Prayer and Fasting

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littlelady

littlelady

Junior Member
Dec 28, 2015
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I have been thinking a lot about the rituals of prayer and fasting lately. It is something we as a church often partake in (it is optional of course) and I know it is one of the rituals from the old testament times that has survived while sacrifices and such have been dropped.

It has always been my understanding and what I have been taught throughout my life that Jesus paid for all of our sins on the cross which is why we no longer need to offer sacrifices and perform cleansing rituals etc etc, and in regards to fasting I believe it is something we do to please and honour God. It typically comes up in my church community when we are really praying into something significant or a special occasion is approaching. I have also been taught that God loves me no matter what and it is not by good works that I am saved or glorified, for want of a better word. It is all about God and following Him.

I am in the process of some changes and circumstances and I felt a subtle urge inside me to pray and fast but I wasn't sure if I was doing this out of the motive to be a golden child and be "good" so God would look on me with favour, which I believe isn't the right reason to do something and is in no way honouring God who sees my heart and my motives so clearly. I've just been thinking about the reasons behind fasting and wanted to come here and reach out for answers from you wise folk.

Please forgive my ignorance, I trust this is a safe place to gain insight from other Christians without judgement :)
 
I don't have any experience with fasting, but judging by what you have written in your post, your motives are pure :)
 
It seems that your understanding is biblically sound. Jesus, when questioned by the Pharisees as to why His disciples did not fast, responded that they would fast after He was taken from them. Therefore I don't see fasting as a "holdover" from the OT. The Pharisees clearly did their fasting "before men". Jesus exhorts us to fast "before God" and not to draw attention to ourselves.

Because of this, many Christians don't even like to talk about fasting, and therefore few understand how it's done. Richard Foster wrote a book called Celebration of Discipline which discusses many practices including fasting. He shares much wisdom and writes of his own experiences so it isn't all theory.
 
Praying and fasting has a few things it does. Its to humble your spirit that lies in the stomache, deliverance and its a "telegramm" to pressure things before God
 
LL,

Hubby and I have 'fasted' often over these many years since our conversation, always out of
a desire to draw closer to Jesus...denying yourself of food and water should bring some results
of the 'clearing of the mind' in order to find out what we need to do in regards to
our relationship with Jesus...it's just another way to confirm or find out how we really feel
about ourselves and our lives at particular times, often we are led to do this by Jesus, but
also by our desire to stay in His Will and understand where our own wills are at that
moment in time...

questioning your 'own' motives is such a good thing, a sign that you want to go on ahead
and become more mature in Jesus Christ...we commend you and love your precious spirit...
 
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