to His people? It is a very encouraging way to study God’s Word. In Jeremiah 29111-13 we find, "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart."

The Apostle Paul writes, "For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us" (2 Corinthians 1:20).

Meditate on Scriptures like Isaiah 53, where Isaiah describes the punishment that the Lord endured so that we could be healed. Scripture reveals that on several occasions God in­structs His people to do one thing and promises that He will do something in response. You see this in Isaiah 58, where the Lord is explaining the goal of genuine fasting to His people. Even in that chapter, the Lord promises:

Then your light shall break forth like the morning,

 Your healing shall spring forth speedily,

And your righteousness shall go before you;

The glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.

Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer;

You shall cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’

(Isaiah 58:8-9)

In these final days of the fast—continue to set your heart and mind on things above. Cling to the promises of God, as Paul tells us, "Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God" (2 Corinthians 7:1).

READING: Isaiah 58

Fasting without prayer is simply a diet. Combining prayer with fasting raises the intensity, like pouring gas on a fire. It’s a powerful mix. As you join thousands of others all over the world who are fasting and crying out to God during this fast, you can believe that something powerful is taking place.

God’s Word promises, "You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:13). God invites us to seek Him. Intimacy cannot be rushed. It must be worked on day by day. Jesus was frequently surrounded by large crowds of people, but He often withdrew to get alone with God and pray. He knew that He needed to stay tapped into the Source of all things, and so do we. Prayer and fasting were a big part of Jesus’ life. Why should it be such a small part of ours?

There is both reward and wisdom to be found when we tune out the noise of the world and come away to hear God’s heart through fasting and prayer. Spend extra time in prayer today. Make a prayer list – a "hit list" – of people who are not saved, and pray over their names. Pray for people that you know who are sick or struggling with family or financial issues. Fasting is persistent prayer!

The Bible tells us that Jesus is our High Priest in Heaven who ever lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25). He’s been praying for you today. Maybe you are having a tough day. You’re hungry. The devil has come against you as he often does on a fast. He’s tempting you to give up, to just quit. Remember that when the devil is tempting you—Jesus is praying for you! Keep asking! Keep seeking! Keep knocking!

READING: Hebrews 7

The night came when Jesus was about to be betrayed and arrested (Matthew 26:36-40). He took His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray, but He kept finding them sleeping instead of praying. Jesus finally asked, “Could you not tarry with me one hour?”

That is such a sad question. Unfortunately, it is one the Lord could ask many believers every day. If spending at least an hour a day with the Lord is not part of your daily routine, I en­courage you to take an hour today and just say, “Lord, today I’m going to read the Word and pray, and wait (tarry) to hear from You.” The only way to learn how to pray is to pray. If you don’t ever start to pray you’ll never learn. Prayer time is not just about you filling the air with words and requests. Prayer is also about waiting—tarrying. It is about quietness before the Lord. Don’t force it if you don’t really know what to pray. Just be quiet and let the Holy Spirit begin to bring things up in your mind to pray about. Sometimes you might have a song of worship. Sing it to the Lord and reflect on His goodness. That will often lead to prayer rising up out of your spirit.

When you seek the Lord through fasting and prayer, you empty yourself so He can bring out those things that He put in you for His purposes. Jesus knew how important it was to “come away” and be with God in prayer. When you fast, it is a season to set yourself apart from the routine of life, business, mindless entertainment and sink deeply into God’s Word. When you are empty, quiet and broken before Him, you can hear His voice more clearly. Don’t quit now. Keep on fasting and praying.

READING: Psalm 141

Near the Sea of Galilee in Israel stands a church built as a memorial to Jesus’ miraculous provision that fed over 5000 people. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all give an account of this miracle. Luke says that Jesus "spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing" (Luke 9:10-16).

What an amazing day that must have been for those who came to listen to the teaching of the Messiah. Men, women and children gathered to hear about the kingdom of God. They were partaking of the "bread of life" and did not fully realize it. Then, the Lord multiplied 5 small loaves of bread and 2 fish, enough to feed the entire crowd with some left over.

Have you ever wondered if some people went home early that day? Perhaps they had other things to do or went home to grab a snack because they were hungry. Imagine what they must have felt like after hearing stories of the multitude being fed by miraculous provision! When you are close to the kingdom of God, there is always enough.

Fasting is such a powerful spiritual discipline because it helps you break through worldly thinking and physical limitations so that you can recognize God’s supernatural provision.

As you continue to fast, setting aside these early days of the year to honor the Lord, pray and believe for this to be a year of supernatural provision. You may not have much, like that little boy’s lunch. But in the hands of the Lord, it is plenty. As long as the disciples kept what they had in their hands it was useless. But when they put it in the hands of the Master, then suddenly it was increased. May the work of your hands be abundantly blessed and prosperous this year!

READING: Psalm 1

Wilderness places are dry, lonely places. David cried out to the Lord in the desert of Judea,

O God, You are my God;

Early will I seek You;

My soul thirsts for You;

My flesh longs for You

In a dry and thirsty land

Where there is no water.

Psalm 63:1

Wilderness seasons can be very hard to endure. Have you been hit hard by the economic woes that are so prevalent? Perhaps you have suffered a tragic loss of a loved one and endured a long season of grief. Sometimes wilderness seasons come where we just don’t feel God’s presence like we once did.

We all have different wilderness experiences—the key is to never let go of your faith. God has not abandoned you. He will faithfully lead you through as you hold on to Him. He can cause you to bloom in the midst of that desert wilderness!

David says in Psalm 63 that he is in a dry place, without even water to drink. He was running for his life and seemed quite far from his calling and anointing as king. But even in that dry place, his hunger and thirst were not focused on his own lack or discomfort, but on the Lord.

The Lord can take the worst mess of our lives and turn that mess into a message that minis­ters hope and healing to others. You can endure. You can bloom even in the desert. As you fast today, trust God to encourage your heart and guide you through. He provided a path to victory before you ever entered the wilderness season, and He will lead you on the way you should go as you press in to Him.

READING: Psalm 139

When you walk around the city of Jerusalem you can hear roosters crowing every morning. As I walked along the path that Jesus would have taken where He would be beaten and stand before Caiaphas, I thought of Peter. Jesus had already told Peter that he would deny Him before the rooster crowed three times. When it happened, the Bible says Peter ran off and wept bitterly (Luke 22:62).

The weight of his guilt and confusion must have been tremendous. Do you sometimes feel as though you have failed the Lord, like you have messed up beyond repair? Day after day, the reminder is there—just like Peter every time he heard a rooster crow. The enemy haunted him with his failure trying to prevent him from following God’s will for his life.

Maybe there is a rooster crowing from your past. It keeps reminding you of a failure that you just can’t shake. Remember: Peter was forgiven and restored! Jesus never intended for him to wallow in that guilt—but to repent and rise up to walk in the full power of his calling. The same goes for you. Jesus calls you to repent, rise up and walk in your calling!

That is why fasting is such a powerful tool, It revives the soul! Fasting helps you sweep out the junk. Lam praying that everyone participating in this fast will experience a level of real revival that silences the haunting, crowing voices of the past.

God has a plan for your life. Peter preached and 3,000 people were saved—the same man who denied Jesus and wept bitterly in shame and disgrace was mightily used by God as the voice of Pentecost. It is time to tune out the roosters and allow God to bring you beyond your past into the anointing that He has for your life,

READING: Acts 2

When Jesus was to be crucified, He was taken to a hill outside of the city known as Golgotha. The name Golgotha means “the place of the Skull” in Aramaic, and translated into Latin we get “Calvary.” I find it interesting that the ultimate victory over sin and death was staged at the place of the skull. That reconfirms to me that we will never be truly victorious in our own lives until we have victory in the place of the skull—our mind and thoughts.

Once we are born-again, Paul warns that we are no longer to submit and conform to this world, but we are to “be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2).

We can either submit to God or submit to the world. It is one or the other. Whatever fills our thought life is what will eventually become the reality of our daily life, Are your thoughts on things above (Colossians 3:2)? Or is your mind full of things of this world? Fasting is a choice to break the allure of the world as we put our flesh under submission to the will of God. Especially on an extended fast, you will discover that time spent fasting, praying and meditating on God’s Word cleanses and purifies your heart and focuses your thoughts on things above rather than the stuff of this world.

As you continue to fast and pray, continue to renew your mind in His Word. “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things” (Philippians 4:8).

READING: Philippians 2