Boonsboro Family Worship Center
21 Days of Prayer and Fasting
January 5, 2014 through January 25, 2014
Prayer Initiative – Sundays at 5:30pm and
Wednesday Nights in January from 7pm to 8:30
Our church as a congregation are seeking God for direction in the upcoming year, for our families and our community. Keeping our mind on the cross and the blood of Jesus.
Fasting and Prayer is a voluntary activity, and it is always appropriate for God's people to set aside devoted time to bring an event, family members and problems to the Lord. If you are unfamiliar with the practice of fasting, we ask that you read on to learn more, and then decide whether or not you want to fast while you pray!
What is fasting?
Fasting involves a Christian's voluntary abstinence from food for spiritual purposes, but an even broader view of fasting widely accepted by Christians is given by Richard Foster in his book Celebration of Discipline. Fasting, according to Foster, is "the voluntary denial of a normal function for the sake of intense spiritual activity."
Scriptures about Fasting
2 Samuel 12:16, Ezra 8:21, 1 Samuel 7:6, 2 Samuel 1:12, Acts 13:2-3; 14:23, Matthew 6:16-18, 1 Corinthians 7:3-5
What can I fast?
We can choose to fast from any activity that might get in the way of our spending quality time with God in prayer. So, don't shy away from fasting because you feel you will have a really hard time not eating or because for medical reasons you cannot go without food.
Consider fasting from this broader perspective and give up whatever it is that might distract you from having a quality, rich, deep prayer time with the Lord!
Here are some ideas of what you can fast: food except fruit or juice, meat, sweets caffeine, talking on your cell phone, watching TV, Facebook, tweeting or texting, sleeping
How long shall I fast?
The Fast that we as a church are embarking on is a 21 day corporate fast. You may chose to do different types of fasts during the time frame, but ultimately fast for the entire 21 days.
Fast with someone else.
Consider pairing up with a support/accountability partner — someone who will pray with you, and who will fast alongside you. This may help you to increase your diligence in praying and fasting.
**Some parts of this have been taken from the Compassion website.
