To all those taking part in the Fasting programme and those unnecessary deliberating to do so... A reminder of the word shared by the pastor in September on Fasing.. WORD FOR TODAY with Pastor Aubrey Mwasinga - 24 Sept 2013 WHAT IS THE BEST TIME TO FAST & PRAY?...WHEN THE DEVIL STRIKES? “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and FASTING” (Matthew 17:21 MKJV) Many Christians do not fast often. The very few times that they fast are when they encounter certain challenges and these challenges have become giants to them. Fasting is therefore only a response to a problem. “An effective way to get a prayer answered quickly”, they think. This should not however be the case. The best time to fast is not when a challenge has come. Fasting should be done to spiritually build oneself and in turn prepare for any future challenge that might come. If you keep yourself spiritually prepared at all times, it is not necessary to fast against every challenge that comes. You are already prepared to deal with it. This is what distinguishes reactive and proactive Christians. Reactive ones respond to a situation where as proactive ones prepare in advance of a situation. In our main verse above, a boy had epilepsy and suffered terribly; for frequently he fell into the fire and many times into the water. This boy was then brought to the disciples so that they would heal him but they failed. Jesus later came and cast out from the boy the demon that caused the sickness. The disciples were baffled that Jesus had healed the boy whom they had failed to heal. The disciples then met Jesus privately and asked “Why could not we cast the demon out?” Jesus first attributed the failure to their lack of faith. He didn’t however stop there; He put an additional reason to the effect that even if they had the faith, they would not have still healed the boy. He said “However, THIS KIND does not go out except by prayer and fasting” (Matt. 17:21) Notice that He says ‘this kind’ meaning that there are demons of different kinds and ‘this kind’ – like the one that was in the boy – required prayer and fasting. Many have preached on this scripture and said ‘whatever problem you meet, you must fast if you are to get an answer.’ Now, say someone is sick to the point of death. If they are to fast during that critical time, it may actually do them more harm than good. Or, for example, such a person calls you to pray for them and you say “I have to fast first because I sense that this kind won’t go out except by prayer and fasting”. By the time you finish your 7-day fast, they may already be dead! This is certainly not what Jesus meant. Let me ask you a question: did Jesus himself first go into a fasting after they brought the boy to him? No! Jesus didn’t fast at that time though he knew this kind of situation needed prayer and fasting. What Jesus meant is that one should habitually maintain a prayer and fasting life. And when problems arise that need prayer and fasting, he will be able to overcome them. Jesus himself prayed and fasted often. The disciples however NEVER fasted. We know this from Matthew 9:14 “Then the disciples of John came to Jesus saying, why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples DO NOT FAST?” Because they never lived a life of prayer and fasting, they could not overcome situations that needed prayer and fasting. Prayer and fasting does something to your inner man that builds and prepares you for challenges ahead. Prayer and fasting is not for just getting answers to what you need, it also builds your spirit. It tremendously builds your faith and your ability to sense the direction that the Holy Spirit wants you to take. And praying in other tongues does this far better than praying in your understanding. Prayer can’t obviously be just for making God know what you need. The bible says God already knows what we need even before we ask Him (Matt. 6:8). There is more to it. Prayer does something to your inner man that makes you ready to receive that which you desire. It builds and prepares you for anything that you may need. Make A Decision Today! I have made it a practice to at least fast every week, sometimes the whole week or more. I don’t do this out of religion but it prepares me for challenges that I face every day in my life. Do the same. Make a decision to fast often to build and prepare yourself against every challenge in your ministry, family, career – any area of your life! Senior Pastor.
Posted on: Tue, 21 Jan 2014 08:03:19 +0000