Day 12 - Principle 5: Relax and be Receptive

Despite the fact that I have done very few* things perfectly at the first try, I somehow had the idea that if you're doing something for God it must be perfect every time, no exceptions allowed.  After all, this is God and if it's not perfect

1. it is just not good enough,
2. God is liable to like me less (and I'm already on shaky ground, poor miserable sinner) and
3. I might get struck with boils or leprosy or something equally heinous and horrible.

Where do we** get these stupid, stupid ideas?  When did we start painting God as a bogeyman instead of the loving Father that He is?

Worst of all, how badly do we know Him if this is the picture we have of Him?  What kind of relationship do we have with Him?

This is a big reason why many people find it difficult to open up to God and be receptive to Him. 

There are some things that you must realise:

1. God loves you.As far as He is concerned you are the best thing since sliced bread.  You are the belle of the ball, the apple of His eye.
2. God (the Creator of the heavens and earth, the almighty God, the Lord of hosts,  the One Who introduces Himself as "I am") is eager to spend time with you.  He looks forward to welcoming you in His presence, to listen to you and to talk to you.

Now once you realise the above, how can you not relax and be receptive in His presence? 

As you get ready to pray, set your mind at ease by reminding yourself about these things.  Relax your body by doing a relaxation exercise***.  In 15 Ways to more Effective Prayer Selwyn Hughes describes such a relaxation routine.  You can also Google and find some exercises online.


* very few = none, last time I looked...
** ok, I know you're perfect and this doesn't apply to you.  But I'm sure there's someone else reading it who is not perfect.  It's written for him (and me).
***If you already know an efficient relaxation exercise, post it here so that everybody can take advantage of it.

Day 11 - I love You Lord

Day 10 - Principle 4: Find a suitable place

From a practical perspective, this principle may be a very difficult one to implement.  Many people simply do not have a private place where they can be alone with God.

Still, Jesus said in Matthew 6:6 "But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret".  

(Note:  This does not mean that we are only ever supposed to pray alone in a room with a closed door.  There are times of corporate prayer as well - see Mat 18:19.  Jesus is talking about individual prayer here.)

Selwyn Hughes (15 Ways to More Effective Prayer) relates several stories about people who had this problem and how God led them to places where they could have privacy to pray.  Here they are:

"A young man I once counselled, a member of a large family, all of whom, apart from himself, were unbelievers, asked me to pray with him that God would enable him to find a quiet spot in which he could conduct his daily devotions.  We prayed together, and then some days later he telephoned me to share a most amazing story.  He said he was on his way to work that morning and noticed a minister about to park his car in a small car park adjacent to a church.  He felt led to go over to the minister and share with him the fact that he was a Christian. During the course of conversation the young man told the minister about his problem of not being able to find anywhere private in which to pray.  The minister said, 'Well, don't let it be a problem any longer.  I come to my church every morning at 7 a.m. to d my own praying.  I have a spare room which you can use if you wish, and when I am away then you will be able to borrow the key and use it indefinitely.'"

"A friend of mine, a young businessman and the only Christian in a large family told me how he overcame the problem of not being able to find a private place in which to pray.  He travels on an early commuter train from Guildford, Surrey to Waterloo, a journey that takes about 45 minutes.  'I spend almost all of that time' he said 'in contact with the Lord.  Although the train is often crowded I have learned to become deaf to the distractions.  As soon as the train pulls out of the station I climb the stairs in my soul to the sacred chamber of my imagination where I picture myself meeting with the Lord Jesus.  Every morning He greets me with a smile and says "I'm glad you've come".'  Admittedly it has taken him some time to learn the secret, but with patience and perseverance you, too, can learn to build a chapel in your soul."

"It should not be forgotten, also, by those whose prayer life is hindered because of lack of privacy, that it is always possible to go for a walk with Jesus.  Christmas Evans, one of the greatest preachers Wales has ever known, tells of walking along the base of Mount Snowdon one evening and entering into such a spiritual tete a tete with the Lord that it transformed his whole being."

The key to the Christian life is knowing God (John 17:3, Mat 7:21-23) and spending time alone with God in prayer is an invaluable part of building that personal relationship.

If you have experienced God providing you with a private place to pray, please share it with us by leaving a comment.  Similarly, if you do not have such a place and would like one, please post a prayer request so that we can pray with you that God will provide for you.

Day 9 - Blessed Assurance

1. Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
   Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!
   Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
   Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.
   • Refrain:
     This is my story, this is my song,
     Praising my Savior all the day long;
     This is my story, this is my song,
     Praising my Savior all the day long.
2. Perfect submission, perfect delight,
   Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
   Angels, descending, bring from above
   Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.
3. Perfect submission, all is at rest,
   I in my Savior am happy and blest,
   Watching and waiting, looking above,
   Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

Day 8 - Principle 3: Keep your appointment

Keep your appointment.  That seems simple - and obvious - enough.  

Here's the kicker:  Keep your appointment even when you don't feel like it.

You won't always feel like praying.  Sometimes it will feel as if you're just going through the motions, as if there's a brass ceiling right above your head and, as soon as the words leave your mouth, they crash to the ground.  Pointless, useless, wasted.  No God within a thousand knots.

But prayer isn't a matter of feeling.  It is an act of faith.  It is not based on your mood.  It is based on the sure foundation of God's word.

According to His word He will never leave or forsake us (Heb 13:5 - he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.).

According to His word, we should pray at all times (1 Thes 5:17 - Pray without ceasing.).

It is also simply good manners.  If you've agreed to meet a friend you do not just stay away.  The Friend that sticks closer than a brother (Prov 18:27) is worthy of at least that much courtesy.

In 15 Ways to a More Effective Prayer Life Selwyn Hughes identifies three reasons why it is particularly beneficial to pray when we don't feel like it:

1. The meek submission of our will deepens our spiritual life. God resists the proud but He gives grace to the humble (James 4:6 and 1 Pet 5:5).  The more we submit our will to His, the easier it becomes to follow Him in everything.
2. Our resolution to engage in prayer greatly strengthens thought control.  If you have difficulty to control your thoughts, you need practice.  The more you practice, the easier it becomes.
3. Committing ourselves to prayer when we don't feel like it develops powerful muscles in our faith.  Remember, it is faith that moves mountains (Matt 17:20), it is by faith that you can become a deep sea gardener (Luke 17:6).  Most important of all, it is only with faith that we can please God (Heb 11:6)

Day 7 - Ancient of Days

Day 7 - Principle 2: Establish a definite time

Do you think that prayer is an essential part of your daily life? Do you have problems keeping a regular prayer time? Does life keep interfering with your prayer life? Is your schedule just too full, too busy?

Here's the deal: You don't fit your prayer time into your schedule. Your schedule adapts to your prayer time.

Isn't that logical? After all, if prayer is as important as so many of us confess it to be, surely it should be very high on our list of priorities and it should enjoy more prominence and time than everything that is below it on the priority list.

Is that the case in your life?

If not, and if you're serious about improving your prayer life, this is your first step:

• Establish a definite prayer time.

 Make a decision to pray at a specific time every day.  Write it down.  Do it.

This may seem like something very simple, but you will be surprised how effective it is.  There's a huge difference between "I am going to pray every day" and "I am going to pray at 6 am every morning".

Of course "6 am" can also be "before breakfast".

My personal routine is to get up, shower, make a cup of tea and pray.  That's it.  That's how I start my day and it works for me.  Some days I sleep a bit later.  No problem.  My routine still holds.  When I have something to do (relatively) early in the morning, I get up earlier so that my routine still fits in.

It works.

Naturally this approach does not mean that there are no other times of prayer.  You can pray anytime, anywhere but having a set prayer time is for our benefit.  It helps us to be disciplined and to grow in our relationship with the Lord.

Selwyn Hughes (15 Ways to a More Effective Prayer Life) has this to say about establishing a definite prayer time:

Some Christians complain that their busy lives leave them no time to pray, but as it has been said "If you are too busy to pray, then you are busier than God intended you to be." So build a fence around a certain part of the day and reserve it for contact with God through prayer. The best time to pray is in the moring when your mind is fresh and the day is still before you. The psalmist sȧid, "In the morning will I direct my prayer unto Thee, and will look up."(Psalm 5:3) Don't try to find a time for prayer - make time. If you go through the day trying to fit a prayer time into your schedule you will fail. Make it the first priority after you awake from sleep to keep a prayer appointment with the Lord.

Day 6 - It is Well with My Soul

I love this song.  The first time I heard it was in the Rhema church in Randburg, Johannesburg, South Africa.  Ever since it's been a favourite.

Yesterday, after church, the song was in my mind and I thought it would be nice to have it on the blog.  Well, youtube is our friend, and I found a whole bunch of different versions.  I listened to the lot and Wintley Phipps' version was (imho) the best.

I'd never heard of Wintley Phipps before and because google is also our friend, I googled him.  According to wikipedia he is "an ordained Seventh-day Adventist minister, world-renowned vocal artist, and innovative initiator of special projects such as the US Dream Academy"

Oh boy, I thought.  I've got no problem with the world-renowned vocal artist bit and even the innovative initiator bit is ok, but Seventh-day adventist ...  Hmmm...  I guess he and I have some doctrinal differences.  We could probably spend hours (days!) arguing about right and wrong and what the Bible says and doesn't say  (of course, we'd probably have to agree on a translation first ...).

And that got a little personal bugbear going in me.  Why do we christians so eagerly concentrate on the things that divide us?  Isn't that which unites us so much more awesome and powerful?

And, seriously, which of us are perfect?*  Individual or denomination?  Read Romans 3:23 - ain't nobody perfect here.

Nobody is going to inherit eternal life because he was a member of BIEC.  Likewise nobody is going to miss out on eternal life because he was a member of BIEC.

Nope, that's not the standard.

Go check out John 17:3 and Matthew 7:21-27.

That's the standard.

I love this song.  I love Wintley Phipps' version of it and I hope that he is a born again christian because I'd like to meet him when we get to heaven one of these days.

*Biec used to be perfect but then I joined ...  (It's a joke, people, a joke!)

Day 5 - Beautiful Lord, wonderful Saviour

From Suneeta



Beautiful Lord, wonderful Saviour
I know for sure all of my days are held in Your hand.
Crafted into Your perfect plan.

You gently call me into Your presence
Guiding me by Your Holy Spirit, teach me dear Lord.
To live all of my life  through your eyes.
I'm captured by Your holy calling
Set me apart, I know You're drawing   me to Yourself
Lead me Lord, I  pray.

Chorus

Take me, mold me, use me, fill  me,
I give my life to the Potter's hand.
Call me, guide me, lead me, walk beside  me
I give my life, to the Potter's hand. 

---

Dear Brothers and sisters I want share something about our Lord and how  Beautiful he is. In 2007 I was praying for the ladies fellowship  that ladies can share their pains  and experiences, that  we all could  prayer for one another. It was my deepest desire . In fact we were the one we started house Christ in BIEC  in 2002. Because of some reasons we stopped after we have our daughter . after Renton and Annemarie came again BIEC started small groups , we were so happy to having the small groups. In 2007 May I was in the 40days of fasting prayers,  There was a some reasons to start for that, we  were having very strong battles  in our life with the Idols, while I was in fasting I became more closer to God. God really pour out his Holy Spirit and end of the days God has given me the vision for couple of prayers. I was praying for 3 people to get the marriage. God has showed for 1^st person it’s a love marriage there are in the church with wedding dresses, they  both came from Hindu back ground rest of the family members are still Hindus, and for the 2^nd God has showed me still she has to wait  there was a sign the bible pages are continually  turning and there are Christians . And the for the 3^rd also I have seen same like 1^st one.  But he thrown out of the house because he accepted  Jesus Christ is his saviour .She also accepted Jesus but she use to submit her decisions to their family that her family will be happy. When the days are coming closer to get marry satan took advantage from her family, end of the  day marriage sermon was broken. And finally I was praying for the music team in Zürich church because when my husband came to Swiss he got a job in Zürich and he use to go that church and our marriage also held by that church for us that church is 1^st  family. Before our marriage my husband move to Bern , because he got the new job in swisscom. In my husband life also God has done so many wonders that we will share little later. While I was praying for this church I have seen in the vision I was preaching . And God has provide music leader someone through us.

When I was thinking for myself what God has showed in the vision I was thinking a lot how could it be ? first of all my English is very poor, and I am young in Christ ,  I haven’t done any theology about Christ and I don’t have much knowledge to understand The Bible, and so and so...,I felt it’s impossible, But I forgot and for a while I was blind that for  Our Heavenly Father it’s everything is possible. In that 40 days of prayer I was crying like anything ,I was asking our God about my pains, along with I was asking him to cleanse my sins which was blocking my  prayers in-between me and my God (I was asking like little child). In the  mean time satan played a lot in my family even it affected my daughter also . But because of God's Grace  and couple of members there are praying for me to be a support that I could stand and get the vicory against satan games, and bring the Glory to God. And after that God has tested us a lot . in spite of trembling we became more strong in The Lord through trusting him, waiting in our Lord, put our hope in him it doesn’t  matter what ever we may face ,God teaches me a lot ,He  has change me lot, and He started to use me in different areas, and He blessed me to knowing him deeper.  It was a fantastic experience with our God.  I really enjoyed.

When we put our trust with our faith 1 step towards Him, God will put 5,10, 100, 1000 ....steps more towards us .  When we submit our lives to him ,He will take us , and mould us and use us for his kingdom.

After all the testing’s God started to us me, He is giving me more Knowledge in him, and God  blessed my desire  to having the ladies fellowship through Ted and Margi in BIEC, in his time. Know God is using me my neighbourhood, and my friends especially who come from Hindu background, sometimes he uses me through the telephone who ever in need, sometimes I get the calls in the midnight 11 and it will go  until 2 o'clock. In Ladies group also God is blessing so many prayers . It’s  not that only I am praying because so many people are praying .

If any one of you praying with 40 days of prayer I strongly suggest you before you start let your family know and whoever you feel more closer and prayerful persons let them know to support your prayer time that you will get more power and strength against satan to get the victory  and Glory to our God.

Dear brothers and sisters you can also experience same like me , only thing we need to do surround yourself to him and ask him to take you in his hands and to mold according  to his will.

If you want be a vessel for his kingdom allow him to interfere in your life.  In that you may have the challenges,  please don’t give up, be strong in him, bring the glory to him.

Dear brothers and sisters I believe God has done so many amazing things in your life’s too , like in my family, Please let the people know what is Our God  and how Beautiful is He.  When you share your experiences you are encouraging other followers ultimately you bring the praise and Glory to our wonderful God.

May the God bless you  and give more joy in him. (The joy of the Lord is our strength).

With love in Christ.

Yours sister in Christ.

SuneetaSridhar.

Day 5 - Principle 1: Breathe a prayer for help as you begin

"As you seek to develop greater prayer effectiveness be alert to the fact that the devil will do everything in his power to discourage you and divert your attention to other things.  He doesn't mind how many committees you sit on, how many sermons you preach, how much evangelistic literature you pass out, how many meetings you attend, providing you spend little or no time in prayer.  So, before we go deeper into the subject, send up a little telegramatic prayer right now, asking God to help you see that you are beginning something which will make all the difference between weakness and strength, between defeat and victory."

From  Fifteen Ways to a More Effective Prayer Life by Selwyn Hughes

I don't know how it works for you, but when I sit down at my desk in the morning to read and pray, there is always something that I can just quickly do before I open the Bible,  You know, like checking my email to make sure there's no über-important mail that arrived in the wee hours of the morning that I simply must attend to right away, before anything else, lest the world ends.  Just to settle my mind, so that I can read and pray with full concentration on God.

Yeah, right.

Until now that mail has not arrived.

And I'm pretty sure of two things:

1. That mail ain't gonna arrive, and
2. If it does arrive (a) God will warn me about it in good time, or (b) I won't be able to do anything about it anyway and therefore it does not matter whether I read it before or after my prayer time.

This is what happened:  God reminded me that He wants the first fruits.  That means I start my day with Him, not with email.

This is what I did:  I have a little notebook in which I write down what I want to pray about and anything that God tells me.  In that book I wrote the date and my decision to start the day with God.

Whenever I'm tempted to "just quickly  check my mail or the current cricket score", I remember what I wrote down and I act according to that decision.

It's real easy.  You should try it.

Remember to submit your comments about your experiences, ideas, song requests, etc. here.

PS:  On the same page where I wrote my "prayer first" decision, I also wrote this:  satan is a doughnut without the dough :)  I have no idea who said it, but I like it.

Day 4 - Effective Prayer

Some months ago I bought a little book (all of 63 pages) by Selwyn Hughes titled Fifteen Ways to a More Effective Prayer Life.  It was a real eye-opener for me and over the next couple of weeks I will regularly post something on these 15 principles.

Here are the 15 principles, just to give you an idea/outline of what is waiting:

1. Breathe a prayer for help as you begin
2. Establish a definite time
3. Keep your appointment
4. Find a suitable place
5. Relax and be receptive
6. Begin by reading the Bible
7. Use a notebook
8. Develop a prayer pattern
9. Pray in the Name of Jesus
10. Listen for God's voice
11. Open yourself to the flow of God's Spirit
12. Cultivate the power of your imagination
13. Capture wandering thoughts
14. Fast every now and then
15. Apply the principles of faith

These principles are quite simple and self-explanatory and there's nothing preventing you from starting to apply them right now, according to your understanding.  In fact, it would be great if you would post your perspective and or questions on any of these points.  I can then incorporate it when the specific principle is addressed.

Just one small remark on point 12 - the use of imagination.  I have found that christian people tend to associate this with new age spiritualism and such.  Let's be very clear about this:  You received your imagination from Almighty God and He gave it to you to use.  You didn't get it from satan and there's nothing to fear.  God is infinitely greater than satan. He is our Rock and our Fortress.  See Psalm 18:2, 31:3 and 71:3.

We use what God gave us to His honour and glory.

Day 4 - Amazing Grace

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now I see.


T'was Grace that taught my heart to fear.
And Grace, my fears relieved.
How precious did that Grace appear
The hour I first believed.


Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come;
'Tis Grace that brought me safe thus far
and Grace will lead me home.


The Lord has promised good to me.
His word my hope secures.
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures.


Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

When we've been here ten thousand years
Bright shining as the sun.
We've no less days to sing God's praise
Than when we've first begun.

---

Which songs would you like to see here?  Let me know in the comments section and I'll see what I can do.  Please give the song name and the artist, if you can.

Day 3 - The Lord is my Shepherd

The Lord¹ is² my³ Shepherd⁴

^{1.  We're not talking about some stone or wooden idol made with hands.  We're talking about the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Almighty Creator of heaven and Earth.  The One Who is, Who was and always will be.  Every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.}

^{2.  Not was.  Not will be.  Right now.  Right here.  When Moses asked Him His name, He said "I am" (Ex 3:14).}

^{3.  Mine.  Not my dad's, my granddad's or my congregation's Shepherd.  Mine.  He knows my by name.  I am called by Him and I belong to him - lock, stock and barrel.  And that is the truth for everyone who will accept it.}

^{4.  John 10:11 - I am the good Shepherd; the good Shepherd gives His life for the sheep.}

     ^{John 10:14 - I am the good Shepherd and know My sheep, and am known of Mine}

We had a great time at small group last night (as usual), but did thing a little differently.  The subject was "praying for other people" from 1 Tim 2:1-8 and that's what we did.  We made groups of 3 or 4 people and prayed for someone who wasn't part of small group and who isn't a christian, e.g. one of my neighbours.  The bottom line was that we had a wonderful time of prayer and my "40 days of faith" list which had 2 items on it now has 3 items.  

Everyone present also wrote his/her names on a post-it.  The post-its were distributed randomly amongst us and for the next week each one of us will pray for the person whose name we drew.

It'll be great to find out what was prayed and what happened ...

Remember to post your comments about your experiences and to encourage others to join in with us.

Day 3 - What does fasting bring?

What brings the Fasting?

Fasting brings the Faith in the Lord  through that we will learn to seek him .

The more we seek him The more we found him

The more we found him The more we love him

So put all your heart to the Lord and hear his voice and feel his heart beet through the holy spirit.

What God wants us to use for his kingdom.

I would like to bring your hearts to listening this song and build wonderful faith through the Fasting.

May our Mighty God pour out his spirit  who are longing for him.

With love in Christ.

Yours sister in Christ.

SuneetaSridhar.

Day 2 - Prayer and Fasting

Today's post was contributed by Suneeta.

Why do we pray 40days of FASTING prayers? Do we really need to pray with FASTING? If so what the bible tells us about FASTING!

This is where the power is at, because fasting puts us in harmony with an All Powerful God who demands humility from those who wish to be close to Him. Fasting humbles the flesh. When it is done for that purpose, it pleases the Spirit of God.

You can go a certain distance in God, and experience many things, without fasting much, but the highest, richest and most powerful blessings always go to those who together with other disciplines, fast much unto God. The most significant Biblical characters, with the possible exception of Abraham, were all men of fasting and prayer. Jesus, the Son of God, was a man of fasting and prayer (Matthew 4:2). So was the apostle Paul (2 Corinthians 11:27). Elijah fasted 40 days. The early church fasted before starting any major work.

Fasting is not magic, nor does it twist the arm of God. God wants to do many amazing things, but He looks for those willing to urgently make the corrections needed to come into line with him. God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Successful fasting is also the fastest way to learn patience. It takes patience and endurance to fast for more than a day. Many of God's tests come quicker to us when we fast, and we have a better opportunity to pass them. Fasting gives you God's focus for your life. It is a major key to hearing God's voice (the other is true worship - the two are related). We need focus from God more than anything. The world we live in is working overtime to distract us, to entice us, to win our hearts and minds, our focus, and to determine our vision. Fasting cuts out the world so we can tune into God. If we are obedient to God fasting will make us catalysts for revival and awakening.

Some Examples of Fasting in the Bible:

Old Testament

• Moses fasted 40 days on behalf of Israel’s sin: Deuteronomy 9:9, 18, 25-29; 10:10.
• Moses fasted to receive the Ten Commandments and the Law of God, and to see God's glory and goodness.
• David fasted and mourned the death of Saul: 2 Samuel 1:12.
• David fasted and mourned the death of Abner: 2 Samuel 3:35.
• David fasted and mourned the death of his child: 2 Samuel 12:16.
• Elijah fasted 40 days after fleeing from Jezebel: 1 Kings 19:7-18.
• Ahab fasted and humbled himself before God: 1 Kings 21:27-29.
• Darius fasted in concern for Daniel: Daniel 6:18-24.
• Daniel fasted on behalf of Judah's sin while reading Jeremiah’s prophecy: Daniel 9:1-19.
• Daniel fasted regarding a mysterious vision from God: Daniel 10:3-13.
• Esther fasted on behalf of her people: Esther 4:13-16.
• Ezra the priest fasted for God's protection while carrying valuable things for God's temple. We too can fast for God's protection. (Ezra 8:21-23)
• Ezra fasted and wept for the sins of the returning remnant: Ezra 10:6-17.
• Nehemiah fasted and mourned over the broken walls of Jerusalem: Nehemiah 1:4-2:10.
• The people of Ninevah fasted after hearing the message of Jonah: Jonah 3.

New Testament

• Anna fasted for the redemption of Jerusalem through the coming Messiah: Luke 2:37.
• Jesus fasted 40 days before his temptation and the beginning of his ministry: Matthew 4:1-11.
• The disciples of John the Baptist fasted: Matthew 9:14-15.
• The elders in Antioch fasted before sending off Paul and Barnabas: Acts 13:1-5.
• Cornelius fasted and sought God’s plan of salvation: Acts 10:30.
• Paul fasted three day fast after his Damascus Road encounter: Acts 9:9.
• Paul fasted 14 days while at sea on a sinking ship: Acts 27:33-34.

Moses fasted to receive the Ten Commandments and the Law of God, and to see God's glory and goodness.

The elders, prophets and teachers in Antioch fasted and ministered to God, which resulted in the launching of Paul and Barnabas' apostolic ministry to the Gentiles (Acts 13:2,3). Likewise we should fast and pray before getting involved in full time ministry and mission work.

Jesus says to us in Matthew 6:16, "When you fast..." not "If you fast". A true disciple of the Lord will fast at times.

God made it clear through the prophet Joel that the last days outpouring of the Spirit will be in proportion to our fasting and crying out to God in humility, hunger and repentance. (Joel 1:5; Joel 2:12).

Even wicked King Ahab's fast moved God so that he did not bring full judgment down on him in his own lifetime (1 Kings 21:27).

  I am so happy that in BIEC we are started about 40 days of faith and fasting. It’s so important as a Christians to do the fasting prayers.  For my husband and me we had wonderful experience  in the God when we were in 40 days of fasting. It brings closer relationship with God and we can really hear his voice  like father and a closer friend, He has done so many amazing things  in our lives.

My husband he did 2 times 40 days prayers, I myself 1 time. We know how it would be the fasting time. My husband he use to fast full day only taking the juice. And I use to do the off day until 12 without taking anything and spending lot of time in the Lords presence .

I would like to encourage our brothers and sisters in Christ in BIEC and elsewhere.  I am going to pray for nations and leaders ,our families and friends who are in the darkness, single believers in the families, and my neighbourhood and our employees, and for the healing for need people and mothers, fathers  and for the children and teenagers  and for my church family  and my family, myself .

This is my prayer that I and my family will show Christ love and kind, forgiving to others and to be vessels for his kingdom.  Please pray for my family that every day we bring the prayers to the Lord for salvation and have the deeper relationship with our God.

Fasting is not easy. There are degrees of fasting, of course. The pain of fasting is twofold. The physical pain is due to the detoxification of our bodies. All the accumulate poison and garbage starts to come into our blood and we feel dreadful. This can be alleviated by fasting on juice. With juice fasting you have some control on the speed of your body's detoxification.

The soulish pain is due to the conflict in the spiritual realm between your flesh and the Spirit of God. This goes behind the natural desire to eat. There is soulish pain because:

1. Most times our bodies are demanding food 3 times a day and complain that food is needed when they are denied. A little training in fasting soon clears up this misconception.
2. You cannot use food as an emotional crutch to give pleasure, drowsiness, satisfaction and escape. Instead you must depend on God for comfort.
3. You are brought face to face with other painful issues in your life. God reveals the need for you to forgive others, to repent of your wicked ways, to stop running from Him and start trusting Him. There is thus also a spiritual and soulish detoxification which happens when we fast.
4. You will be attacked by demonic forces seeking to induce you to give up the fast. Jesus experienced this in the wilderness with Satan (Matthew 4:1-10). Great spiritual victories are won or lost on our willingness to endure spiritual hardship and temptation out of love and faithfulness to the Lord.
5. You will experience weakness at times, and we like to feel strong and in control. Fasting teaches us dependence upon God.

May Our heavenly father give the Power and strength to overcome from our weaknesses and to experience the wonderful relationship with God.

With love in Christ .

Yours sister in Christ.

SuneetaSridhar

 

Some admin and "HowTo"

1.  Anybody can post comments here.  You just click on "comments" below a post and enter your comment.  Gans eifach, weisch?   The picture below should make it very clear.

Alternatively the "Post a comment" dialogue box below the post may already be open.  In that case, type in  your comment and click on "Post comment".  If it's not open, clicking on "comments" (see the little red box above?) will open it.

2.  So much for comments.  If you want to be able to post on the blog you must be registered as an author.  No problem.  Just drop me a line and I'll take care of it - I'll add you as an author and send you a mail when it's done.

About being an author:  This is for BIEC members and regular attendees.  If you aren't one, chances are that your request to be added as an author will be turned down.  However, if a BIEC member or regular attendee is willing to vouch for you, who knows?  It might happen ...

3.  Well, that's about as clear as I can make it.  If you still have questions, send 'em to me.

4.  Welcome to the cyber age.  Better late than never :)

Day 1 - sing praise

Give thanks to the Lord
Our God and King
His love endures forever
For He is good, 

He is above all things
His love endures forever
Sing praise, sing praise
With a mighty hand
and outstretched arm
His love endures forever
For the life that's been reborn
His love endures forever
Sing praise, sing praise
Sing praise, sing praise

Yeah
Forever God is faithful
Forever God is strong
Forever God is with us
Forever
Forever

From the rising to the setting sun
His love endures forever
By the grace of God
We will carry on
His love endures forever
Sing praise, sing praise
Sing praise, sing praise
Yeah
Forever God is faithful
Forever God is strong
Forever God is with us
Forever
Forever

(by Chris Tomlin)

I awoke this morning with "His love endures forever, sing praise, sing praise" in my head.  What an appropriate way to start 40 days of faith.

What did you experience?

Day -1: Why?

Why do we do this?  Why am I specifically doing this?

I believe that God is an awesome, miracle-working God.  I believe that He is delighted when His children step out in faith and that He is eager to hear and answer our prayers.  His desire to have a closer relationship with us is far, far greater than our desire to have such a relationship with Him.

2 Chron 16:9 - For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew Himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward Him.

The problem isn't God.  It's me.  I dither and faff when I actually want to (should ...) read and study the Bible and pray.  I quickly check my emails before opening the Bible or starting to pray and then get sidetracked. 

Is it any wonder that we no longer see miracles?  That there are doctrines which state that miracles passed away with the apostles?

Sorry.  I don't buy that. Heb 13:8 - Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.  His miracle working power has not changed and it is still available.

The problem isn't God.  It's me.  And that is going to change over the next 40 days.

How about you?  Why are you doing this (or, why are you NOT doing it)?  What do you want God to do for you between now and 28 November?  Leave a comment.  Remember, we're all in it together :)

Fantastic Adventures In Trusting Him!

Yep, it's an acronym:  Fantastic Adventures In Trusting Him -> faith! 

That's what it's about and that's the adventure that we (members and attendees of BIEC and anybody else who wants God to make a difference in their life) are embarking on.  For 40 days we are going to pray to God for our heart's desire. 

What amazing stories will we have to tell at the end of these 40 days?

Before I go any further, I have to say thank you to the originator of the "40 days of faith" idea.  I stumbled across a blog titled (yes, that's correct) "40 Days of Faith" and thought it would be wonderful to do the same thing in conjunction with BIEC's prayer week.


So, if you think this is a good idea, surf over to 40 Days of Faith and say thank you to Trish Ryan.

What does "BIEC 40 days of faith" entail?

Basically you have to commit to praying for something for a period of 40 days and to blog about it - right here on this blog, in the comments section - for those 40 days.  You can blog about what happened (or happens), what God spoke to you, how your prayers were answered, how your desire(s) changed, what you learned, etc., etc.

What should you pray for?  First read what Ted has to say about this very subject on the BIEC site. That should answer the question, but in case you're still wondering, you have to pray for something that you want God to do for you.  And may I suggest that you start off (before the 40 days of faith kicks off) by asking (i.e. praying to ...) God to help you identify the thing that you should be praying for?

If you're really stuck here, speak to someone from the leadership and pray together with them to help you identify your desire.

The point is to pray (honestly and with faith) and to record what happens - physically and spiritually.

The fact is that we (born-again Christians) all have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and because of this we are brothers and sisters, linked for eternity.  We all are imperfect and we all have our problems.  Forty days of faith is one way in which we can help, support and inspire one another.  It is also a way in which we can share our hurts and weaknesses.

This is an opportunity to take your relationship with Jesus to a new level, to get to know God more intimately (John 17:3), to move from the natural to the supernatural, from the mundane to the extraordinary.

This is a challenge to everyone who knows that there is more to life than we are experiencing now. 

Things are going to happen during these 40 days.  We are going to change.  Our life and circumstances are going to be impacted.  This is not for the faint of heart.

Will you take up the challenge?  If so, signify your commitment by posting a comment that says "YES!"