Yes, Lord

pTomorrow, many of you, our sweet online friends and readers, will be taking a step of faith together. We are going to be doing something outside our comfort zone – a href=”http://www.goingbeyond.com/blog/join-me-simple-fast” target=”_blank”fasting breakfast./a /p
pMaybe you, like me, have found a href=”http://www.goingbeyond.com/blog/fast-i-dont-wanna” target=”_blank”every reason/a to avoid fasting, but are at a point at which you are getting tired of giving God the run-around. If you have felt Him nudging you to do a fast, this is a perfect opportunity to act in obedience, because you won’t be alone./p
pNow, let me first say that if God is NOT tugging on your heart to participate, please don’t feel guilty or coerced.  This is not going to be for everyone – and it SHOULDN’T be. Remember, it is simply an opportunity – if you’d like – to join with others as we bring our hearts before Him in prayer./p
p Let’s go through a few steps as we think about tomorrow morning./p
pstrongKnow your objective: What is your purpose in this fast?/strong Maybe it’s repentence, an act of obedience, an urgent prayer request, preparation for a spiritual task, direction, or just spiritual discipline – all are reasons to fast. Is something weighing heavily on your heart? This is a chance to lay it all out there. Since we will be only fasting one meal, I am going to focus on just one thing. Remember, we are going to keep this simple. Yeah, I probably have enough issues to fill a 40-day fast, but I’m just not able to do that yet. Baby steps./p
pstrongPrepare spiritually./strong Bill Bright, of Campus Crusade for Christ, offers some excellent guidelines:/p
pem”The very foundation of fasting and prayer is repentance. Unconfessed
sin will hinder your prayers. Here are several things you can do to
prepare your heart:/em/p
ul
liemAsk God to help you make a
comprehensive list of your sins./em/li
liemConfess every sin that the
Holy Spirit calls to your remembrance and accept God’s forgiveness (1
John 1:9)./em/li
liemSeek forgiveness from all whom you have offended,
and forgive all who have hurt you (Mark 11:25; Luke 11:4; 17:3,4)./em/li
liemMake restitution as the Holy Spirit leads you./em/li
liemAsk God to
fill you with His Holy Spirit according to His command in Ephesians
5:18 and His promise in 1 John 5:14,15./em/li
liemSurrender your life
fully to Jesus Christ as your Lord and Master; refuse to obey your
worldly nature (Romans 12:1,2)./em/li
liemMeditate on the attributes of
God, His love, sovereignty, power, wisdom, faithfulness, grace,
compassion, and others (Psalm 48:9,10; 103:1-8, 11-13)./em/li
liemBegin
your time of fasting and prayer with an expectant heart (Hebrews 11:6)./em/li
liemDo not underestimate spiritual opposition. Satan sometimes
intensifies the natural battle between body and spirit (Galatians
5:16,17).”/em/li
/ul
pstrongPrepare your physical body:/strong Eating a huge meal at night pretty much guarantees that I’ll wake up starving – emwhy is that??/em So tonight, I suggest eating a smaller meal and limiting sugary foods. If you have health issues, please consider those before you skip a meal: i.e. certain medications need to be taken with food, diabetics have dietary needs etc. Consult a doctor if you have concerns./p
pSelf-discipline is not something that comes easily to me. But I’m drawing a small line in the sand tomorrow, and I’m determined to do a difficult, but achievable, act of discipline and obedience.  I’m excited that so many of you are going to be right alongside me! Knowing that we are in this together gives me courage and backbone. Do you feel it, too?/p
pPrayerfully expectant, Rachel/p