Intentional Spiritual Growth
Posted by Dion Todd April 2nd, 2023 3,212 Views 0 Comments
Intentional Spiritual Growth from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo.
t's time to align with the divine! To clear our ears and get in tune with what the Lord is doing today. It is planting season once again and a time for intentional spiritual growth. You won't complete a marathon if you haven't disciplined yourself to run for hours. That ability is not given to you. It is earned.
Olympic gold medalists have all spent years preparing themselves. Bodybuilders invest years into exercise and eating the right things to encourage their muscles to grow. The list of things people dedicate themselves to is endless, yet, how many will devote the time to grow in faith?
(Isaiah 55:6–7 NKJV) Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.
(Jeremiah 29:13 NKJV) And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.
(Psalm 37:4 NKJV) Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
(Hebrews 11:6 NKJV) But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
(Psalm 34:10 NKJV) The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.
It is time to seek the Lord. As many of you know, Refreshing Hope hosts a corporate fast during the month of April. Sylvia and I have fasted for the months of April and August for over ten years and have watched in amazement at the things the Lord has done for us. Seemingly impossible doors opened many times on the last day of the fast. Relationships we thought were long gone were suddenly repaired. At the start of one fast, we became unemployed, and at the end, we started Refreshing Hope Ministries. When you seek the kingdom of God first, all these things will be added to you!
During His sermon on the mount in Matthew chapter 6, Jesus mentioned three things His disciples would do: 1) When you pray, 2) When you give and 3) When you fast.
Most Christians believe we should pray. Some think we should give, but few Christians practice fasting. It is a lost art of the church. This is sad because fasting is the most powerful, life-changing thing a Christian can do. Prayer and fasting bring the breakthrough. If prayer were a rocket, fasting would be the fuel that drives it. Most of the wow moments in my life came after fasting, many times on the very last day.
Fasting is all through the Bible, but let's focus on Jesus, who lived as our example. Jesus fasted for forty days before He began His earthly ministry (Matthew 4:2). He probably drank water and fasted from food because, in the end, He was hungry but not thirsty. Jesus said that the Bridegroom would be taken away one day, and in those days, His disciples would fast. He has now been taken away, and we are living in the days He spoke of.
(Luke 5:33–35 NASB) And they said to Him, "The disciples of John often fast and offer prayers, the disciples of the Pharisees also do the same, but Yours eat and drink." And Jesus said to them, "You cannot make the attendants of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them, can you? "But the days will come; and when the bridegroom is taken away from them, then they will fast in those days."
Some strongholds require fasting and prayer together. In Matthew 17, the disciples of Jesus ran into a demon of epilepsy they could not cast out. When they brought the boy to Jesus, He cast it out. Later, when the disciples asked Him why they couldn't, He said this:
(Matthew 17:19–21 NASB) Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not drive it out?" And He said to them, "Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you. "But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting."
Jesus had prepared Himself beforehand with a forty-day fast. Fasting brings the power of God into your life. Jesus was baptized and full of the Holy Spirit (Luke 4:1). After fasting forty days and beating the temptation, He came out in the Power of the Holy Spirit (Luke 4:14) and began His ministry on earth. There are no recorded miracles before His forty-day fast.
(Luke 4:1–2 NASB) Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led around by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He became hungry.
(Luke 4:14 NASB) And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about Him spread through all the surrounding district.
Fasting clears the airways where you can hear the Lord speaking to you and raises your spiritual discernment. In Luke 2:36, a widow named Anna prayed and fasted at the temple, and she recognized who the baby Jesus really was. Also, she was in the right place at the right time to meet Him.
The Apostles fasted and prayed before making big decisions, sent out missionaries (Acts 13:3), or appointed leaders (Acts 14:23). David fasted for mercy (2 Samuel 12:22). Judah fasted when he got in trouble (2 Chronicles 20:3). Ezra fasted for protection (Ezra 8:21). Nehemiah fasted in repentance (Nehemiah 1:4). Esther fasted for divine favor (Esther 4:16). Daniel fasted for wisdom and insight (Daniel 9:3). The people of Nineveh repented with fasting, and God spared their city (Jonah 3:5). Here are a few types of fasts in the Bible:
Exodus 34:28: Moses fasted forty days and nights with no food or water because he was in the supernatural presence of God. Warning: do not try this at home unless you are literally standing in the Lord's presence. Water is vital to your body's functions, and going without water for more than three days can kill you. I would not recommend fasting without water unless you have a clear word from the Lord.
Esther 4:16: Esther and her young women fasted three days and nights without food or water before she went in to see the king. She needed emergency help from the Lord and took drastic measures - hence, no water.
Daniel 10:2: Daniel did a twenty-one-day vegan type fast where he "ate no delicacies, no meat or wine entered my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all, for the full three weeks." We do this fast sometimes and find it refreshing. We eat salads, vegetables, fruits, and nuts, along with water. After a few weeks, we have a sharper mind, feel better, and our spiritual ears are restored. It is a completely valid fast from the Bible that almost anyone can do.
Luke 4:2: Jesus fasted forty days and nights, probably on just water. Luke said that He ate nothing, and afterward, He was hungry, but it does not mention water or being thirsty.
Jonah 3:6: The city of Nineveh did a corporate fast, and even the livestock were not allowed to eat or drink. Though Jonah had declared that the city would be destroyed in forty days, when they humbled themselves, God showed them mercy and turned away. Desperate times called for desperate actions.
As with many other things, when religious people show off their good works to call attention to themselves, they get no reward from God. If you fast to be seen by men, then you already have your reward. The word "Hypocrite" means "Actor."
Jesus said: "And whenever you are fasting, do not look gloomy and sour and dreary like the hypocrites, for they put on a dismal countenance, that their fasting may be apparent to and seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full already." (Matthew 6:16 AMP).
We have been on many fasts over the years. At first, we were very paranoid about telling anyone, but that became bondage in itself. When you are on a fast, and someone asks you to dinner, you should not have to make up lies as to why you cannot go. So now we operate on a need-to-know basis. If a friend invites us to dinner during a fast, we honestly tell them that we are on a fast right now, but maybe we can catch up later. They understand, and we don't have to come up with excuses or make them feel shunned.
The fast we are doing in April will be a corporate-type fast like the people of Nineveh did. The entire city fasted and prayed, and God spared their city from destruction. Like when Esther, her maidens, and all the Jews who lived in Susa fasted for three days before she went to speak to the king, and God granted them a miracle deliverance (Esther 4:16). It is a group fast where we all fast and pray together.
If you wish to participate in our group fast, I encourage you to join our ministry events group here so we can strengthen one another.
You can pray this with me if you like:
Prayer: Heavenly Father, please give me the wisdom to know the truth. I want more of Your Holy Spirit in my life. Speak to me in a way that I understand, and let me know if I should participate in this coming fast. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!