EMERGING LEADER INITIATIVE Maturity, No. 5 Prayer and Fasting

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1 EMERGING LEADER INITIATIVE Maturity, No. 5 Prayer and Fasting 1 Thessalonians 5:17, pray without ceasing Romans 12:12, be constant in prayer Ephesians 6:18, praying at all times in the Spirit will all prayer and supplication James 5:16, The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Jeremiah 33:3, Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know. Matthew 6:5-9, And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. This, then, is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, There are over 100 verses in the N.T. that refer to prayer. I. WHAT IS PRAYER? relationship based; leads to intimacy a two-way conversation between the Father and His child; speaking and listening an avenue to release the power of God to accomplish the purposes of God a discipline making God the focal point of our unceasing thought processes; turning every thought toward God; a spirit poised towards the Lord; a lifestyle Prayer is all the ways in which we communicate and commune with God. The fundamental purpose of prayer is to deepen our intimacy with God. Ruth Haley Barton, Sacred Rhythms Prayer is not limited to a segment of our lives or to a scheduled event in our days. It is an attitude of receptivity in which we live every moment. It is being open to Him at all times. It is living in the presence of God, always in the process of being reshaped and recreated by Him. Jennifer Kennedy Dean, Live a Praying Life 1

2 II. TYPES OF PRAYER Based on The Lord s Prayer: Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:2-4 Luke 11:1, Lord, teach us to pray. 1. By Praying 2. By Meditating on Scripture 3. By Praying with Others 4. By Reading about Prayer A. Adoration praise and worship to God for who He is Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name B. Thanksgiving praise for what He has done Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name C. Affirmation agreeing with God s will and submitting to it meditating on and praying Scripture Your kingdom come; Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven D. Petition supplication, making requests for ourselves Give us today our daily bread E. Intercession supplication, making requests for others Give us today our daily bread Lord, what s on your heart today? Prayer is the most aggressive, offensive, proactive, invasive work you can ever engage in. Jennifer Kennedy Dean, Live a Praying Life 1. for God's Corporate Purpose Isaiah 62:1-2, 6-7 "I have posted watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest, and give him not rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth." 2. for Specific Individuals 2 Corinthians 1:11, "...as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many." 2

3 Philippians 1:19, "For I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance." F. Confession acknowledging our need for forgiveness And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors G. Renewal acknowledging our need of the Lord as we face temptations of the world, our flesh and the devil And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one H. Summary Adoration, Thanksgiving and Affirmation focus our attention on God and His desires. Supplication, Confession, Renewal focus on us and our needs. End prayers with focusing on confidence in God. Shift focus back to praise and worship. ACTS - Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication III. DEVELOPING AN EFFECTIVE PRAYER LIFE A. Seek God B. Know God The Old Testament and New Testament words for seek mean: to seek the face of God; to desire; to examine or explore; to seek earnestly; to diligently search for; to wish for; to crave; to investigate; to pursue. Psalm 27:8, My heart says of you, Seek his face! Your face, Lord, I will seek. Jeremiah 29:13, You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart. Matthew 6:33, But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Psalm 9:10, And those who know your name will put their trust in you. For you, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you. Jeremiah 24:7, I will give them a heart to know me. Philippians 2:13, For it is God who works in you to will and act according to His good purpose. 3

4 C. Pray God s Will God reveals himself to us through Scripture, prayer, teachings and circumstances. Knowing God (heart knowledge not just head knowledge) leads to trusting God. Trusting God is foundational to our intimacy with the Lord and, therefore, our prayer lives. You are being changed so that your heart is a reflection of His. His concerns are your concerns. His desires are your desires. His will is reflected in your prayers. Your prayers will become consistently powerful and effective. This is not because you now have more influence on Him, but because He now has more influence on you. The secret to prayer is not how to change God, but how to be changed by Him. Jennifer Kennedy Dean, Live a Praying Life Romans 8:34, Christ Jesus who died more than that, who was raised to life is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. John 16:13-15, But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you. Romans 8:26-27, The Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts know the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God s will. The Spirit reveals/reproduces the intercession of Jesus in each of us. God says it, we pray it, and God performs it. The purpose of prayer is to release the power of God to accomplish the purposes of God. The purpose of prayer is to discover God s will, not obligate Him to do mine; to reflect God s mind, not change it. I can, through prayer, release God s power to bring about the best possible solution, because that is always God s desire (Jeremiah 29:11). Jennifer Kennedy Dean, Live a Praying Life D. Results: His Purposes Are Accomplished John 14:13-14, And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. in my name means to pray in keeping with his character and concerns and out of intimacy with him. 4

5 1 John 5:13-15, I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us whatever we ask we know that we have what we asked of Him. Matthew 7:7-8, Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Psalm 50:15, Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear. IV. Selected Passages on Prayer Psalm 42:7, Deep calls to deep in the roar of Your waterfalls; all Your waves and breakers have swept over me. Romans 8:26, In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. Matthew 11:12, From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it. Romans 4:17, As it is written: I have made you a father of many nations. He is our father in the sight of God, in whom He believed the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were. Psalm 2:8, Ask of Me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. Colossians 4:2, Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful Hebrews 4:16, Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. 1 Chronicles 4:10, Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain. And God granted his request. Jeremiah 33:3, Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know. Matthew 18:19, Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. Luke 18:1-8, Then Jesus told His disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, Grant me justice against my adversary. For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, Even though I don t fear God or care about men, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won t 5

6 eventually wear me out with her coming! And the Lord said, Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night? Will He keep putting them off? I tell you, He will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth? Philippians 4:6-7, Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Matthew 9:37-38, Then he said to his disciples, The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Hebrews 4:16, Let us then approach God s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Ephesians 6:18, And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord s people. 1 Corinthians 2:10-16, The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who knows a person s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, for, Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. 6

7 "SEVEN ASPECTS OF PRAYER" Jack Taylor (2/5/89) 1. No believer's spiritual life will rise to stay above the level of his/her prayer life. 2. No church's ultimate effectiveness will rise to stay above the level of its corporate prayer life. 3. No church's corporate prayer life will be greater than the prayer life of those who make up its membership. 4. No believer's prayer life will be greater than his/her personal daily time alone with God. 5. No believer's prayer life will rise above his/her view of prayer. 6. Praise is an indispensable factor in the prayer life; both private and corporate. 7. The only way to learn to pray is to pray. 7

8 V. FASTING A. What is Fasting? The word fast in the Old Testament and New Testament refers to the practice of self-denial. Matthew 16:24, Then Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. Self-denial is the deliberate curtailing of healthy passions and desires for the sake of pursuing Jesus harder. Bob Sorge, Secrets of the Secret Place Usually refers to abstaining from food but can also include people, media, sleep, hobbies, etc. We are not commanded to fast, but it is very strongly encouraged. Jesus says in Matthew 9:15 when asked why his disciples did not fast, How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast. Matthew 6:16, When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." (Not IF you fast ) Primary motive for fasting is to humble ourselves and seek God through prayer. It s an outward act that expresses an inward humility toward God. Fasting brings us into a deeper, more intimate and powerful relationship with the Lord. Our spirit becomes uncluttered by the things of the world and we become more sensitive to the things of the spirit. Fasting strengthens prayer because it brings us into greater alignment with the Spirit. Fasting reveals the things that control us. We cover up what is inside us with food and other good things, but in fasting these things surface. Pride, anger, bitterness, jealousy, strife, fear-- if they are within us, they will surface during fasting. Psalm 69:10, (David), I humbled my soul with fasting. Fasting reminds us that we are sustained by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. (Matthew 4:4). 8

9 B. Basics of Fasting There are different kinds of fasts: 1. The Normal Fast: All Food, but not from water such as Jesus did in Luke 2. Partial Fast: refraining from certain foods, such as Daniel in Daniel 10:3. 3. Total Fast: including water, such as Esther in Esther 4:16 and Paul in Acts 9:9. 4. The Rotational Fast: involves avoiding certain foods periodically (ex. - grains) You can fast for a meal, a day, three days, a week, whatever, up to 40 days. One of the best, sundown from one day to sundown the next. Start slowly. Use fruit juices. Drink plenty of water. If you drink caffeine every day be careful. If you are going on an extended fast (more than three days) seek a Doctor s counsel even though they may not understand what you are doing. Also if going on an extended fast, work in and out of it, meaning, eat the right foods. Most fasting is to be done individually and privately, but there are Biblical examples of corporate fasts. Day of Atonement (Lev. 23:27), National emergency (Joel 2:15), Keng Jehosophat (1 Chron. 20:1-4), City of Ninevah, Return of Ezra and exiles (Ezra 8:21-23). Early church sending out missionaries (Acts 13;1-3), ordaining Elders (Acts 14:23), and as part of Apostolic ministry (2 Corinthians 6:5) C. A True Fast (Isaiah 58:1-12) 1. A True Fast from God Will Bring the Word in Power v. 6 Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke. Reads like Luke 4:18, where Jesus says, The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord s favor. 2. Results in Ministry to Others v. 7, Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter--when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from you own flesh and blood? 9

10 3. Helps us to Get Others Free v. 8, Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. 4. Allows us to Call God and Know that He Will Answer v. 9, Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and He will say; Here am I. 5. Results in the Blessings of the Lord Being Poured Out vv. 9b-11 If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Look what He promises in v. 11: o That he will be our guide o That he will satisfy o That he will strengthen o That he will continually refresh 6. Brings Restoration and the Correct Foundation v. 12, Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; You will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings. 10

11 Prayer & Fasting Bibliography Barton, Ruth Haley (2006). Sacred Rythms. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. Boa, Kenneth (1997). Face to Face: Praying the Scriptures for Intimate Worship. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing. Bounds, E.M. (1990). The Complete Works of E.M. Bounds. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House. Bright, Bill, The Coming Revival: America s Call to Fast, Pray, and Seek God s Face Dean, Jennifer K. (2011). Live a Praying Life. Birmingham, AL: New Hope Publishers. Foster, Richard, Celebration of Discipline Hall, Dudley (1999). Incense & Thunder. Sister, Oregon: Multnomah. Hybels, Bill (1998). Too Busy Not To Pray. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. Otis, George, Jr. (1999). Informed Intercession. Ventura, CA: Renew Books. Piper, John (1997). A Hunger For God. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books. Sheets, Dutch (1996). Intercessory Prayer. Ventura, CA: Regal Books. Sorge, Bob (2010). Secrets of the Secret Place. Grandview, MO: Oasis House. Taylor, Jack R. (1977). Prayer: Life s Limitless Reach. Nashville: Broadman Press. Towns, Elmer L. (1996). Fasting for Spiritual Break Through. Ventura, CA: Regal Books. Wallis, Arthur, God s Chosen Fast 11