3.2 Prayer and Fasting

I'm sure many of us pray, at least occasionally. In moments of stress, before big decisions, maybe when life feels out of control. But when we practice the way of Jesus, prayer isn't just something you do when you need help. It's a way of aligning ourselves with God daily. Prayer at its core is our lifeline, our primary form of spiritual communication. And if you notice in the Bible, Jesus didn't treat prayer like another religious duty or ritual. He treated it like ongoing conversation with the Father, which it is. And he set the example for how important prayer truly is. In Luke 5, verse 16, it says that Jesus often withdrew into the wilderness for prayer. Prayer was how Jesus stayed grounded, clear in his mission, and aligned with the Father. Before major decisions, in moments of pressure, and in seasons of exhaustion. But let's address a common misconception. Prayer isn't about impressing God with the right words. It's about staying present with God throughout your daily life. He desires that kind of connection with us, and we desperately need it with him. In his book Practicing the Way, author John Mark Comer describes prayer as learning to live in constant awareness of God's presence. Talking to God, listening to God, allowing your whole life to become an ongoing conversation with him. The Apostle Paul says it this way in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5, never stop praying. Prayer shapes our hearts, it recenters our desires, it quiets anxiety by reminding us who's truly in control, and it teaches us to trust God's will. Prayer isn't just a way to change our circumstances, it's about submitting our will to God's will, and aligning our motives with his. It often changes us as much as it changes the world around us. But let's talk about that for a moment, and about unanswered prayer specifically. There's no such thing as unanswered prayer. Sometimes the answer is yes, sometimes the answer is no, and sometimes the answer is

not yet. God always answers our prayers, however scripture tells us that God does so according to his will, according to his ultimate plan for you and for humanity as a whole. The concept of God's will can be hard to understand because as the scriptures say, his ways are not our ways, and his thoughts are not our thoughts. That means we'll never fully understand God while we're in these mortal bodies. But God is both in total control, and allows us to act with our own free will. Often we pray not for God's will to be done, but actually for our own. We want to avoid suffering, and sometimes the consequences of our own actions. We want him to help us achieve our own selfish ambitions. It may be hard to believe, but God may not answer yes to your prayer for a jet ski. But you should feel free to share the desires of your heart with him and ask for it anyway. And when God answers our prayers with a yes, prayers for healing, or strength, or wisdom, or anything else we might need, we should seal that in our heart as a reminder of God's faithfulness. When the answer to our prayer is no, we need to ask ourselves what God's will for us is, not just what we may want as superficial desires or to gratify our own pleasures. James chapter 4 says it this way, You want what you don't have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can't get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. You don't have what you want because you don't ask God for it, and even when you ask, you don't get it because your motives are all wrong. You only want what will give you pleasure. Even Jesus himself struggled with his own will to avoid suffering before his crucifixion, but he chose God's will anyway as an example for us. Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet, I want your will to be done, not mine. Learning to love the will of God, God himself, and others as our primary motivations takes time and maturity. It's often God's way of asking us to mature and take on heavenly values and concerns.

If prayer is about connection, fasting is about dependence. Fasting is the intentional practice of abstaining from food or something essential for a time in order to create a deeper focus on God. Jesus fasted not to punish his body, but to create total dependence upon the Father. During 40 days of prayer and fasting in the desert, Jesus fought the temptation of the enemy with this truth. People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. Fasting exposes what normally controls us, our cravings, our comforts, our coping mechanisms. It reveals how often we turn to food, entertainment, or distractions instead of turning to God. Author John Mark Homer describes fasting as letting our hunger lead us to God rather than away from him. When we fast, we're reminded that God is truly our source of strength. Prayer and fasting are often paired together, and together they form a posture of surrender, dependence, and communication between God and man. Jesus assumed his followers would practice both, and in Matthew chapter 6 he said, When you pray and when you fast, not if, but when. In a culture of instant gratification, prayer and fasting are practices that convert our natural tendencies into dependency on God. Prayer and fasting train us to desire God more than anything else and listen for His guidance and His direction. So here's a simple invitation. Set aside 10 to 15 minutes a day this week for intentional prayer. It's not about saying perfect words, it's about opening the conversation with a God that wants to know you personally. Prayer doesn't have to follow a specific structure, but if prayer is new or intimidating to you, start by using the structure that Jesus famously used to teach others how to pray in the Lord's Prayer found in Matthew chapter 6. Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread.

Forgive us our sins, we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. Amen. An easy acronym to remember is PRAY, P-R-A-Y. That stands for praise, repent, ask, and yield. And in the Lord's Prayer, Jesus begins with praise. Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. When we praise God in prayer, we recognize Him for who He is and acknowledge Him for His greatness and His goodness. R stands for repent. Another important aspect of prayer is about asking for the forgiveness of our sins as we forgive those who do us wrong. Jesus said it this way, forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. A stands for ask. Jesus said give us this day our daily bread. God may not answer yes to everything we ask for, but we should be comfortable enough with Him to share both our needs and the desires of our heart. Finally, Y stands for yield. Jesus was teaching us to yield when He said, for the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and forever. When we yield to God, we surrender control and submit our will to His. And here's a fun fact, amen is a traditional ending to prayer that actually has ancient Hebrew origins and it's translated to mean, so be it. For fasting, here's a challenge. Choose one meal or one day this week to fast from food. When hunger shows up, let it become a reminder to pray. Prayer keeps us in communion with God, fasting teaches us to trust and depend on God, and together they form us into people who live like Jesus lived and do what Jesus did.