To end our 8 Days of Prayer, we’re fasting on June 19th. I would encourage you to give up a variety of things: 1) social media, 2) entertainment, 3) food (perhaps settling for bread and water only until dinner). What is the point of fasting?
When we deny ourselves familiar comforts, we learn something powerful about our weaknesses, our needs, and our deepest longings for God. Fasting is a tangible, physical activity that roots our spiritual longings in Jesus alone as our true comfort and joy. Consider how you might meaningfully engage in the discipline of fasting this Lenten season as a supplement to this guide.
Pastor and writer Will Walker offers this wise encouragement:
The practice of giving something up [fasting] is a way of entering into the wilderness with Jesus. Don’t worry about whether or not your sacrifice is a good one. It’s not a contest. Just make your aim to know Christ more fully, and trust Him to lead you. Seek to replace that thing with devotion to Christ—His Word and His mission. Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Jesus.
Q: What are you learning about your own need? How does this fasting bring you into a deeper understanding of Jesus’ mission?
Q: What are you hearing from the Spirit? How is Jesus asking you to follow?
Q: Reflect on the past eight days of prayer, what have you learned about yourself? What desires has God given you? What kind of resolve or heart has the Holy Spirit given you for racial reconciliation that you didn’t have before?