Introduction to 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting
Originally written from February 28 through
April 8, 2001
Day
1
For
those of you who expressed special interest in the "40-Days of Prayer with
Fasting" series, I’ve finally put this together for you to read as you grow
through this special time of renewal and closeness with the Lord. Here are some Scripture passages to meditate
on:
"But
as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth' I humbled my soul
with fasting; and my prayer kept returning to my bosom." Psalm 35:13
"O
God, it is Thou who dost know my folly, and my wrongs are not hidden from Thee. May those who wait for Thee not be ashamed
through me, O Lord God of hosts; May those who seek Thee not be dishonoured
through me, O God of Israel, because for Thy sake I have borne reproach;
dishonour has covered my face.
I
have become estranged from my brothers and an alien to my mother's sons. For zeal for Thy house has consumed me, and
the reproaches of those who reproach Thee have fallen on me. When I wept in my soul with fasting, it
became my reproach. When I made
sackcloth my clothing, I became a byword to them. –
“But
as for me, my prayer is to Thee, O Lord, at an acceptable time; O God, in the
greatness of Thy loving-kindness, answers me with Thy saving truth. - Answer
me, O Lord, for Thy loving-kindness is good; according to the greatness of Thy
compassion, turn to me, and do not hide Thy face from thy servant.” Psalm 68:5-17
"Then
Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the
devil. And after He had fasted forty
days and forty nights, He then became hungry." Matthew 4:1-2
"And
immediately the Spirit impelled Him to go out into the wilderness. And He was in the wilderness forty days being
tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts, and the angels were
ministering to Him.” Mark 1:12-13
"And
Jesus full of the Holy Spirit returned from the Jordan and was led about by the
Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days; and
when they had ended, He became hungry." Luke
4:1-2
[Jesus
teaching] "And whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the
hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance in order to be seen fasting by
men. Truly I say to you, they have their
reward in full. But you, when you fast,
anoint your head, and wash your face so that you may not be seen fasting by
men, but by your Father who is in secret and your Father who sees in secret
will repay you." Matthew
6:16-18
Fasting
is not a matter of food, but rather the heart attitude. Fasting itself, as you will see holds special
significance, because it is a time when we put something we value aside to
instead, delight ourselves in the Lord, so He can move our hearts to desire His
heart for His glory and our good.
- • "An ordinary man of average weight and fitness embarking on a total fast - that is, a fast during which he refuses both his food and drink - could not expect to live for more than thirty days, nor to be conscious for more than twenty-five.
- • For him, the forty days of fasting described in religious texts would not be achievable - except with Divine help, of course. History, however, does not record an intervention of that kind, and medicine opposes it."
Take
care with love, especially His! Your
servant and friend in Christ, who still prays for you each morning. Darlene
PS:
My statement of faith: https://especiallyhislove.blogspot.com You can find the WeakDay Devotion online by
doing a Google search for “WeakDay Devotion” (Also, there is an android “Google
Blogger” app you can download to read them on your phone.)
NEW PRAYER REQUESTS and UPDATES
(NOTE:
Words underlined have a link embedded to
provide more details)
For
more information, I’m researching and pulling an overview of this for you
at: https://newsaboutcovid19.blogspot.com/
Please
pray for the health care workers, those trying to contain the spread and most
importantly those who contract the virus – that they are wise and take
precautions to protect others.
Latest Update: (source John Hopkins) Please note that
the stats are typically updated about five hours from now, but these reflect
the changes overnight.
o Today in 40 countries (Iran new today)
o 80,419 confirmed cases
o 9,211 critical condition
o 2,711 reported deaths (all in China
except for 16 Iran, 11 S Korea, 11 Italy, 4 Cruise Ship, 2 HK, 1 each in Japan Taiwan
France Philippines)
- Scott – getting Married March 26th, they will be a blended
and Blessed couple. Thank you for
praying all these years for him and his children.
- Baby Jolie– a
year-old struggling to recover from meningitis and kidney failure. Still in hospital. Her leg wound remains a concern and amputation is still a possibility. She is responding and VERY SLOWLY getting better.
Many hurdles have been crossed with prayer and great Doctors, with several more to cross before she can go home.
(she will need full-time nursing care) but it could be as soon as two weeks. Praise the Lord. The family is so grateful for all your prayers.
- Savannah – has a very long road to travel.
The 15-year-old granddaughter of Cliff and Beth, diagnosed with a difficult-to-treat,
psychological disorder with potentially serious consequences. New meds seem to be helping. She is showing progress with this brain injury. Pray for her attitude,
wisdom for her health carers, patience for her parents and complete healing.
- USA President Donald Trump – It is our responsibility as Christians to
remember God has a plan through this man. If you doubt the importance of his appointment, just look at how much antagonism there is against him. Surely Satan is NOT happy and means to thwart God’s plan. Pray someone helps President Trump understand the true meaning of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, that he will have a driving hunger to read
God’s Word for himself and that God sends a Bible-believing Christian to regularly disciple him in the Truth and that God shuts the mouths of the false prophets who circle around him.
- Fred – is making plans to move from California to Tennessee in the first
quarter of 2020. Pray for his wise
attention to details and stamina as he makes this life change.
- Tracey – Pray Tracey finds a new role to satisfy her and allow her to grow
and share her skills and wisdom.
- Me – The Lord has provided me with a short, 4-week project. Thank you for praying. Please pray He finds a way for my laptop
to be fixed soon (if you receive the email version with the full prayer list,
the formatting is different (sorry).
PRAY FOR THOSE IN FULL-TIME SERVICE
[1]
Ellis Winward and Professor Michael Soule, The Limits of Mortality, Ecco Press,
New Jersey, 1993.
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