Prayer and Fasting

At The Bridge Church, we launching a 21-day fasting challenge. This is a season of focused prayer as a church family. You may also choose to fast for your own spiritual development. The timing of your fast is not as important as the strength of your focus on Him as you fast. 

The goal of fasting is to draw nearer to God. Biblical fasting always has to do with eliminating distractions for a spiritual purpose; it hits the reset button of our soul and renews us from the inside out. It also enables us to celebrate the goodness and mercy of God and prepares our hearts for all the good things God desires to bring into our lives. Remember, your personal fast should present a level of challenge, but it is very important to know your body, your options, and, most importantly, to seek God in prayer and follow what the Holy Spirit leads you to do. 

We will begin our fast on January 7th and end our fast January 28th which will be our anniversary celebration.

 

Begin to pray and ask God what you should fast from. There are a few different options of fasting.

Daniel Fast: Fruits, Vegetables, and Water (more information on Daniel Fast Here)
Sun up to Sundown fast: Fasting from food or something during this time period
One day a week fast: Picking one day each week to fast

No matter what you decide take the time you would have spent doing what you are eliminating and spend that time in prayer. Take time to journal some specific prayers.

As a church we are praying specifically for:

  1. We are praying that God will move in the hearts of those far from Him in the Lowcountry.

  2. That we will see people saved and go public with their salvation through baptism.

TYPES OF FASTS

Complete Fast

This fast calls for drinking only liquids, typically water with light juices as an option.

Partial Fast

This fast is sometimes called the Jewish Fast and involves abstaining from eating any type of food in the morning and afternoon. This can either correlate to specific times of the day, such as 6:00 am to 3:00 pm, or from sun up to sundown.

Selective Fast

This type of fast involves removing certain elements from your diet. One example of a selective fast is the Daniel Fast, during which you remove meat, sweets, or bread from your diet and consume water and juice for fluids and fruits and vegetables for food.

Soul Fast

This fast is common for those who do not have much experience fasting food, who have health issues that prevent them from fasting food, or who wish to refocus certain areas of their life that are out of balance. For instance, someone might select to abstain from using social media or watching television for the duration of the fast and then choose to carefully bring that element back into their life in an orderly fashion at the conclusion of the fast.

Listen in on this message on fasting from Pastor Chris Comstock at our sending church, Crossroads.

 

Scripture Reading

Make the most of your fast and use the SOAP Bible Reading Plan that will help you focus on your time with God.

 

JOURNALING THROUGH GOD’S WORD

Before you start, pray for God to show you how to apply the reading to your life today. Use the reading schedule to find today’s Scripture. Then begin reading today's scripture.  As you read, underline or write down anything that speaks to you as a personal word to be applied. When you read with an open heart, God will give you words of encouragement, direction, and correction. When you finish reading, use SOAP to write down how God’s word impacted you.

 

Resources on Fasting

Devoted to the Moment
Recources from Jentezen Franklin Media Ministries

https://ultimatedanielfast.com/ultimate-daniel-fast-food-guidelines/
Daniel Fast Resource