Fasting

In January, I challenged the Harvest Ridge family to join me in fasting and prayer every Monday. The purpose of this fast is to ask God to redeem and restore people to new life in Him.

On Monday, May 18, I was fasting and asking God to bring new people to faith in Him. As a part of my morning devotions, I was reading a few pages from Prayer by Richard Foster.

"When we fast, we are intentionally relinquishing the right given to the human family in the Garden--the right to eat. We say no to food because we are intent upon others receiving a far greater nourishment. Our fasting is a sign that nothing will stop us in our struggle on behalf of the broken and oppressed... Our fasting is part of our wrestling with God. It is part of the birth pangs we endure in order to see new life come forth." (226)

That is my heart... to see new life! If doing without a meal or two can assist a person to come to faith in Christ. I gladly go hungry.

What about you? Will you join me? Would you fast one meal a week to help set the oppressed free?

I'm learning some new ways to approach God in prayer. One of those ways is through something called a Collect. A Collect is a form of prayer that is used in many churches, and is often prayed "collectively."
Today I was reading a book called UnChurched, which led me to pray for God to reveal his power to those who do not know Him. I am firmly convinced that people need to experience the power of God.
Jesus said the following words as a statement of our weakness of faith, but I believe it is also a recognition of the state of our hearts. "Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders, you will never believe." (John 4:48)

So, with all of this said, let me share with you the Collect I prayed today...
"Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us: and, because we are sorely hindered by our sins, let your bountiful grace and merc speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."

My Aroma

2 Corinthians 2:15-16 For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 16 To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?

This Sunday is Mother's Day. I will be challenging moms to become the aroma of life in their world.

This morning, I stepped outside to get catch the aroma of rain... not downpour rain, but rain that just started to fall on a spring morning. I love that smell. It is fresh, relaxing, pleasant.

The passage above says that we have an aroma. It is either of life or of death. I wonder, what is the smell that others get when they come close to me. I pray that today, I would be the aroma of Christ to my world.