Preparation for Power 2

Part Two
In 2006 - Why should we fast?

Over the past few months we have been studying revivals - actually three centuries of revival. We have looked at the different moves of God in the world and in particular the response of people to his Holy Spirit moving. Over and over again it is remarkable to see that the great revivals were preceded by people praying and fasting.

Fasting is a powerful discipline, that when properly exercised, can produce amazing results in the loves of those that take part in it. Further reaching is the powerful affect that it has on the church as its members take part in fasting and prayer. There is a difference.

In Sarnia, Ontario in recent times we have heard reports of remarkable things happening in a continuous series of meeting - now known as the Sarnia Revival. One interesting note is that it was preceded with people from the church committing themselves to prayer and fasting.

With an interest to help us understand what Fasting does for our personal lives and for our church the following is taken from a book entitled “Fasting for Spiritual Breakthrough” by Elmer Towns.

In 2006 - Why should we fast?

• Because more than ever before, believers are in bondage todemonic powers and need strength to stand against sin (seeThe Disciple's Fast).
• Because believers throughout the world need solutions tomany complex problems and threatening situations they arefacing (see The Ezra Fast).
• Because the Church is in desperate need of revival, andevery tribe and tongue and nation is in desperate need ofevangelization (see The Samuel Fast).
• Because the world in general and the Church in particular arecrying out for people of character and integrity—people whohave found in Christ the emotional healing and strength toovercome sinful and destructive habits (see The Elijah Fast).
• Because the abundance of food has insulated NorthAmerican believers from the realities of starvation and mal­nutrition in the two-thirds world (see The Widow's Fast).
• Because the media has so captured the national attentionthat even believers are operating according to principlescompletely alien to God's will for their lives (see The SaintPaul Fast).
• Because even with the abundance of food and medical tech­-
  nology in North America, people are not necessarily health­ier
  (see The Daniel Fast).
• Because a great many believers have become so entangled ineconomic and social pursuits that they need to be set free toestablish their testimonies and to influence others for Christ(see The John the Baptist Fast).
• Because of the growing influence of demonic forces and thewaning influence of biblical Christianity in North America,and the fact that believers need protection from the evil one(see The Esther Fast).

Nine Fasts God Can Use
- From “Fasting for Spiritual Breakthrough” by Elmer Towns

To better illustrate and reveal the significance of these nine reasons for fasting, I have chosen nine biblical characters whose lives personified the literal or figurative theme of each of the nine aspects highlighted in Isaiah 58:6-8. Each fast has a different name, accomplishes a different purpose and follows a different prescription.

I do not want to suggest that the nine fasts we are about to explore are the only kinds of fasts available to the believer, or that they are totally separate from each other. Nor do I want to suggest that there is only one type of fast for a particular problem. These suggested fasts are models to use and adjust to your own particular needs and desires as you seek to grow closer to God. What follows is a brief overview of the nine fasts that will comprise the rest of this book:

1. The Disciple's Fast
Purpose: "To loose the bands of wickedness" (Isa. 58:6)—freeing our­selves and others from addictions to sin.
Key Verse: "This kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting" (Matt. 17:21, KJV).
Background: Jesus cast out a demon from a boy whom the disciples had failed to help. Apparently they had not taken seriously enough the way Satan had his claws set in the youth. The implication is that Jesus' disciples could have performed this exorcism had they been willing to undergo the discipline of fasting. Modern disciples also often make light of "besetting sins" that could be cast out if we were serious enough to take part in such a self-denying practice as fasting—hence the term "Disciple's Fast"

2. The Ezra Fast
Purpose: To "undo the heavy burdens" (Isa. 58:6)—to solve problems, inviting the Holy Spirif s aid in lifting loads and overcoming barriers that keep ourselves and our loved ones from walking joyfully with the Lord.
Key Verse: "So we fasted and entreated our God for this, and He answered our prayer" (Ezra 8:23).
Background: Ezra the priest was charged with restoring the Law of Moses among the Jews as they rebuilt the city of Jerusalem by permission of Artaxerxes, king of Persia, where God's people had been held captive. Despite this permission, Israel's enemies opposed them. Burdened with embarrassment about having to ask the Persian king for an army to pro­tect them, Ezra fasted and prayed for an answer,

3. The Samuel Fast
Purpose: "To let the oppressed (physically and spiritually) go free" (Isa. 58:6)—for revival and soul winning, to identify with people everywhere enslaved literally or by sin and to pray to be used of God to bring people out of the kingdom of darkness and into God's marvelous light.
Key Verse: "So they gathered together at Mizpah, drew water, and poured it out before the Lord. And they fasted that day, and said mere, 'We have sinned against the Lord'" (1 Sam. 7:6).
Background: Samuel led God's people in a fast to celebrate the return of the Ark of the Covenant from its captivity by the Philistines, and to pray that Israel might be delivered from the sin that allowed the Ark to be captured in the first place.

4. The Elijah Fast
Purpose: "To break every yoke" (Isa. 58:6)—conquering the mental and emotional problems that would control our lives, and returning the con­trol to the Lord.
Key Verse: "He himself went a day's journey into the wilderness....He arose and ate and drank; and he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights" (1 Kings 19:4,8).
Background: Although Scripture does not call this a formal "fast," Elijah deliberately went without food when he fled from Queen Jezebel's threat to kill him. After this self-imposed deprivation, God sent an angel to minister to Elijah in the wilderness.

5. The Widow's Fast
Purpose: "To share [our] bread with the hungry" and to care for the poor (Isa. 58:7) — to meet the humanitarian needs of others.
Key Verse: "The jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah" (1 Kings 17:16, NIV).
Background: God sent the prophet Elijah to a poor, starving widow — ironically, so the widow could provide food for Elijah. Just as Elijah's presence resulted in food for the widow of Zarephath, so presenting our­selves before God in prayer and fasting can relieve hunger today.

6. The Saint Paul Fast
Purpose: To allow God's "light [to] break forth like the morning" (Isa. 58:8), bringing clearer perspective and insight as we make crucial deci­sions.
Key Verse: "And he [Saul, or Paul] was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank" (Acts 9:9).
Background: Saul of Tarsus, who became known as Paul after his con­version to Christ, was struck blind by the Lord in the act of persecuting Christians. He not only was without literal sight, but he also had no clue about what direction his life was to take. After going without food and praying for three days, Paul was visited by the Christian Ananias, and both his eyesight and his vision of the future were restored.

7. The Daniel Fast
Purpose: So "thine health shall spring forth" (Isa. 58:8, K/V)— to gain a healthier life or for healing.
Key Verse: "Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile him-self with the portion of the king's delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank" (Dan. 1:8).
Background: Daniel and his three fellow Hebrew captives demonstrat­ed in Babylonian captivity that keeping themselves from pagan foods God had guided them not to eat made them more healthful than others in the king's court.

8. The John the Baptist Fast
Purpose: That "your righteousness shall go before you" (Isa. 58:8) — that our testimonies and influence for Jesus will be enhanced before others.
Key Verse: "He shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink" (Luke 1:15, K/V).
Background: Because John the Baptist was the forerunner of Jesus, he took the "Nazirite" vow that required him to "fast" from or avoid wine and strong drink. This was part of John's purposefully adopted lifestyle that designated him as one set apart for a special mission.

9. The Esther Fast
Purpose: That "the glory of the Lord" will protect us from the evil one (see Isa. 58:8).
Key Verses: "Fast for me...[and] my maids and I will fast...[and] I will go to the king...[and] she found favor in his sight" (Esther 4:16; 5:2).
Background: Queen Esther, a Jewess in a pagan court, risked her life to save her people from threatened destruction by Ahasuerus (Xerxes), king of Persia. Prior to appearing before the king to petition him to save the Jews, Esther, her attendants and her cousin Mordecai all fasted to appeal to God for His protection.