21 DAYS
OF PRAYER & FASTING
JANUARY 10-31, 2021
For 21 days in January, we are asking God to awaken us to how we can help people connect & re-connect with Him.
Helping people connect and re-connect with God is our shared mission, the reason we exist as a community, the calling God has placed on us as a people. Our hope for this series and season of prayer and fasting is that every person would hear from God and join him in his mission. We are asking God to awaken us to all he has for us in the days, weeks, and months in this year.
Ask God to bring specific people to your mind and to your heart. Begin praying for those people to connect with him. Ask God how he wants to use you to reach them. The lives of our friends, co-workers, neighbors, and family members could be forever altered by how we awaken to God during these 21 days.
WHY FAST?
Jesus taught his apprentices to engage in practices that would help them draw near to the Father. That’s why we are inviting everyone to join us from January 11 – 31 for 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting.
We intentionally empty something from our lives in order that God might fill that space.
Fasting is one of the oldest and most prevalent spiritual practices in the Bible. Great leaders in the Bible fasted routinely, including Moses, David, Jeremiah, Isaiah, John the Baptist, Jesus, and the disciples. In Matthew 6:16, Jesus addresses fasting when he tells the disciples, “When you fast…” Notice Jesus says “when” not “if.” Jesus assumes that we will fast. Though fasting is assumed, it is not required. We don’t have to fast. We get to fast. Like all intentional spiritual practices, fasting should not be legalistic – we are not earning approval from God through fasting.
Family Resources
Here are resources to help kids & students join in with our 21 Days of Prayer & Fasting, too!
Types of Fasts
There are several different ways you can practice fasting. Here are some examples:
- Complete Fast – In this type of fast, you drink only liquids, typically water with light juices as an option.
- Selective Fast -This type of fast involves removing certain elements from your diet or routines. One example of a selective fast is removing certain foods like meat, sweets, bread, or alcohol from your diet. Others might consider turning off screens (like Netflix, social media, or games).
- Partial Fast – This fast involves abstaining from food or technology, etc., during part of the day, like from 10am-4pm.
Again, the goal is to intentionally take something out of our lives and focus that desire toward God, inviting him to work and fill us. Fasting goes hand-in-hand with prayer. Plan to set aside the time you would normally spend on meal preparation and eating (or whatever you choose to fast from) for focused time with God.
