Fasting

Submitted by Damar Randle:

Recently I faced some very hard situations that I needed the Lord's Saving Grace to get over. I didn't know what to do, but knew something must be done. I had heard and remembered hearing a scripture that says "...this kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting" Mark 9:29. I finally got an answer, it was FASTING. But, what is fasting really all about? Is it just suffering and giving up food and drink? I haven't heard too much teaching on this. So I decided that I needed to search it out.

I looked up fasting in the Old Testament and found some key part. First, Psalms 35:13 David says "...I humble myself with fasting..." when fasting we are realizing that this spiritual thing is greater than my physical needs. We must humble down and realize at this time there are things of God that are of such importance and are delicate that I need to put MY norm aside and spend this time sacrificing myself to God in a fast.

Jonah gives a great visual of another part of fasting and for the sake of space I won't quote it, but look at Jonah Chapter 3. When the warning came forth the King made a decree that everyone will put on "sackcloth" and "let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything: let them not feed, nor drink water" v. 7.

Sackcloth is an item that is typically worn when in mourning. Here, and in much of the Old Testament, they wore sackcloth when fasting. They were acknowledging their sorrows for their sins. When fasting if we have sin on hand we must acknowledge that first and foremost. We mustn't play around. These people were so serious about this fast and having God hear them that even the animals were affected. Through their denial of food and their seriousness concerning the matter at hand, the Lord heard and honored their fast.

I don't have all the answers or the perfect way to a fast. But, it is biblical. From the Old Testament to the New Testament. Jesus flat out said "Howbeit this kind goeth not out, but by prayer and fasting" Matt 17:21. There are some things that a fast is just required or we won't break through to God. When fasting we must deny our temporal needs in order to sit in Heavenly places, we must humble down, and we must confess our sins if any. Barnes commentary says "That faith is produced and kept vigorous only by much prayer, and by such abstinence from food as fits the mind for the highest exercise of religion, and leaves it free to hold communion with God." May the Lord bless and help along these lines.

Damar D. Randle

Continue Steadfastly

I was inspired by a thought recently. One of the biggest things I struggle with is maintaining my walk with God on a daily basis. There are ups and downs, times when I feel more “spiritual” and capable than others, and times where lethargy threatens my peace. I read some verses which gave me some great encouragement. I hope that my feeble words can express the burden I have in a way that is understandable (and not too boring, hehe) for all of you.

Acts 2:41-44
“[41] Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. [42] And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. [43] And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. [44] And all that believed were together, and had all things common.”

They GLADLY received his word and followed Jesus’ example of baptism. That in itself is a challenge. To joyfully, expediently, and readily accept salvation is not always the way in which we come into favor with God. The immediacy with which they responded to the teachings the disciples delivered should be a challenge to all of us. Spiritual lethargy today is something that is a danger for all Christians, especially in this age. So many distractions await, tantalizing our fingertips and seeking our attention and devotion. It takes dedication to keep our lives centered in Christ and our mind free of worldly distractions that rob us of the blessings of obedience to Christ’s dealings. I believe we can look to the example of this crowd to whom Peter preached the gospel; we ought to gladly receive God’s word, not only in salvation, but in the things he desires to teach us in our daily walk.

But, receiving the word was not where it stopped, and that’s the great encouragement to me. The crowd of new converts continued STEADFASTLY in the doctrine which was taught and in fellowship with each other. It’s important to be steadfast. That means unwavering, continual, and fervent. Clearly, they believed the doctrine and retained and acted upon its principles. Our duty as Christians is to learn, retain, and adhere to the doctrine we find in the Bible as well as things God personally convicts. It’s not simply the teaching that we’re responsible for, but the action we take based on that knowledge. This is something I have struggled with. I learn and better understand the Bible along the way, but I have admittedly struggled with making the things I’ve learned a reality in my life. Acting on what we have learned is part of being a steadfast Christian. It means not giving up when we’re down in the pits. It’s not always easy being a follower of Jesus, but the suffering produces holy fruit. I’m encouraged by this example we have of the crowd here that willingly submitted to God and continued steadfastly. I pray I do the same.

I’d also like to mention a few things about the fellowship it mentions here. It is derived from the Greek word “koinonia” which refers to community, meaning association for religious and spiritual purposes. Fellowship is vitally important to the believer. It’s taught in the scripture and practiced by these new converts here as well. Being connected with other believers is such a blessing and help. Sharing our struggles and victories is helpful, at least to me. I really appreciate hearing testimonies from others of what God has been teaching them or doing in their life.

It says that fear came upon every soul. We should all have a proper fear of God, and willingness to obey his commandments. Proverbs 9:10 says “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” It was Godly obedience when Abraham prepared to sacrifice his own son. These people had a similar fear of God following their conversion. We ought to as well. Their faithfulness and steadfastness is an example to us.

I love how the last verse says all that believed were together and had all things common. It’s such an encouragement to know that we aren’t alone. Our battles, our struggles, our fears — they’re the same things other Christians face. You’re not alone. That’s why I feel such a burden to share with others the things that I’m dealing with and how God is helping me. I know I’m not the only one with questions about my future. I’m not alone in trying to get the victory in certain areas of my life. I’m not alone in my desire to serve God in whatever way he would be pleased, but not always understanding what that looks like. Any struggle, temptation, or weight we have is not uncommon to fellow young people or Christians. We are in this battle against Satan together — we’re the Church of God, and Christ is counting on us to stay faithful, stick together, and be steadfast in the midst of a wicked world.

I hope this is as much of an encouragement to all of you as it was to me. It’s not easy to be steadfast, and I know I have room to grow in that. Consistency hasn’t been easy, and I won’t declare perfection. But, I know God loves me and is willing to help me, be with me, and work with me as I strive to live for him daily. These verses were an encouragement for me to stay steadfast, value fellowship, fear God, and recognize that we aren’t alone. I’m praying for all of you, and please pray for me that I would live in obedience to Jesus. :)

Keep encouraged!

Living a Christ-Centered Life

From Emalie Sorrell:

Hello there. What’s up? I hope everyone is doing well and staying encouraged. I had a little something to share that I’ve been thinking some on. Just want to let you know though, that I am a speaker not a writer. I struggle so much with communicating my thoughts through writing, texting, etc. I’ve tried really hard though so hopefully this will make some sense and you’ll be able to catch my drift. :}

Today, I wanted to share some thoughts on living a Christ- centered life. Too many times I find myself experiencing a watered down walk with the Lord that’s filled with balancing God with worldly counterfeits and other things that I try find fulfillment in. It’s like I try to find joy in God but yet kind of at the same time try to find fulfillment in social media, relationships with people, etc.

I’ve found though, that it doesn’t work that way. Sure, you could probably get by living that way but you’ll never be fully satisfied. God has created us for so much more than that. He created us to thrive for Him and live a life that completely revolves around Him...not Instagram or Spotify or the pop-culture of today’s society.

I get so caught up in myself and what I need (and want) to do. I give my energy and time to things that don’t matter and then try to fit God in somewhere. I honestly confuse myself when I do that. It’s like I prioritize worthless things that won’t matter at all in the end and then barely make time to spend with the One Who died to save me, the Creator of my existence, and the Reason for my being. Like c’mon, Em.

I’m not supposed to be fitting God into my life.
I’m supposed to be letting my life revolve completely around Him.

God didn’t create me to just say a quick prayer in the morning and then continue the rest of my day living selfishly with no purpose. He created me to live a life that is thriving for Him and serving Him. I was created to find joy in Christ and to put all my focus on Him.

I really want to grow in this area and learn to build my entire existence around the Lord. I want to find all my fulfillment in Him. I want to live with passion and purpose. I want to focus on serving others, not myself. I want to say goodbye to worthless things of the world, and spend my time focused on the One that really matters. I know that this is where real joy and satisfaction will grow.

So, I pray that God would help me and all of us as young people to rise above the mediocre life that Satan tries to trap us in. God is calling each & every one of us to a life that is focused on loving and serving Jesus & others. He’s calling us to learn to find all of our fulfillment and satisfaction in Him. I pray that God would help us all to prioritize Him into our lives and be able to really thrive in Him.

Colossians 3:1
“If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.”

Hebrews 12:1-2
“Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Jeremiah 29:13
“And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.”

Hope everyone has a gr8, Christ-centered week! :)
-Em S.

Obstacles

This year, I started reading Streams in the Desert, and so far it has yet to disappoint. It's a great devotional, and I'm sure many have read it. If you haven't, or if you started and didn't finish, take this as an encouragement to start AND finish it. ;) 8 days in, I can assure you it's worth it.

The Lord revealed something to me in one of the devotions a couple of days ago. The text was Isaiah 43:2. "When thou passest through the waters....they shall not overflow thee." The scripture is certainly a common one, but the commentary it gave with it stuck out to me. "He does not remove obstacles out of our way before we reach them. Yet when we are on the edge of our need, God's hand is stretched out." That's the basis of my thought here, and hopefully, I can express it as it was impressed in my mind.

First of all, it's important to note that the verse is definitive on multiple points. It says WHEN thou passest through the waters, not IF. Trials are a part of life, it's guaranteed that we will, as Christian's face opposition from the devil. It also says through. It doesn't say into. That means we will enter and then exit, passing THROUGH. We won't stay in a permanent state of trial. God is faithful to bring us through each and every temptation, disappointment, trial, and issue we face.  The verse also says they SHALL not overflow thee. Despite how difficult the obstacle is, it won't be more than we can bear. Scripture backs that up in 1 Corinthians 10:13 "but God is faithful... but will with the temptation also make a way of escape, that ye may be able to bear it." In Isaiah 43:2 again, God also promises "I will be with thee." We aren't alone. I'm encouraged that God has promised us to be able to handle and escape temptation.

But that doesn't prevent obstacles from appearing in our view. Some seem easy enough to deal with, while others, which we seem to take greater note of, seem larger than life. The latter are the ones which tend to cultivate fear, dread, and ultimately test our faith in God. Do we really believe He can remove that obstacle that seems so impassable? Take it a step further. We can say we believe He's able. But do we believe He WILL? Lord, help us all to have greater faith. That's something I definitely struggle with.

One component of faith I really struggle with is timing. I want to walk the straight and narrow way, but I want it to be cleared of all the brush, thorns, and obstacles that are between here and heaven. That's not always the case for our vision, though. We see an obstacle up ahead, and it plants a seed of worry that germinates as we approach and it still hasn't moved. The *straight* and narrow way isn't to go around it, so we worry how we'll get past it. Recall the children of Israel, freed from the bondage of slavery in Egypt and quickly approaching the Red Sea. They arrived at the banks, awaiting God's direction, and growing hastily displeased with the apparent lack of help from the God that had just delivered them. Yet, when the time was right, God parted the sea, replacing their obstacle with a clear path to safety.

How often do we come to a problem in our walk, and cry out to God that He isn't helping us? Even if we don't say the words, is our heart doubting? Do we so quickly forget the redemption He gave us? It's easy to let our fears go wild when we don't see an open, easy road ahead. But every time, God is faithful to clear the path and get the obstacle out of our way when He sees the time is right. He gave the Israelites just enough time to escape from being recaptured. The story of the Israelites is a parallel to our spiritual salvation now. God will make a way of escape from the bondage of sin. He's promised it. The daily obstacles teach us to consistently depend on God to help us and die daily to our own will and accept His will step by step.

Psalm 66:12 says "Thou hast caused men to ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water: but thou broughtest us out into a wealthy place." This sounds like the testimony of someone who has faced difficult obstacles. "Men to ride over our heads" is a description of belittling oppression, and possibly an alludes to the chariots of Egyptian bondage. Going through fire and water is indicative of trial by referencing elemental extremes. Fire can be dangerous and hot, while water can be just as deadly. Through all of these things, and despite the magnitude of the obstacles -- the testimony is that God brought them through and into a "wealthy place," a place of abundance and blessings.

The obstacles we face in life are guaranteed. It's not an easy road to heaven, and our daily walk with God will have obstacles that we have to deal with. The more pressing question is how we will deal with them, and if we'll have the faith to let God move them when it's His will to do so. The lyrics of a song say you have to have faith "when you don't see it but you believe it anyway." We might not see a clear path or a passable road, but we have to believe it anyway. We see the obstacle, but God sees our heart and how much faith and trust it has in Him. It's my prayer to surrender my own thinking and let Him handle the obstacles I see ahead, however big or small they may be. Please pray for me.

Keep encouraged!

A New Year

The title is cliche, and the contents may be as well, but I feel inspired to share a few of my reflections about this new year and the things I have learned spiritually in the past year. I hope some of these can be a blessing or encouragement to everyone who reads them.

I don't really know where to begin, and I have already shared much of my spiritual journey in this venue throughout the past year. I feel like I have grown more in this year alone than I ever have in my life of serving God. I'd like to relate a few points about my experience this year and what lessons I have learned. In doing so, I will become vulnerable. Yet, I feel like the struggles I faced are not uncommon, and I am convinced the things I learned are valuable for every Christian.

In January of 2017, my grandpa became sick. Just like now, I had just returned from a trip Guthrie, Oklahoma for the winter meeting. At first, we didn't know what was wrong with him. Through time, his heart condition worsened, and ultimately, he passed away on April 9th. The death of a loved one is certainly difficult. Caring for someone you love when they continue to deteriorate is hard to do. Yet, the spiritual lessons from such an event are incredible. God is faithful to put people in your life who love and care for you, who are concerned about you, and who embody the qualities of Christ's compassion for us. God was faithful to give me people like that in my life and He kept me comforted despite the circumstances around me. God is always with us. No matter the situation, He's right beside us. He's the God of the hills and valleys, the ups and downs, and the darkest places we could imagine. And in those places where we are surrounded by darkness, He sees things we don't. For me, He saw how I could learn from the death of my grandpa that God is omnipresent. Always with us, and always loving. Yet, it took me a little while to realize those things and fully understand them.

In May of 2017, I lost a cousin in a tragic way. It was a very sad time, and it was very hard to cope with such a loss only one month after my grandpa's funeral. In my life, I was at a crucial point. I could either continue in my life distant from God, or renew my experience with Him and learn from the lessons He was trying to teach me. At the Guthrie meeting in May, Bro. Michael Smith preached a message titled "Back to Bethel." It was one of those greatly inspired, heavily convicting messages that God sends at times in our lives where we have important decisions to make. In the first five minutes, I was under conviction, and couldn't wait for him to sit down so I could get things right with God. I met with God after the message and prayed for renewal. It was something long needed and exceptionally important. I had struggled with truly believing God loved and cared for me enough to save me and keep me around. My experience was lackluster and without true life-giving vigor. But in the deaths of my family, I recognized the support of the saints, the provision of good friends God has for us, and the care and compassion they have for us. God was faithful to not only reveal Himself to me, but reveal Himself through others. I learned how much love God can have for us, and how important it is for us to accept that love, not just realize it's there. There is a fountain filled with blood, we have to draw from that fountain in our lives.

I don't feel like I have adequately explained all that God taught me in those things, but I've shared a lot of that before in various ways, so hopefully it's a blessing. But God has witnessed in a way this year that I don't want to forget, and I'd like to catalog it here so it may serve as a reminder for me, and possibly as a blessing for others. That revelation of God's love has driven me to serve Christ as best as I know how.

God also gave me a scripture recently that really struck me. 1 Timothy 1:5 reads:
"Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned."
This verse really stood out to me. The end of the commandment, or the conclusion or summation of God's commandment, is charity, or love. Above all things, God's mission for us is love. That shouldn't be surprising, as it is the foundation of His salvation for us. It was out of love that Christ came to the world in flesh and die, in flesh, bearing the weight of every sin. It was love that drove Him to be merciful to sinners, to bear their sin on His back and die to make them without blemish. Yet, Christ has conditions for our love to meet. The standard is high. Charity is to be out of a pure heart and of a good conscience. Salvation qualifies a believer of a pure heart, and our conscience is good when we are without sin. Thank the Lord we can live above the traps of sin and rejoice in the glorious love Christ has available for us. It is also of faith unfeigned, or as Adam Clarke defines, "a faith not hypocritical." A faith not shaken or moved, where the actions of the person reflect a trust in God and not dependency on the flesh. A good conscience and a pure heart are produced because of the faith of sins pardoned and new life given. It's a rich blessing to live in the love of God.

Not only is this love for us, but it is to be shared by us. Sis. LaDawna Adams gave a message at Guthrie this winter meeting that focused on love, and it challenged us to forward that love on to others around us, not just those in the camp of the saints, but to sinners as well. Christ died to redeem, and unless we show that love to them, they might not ever fully realize the magnitude of what Jesus did for them. In my devotions yesterday, I read how we too often stay content in the misty valleys below because of the ruggedness and challenge we think climbing the hills or mountains causes. But, in doing so, we are being content with less of what God has for us. More love is available the higher we climb. Don't be afraid to climb, God will not put on us more than we can bear.

I returned from Youth Mission Camp at the Pearl of Grace Ranch yesterday evening, and the theme of the camp was new beginnings. God was merciful and gave me a new beginning last year to my spiritual life, and gave me a chance of revival. The new year brings with it a sense of new beginning, and I want this beginning to be devoted to Christ. I have learned much in the past year, and I intend to keep learning, keep growing, and keep moving forward. It's not an easy trek, and the devil is just as faithful to lay traps in my way. But, with our trust in God and Him as our guide, I'm confident I have nothing to fear. I can't explain how much I have been blessed by God in this past year, and I want this new year to be a reflection in my life of all that I have learned. Pray for me.

Keep encouraged!