The last 40 days of focused prayer including 5 days of fasting have been some of my favorite yet at Mars Hill Church. Here is what I learned and relearned.
Our Father is attentive
We have all been reminded over the last six weeks that we have a heavenly Father who is attentive and listening. Jesus knew this as he called out “Abba, Father” in his great need. And this is the heartfelt sense the Holy Spirit gives us when we pray as perfectly loved and adopted children to our “Abba, Father.” In a day when many dads are absent or distracted, our Father is both present and attentive.
The more I pray, the more I care (and vice versa)
Prayer aligns our hearts with the will of God. As Jesus taught his disciples to pray, he told us to pray “Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” As we have prayed for God’s will to be done, we have grown to care more about his Kingdom than ever before. And as we care more for the advancement of God’s Kingdom, we pray even more often and fervently that it will come quickly and definitively. It’s a powerful cycle.
I think too much about food
As I fasted over the last week, I was surprised by something. The hunger pangs weren’t as bad as I expected. But I did find myself thinking way too much about the next meal that wasn’t coming. I think too much about what I will have for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I often daydreamed about what I might eat next before I realized I wasn’t going to be eating. I will resume eating this week. But I want to avoid thinking so much about food. Jesus said it this way, “Therefore, do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you.”
I think too little about my motives
Prayer and fasting allowed me the time and space to examine my heart motives. And what I saw wasn’t pretty. I rediscovered that I can routinely do the right thing from the wrong motivation. Jesus warned of this when he defined hypocrites as those who “honor me with their lips but their heart is far from me.” I can live out my faith by going through the motions. It was a good exercise to search my motives through the lens of the Bible with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Prayer is war
The Apostle Paul says, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” One way we participate in this battle is by prayer. And prayerfulness invites spiritual opposition from the demonic realm. I have talked to many people who have encountered strong resistance as they sought to pray over the last 40 days. I have experienced the same myself. And yet, as always, Jesus has prevailed. His Kingdom is advancing. Disciples are being made. Churches are being planted.
