RHYTHMS - Week 4

Matthew 11:28-30 (MSG)

WHAT FASTING ISN’T

Fasting is not a diet.

Fasting is not starving yourself for God's attention

Fasting does not get you into heaven.

Fasting does not make God love you more.

Fasting is not self-mutilation.

Fasting is not only for crisis moments.

Fasting does not get you into heaven.

Fasting isn’t a commandment, but it is assumed by Jesus for his followers

Matthew 6:16-18 (CSB)

TYPES OF FAST?

Complete Fast
In this type of fast, you drink only liquids, typically water with light juices as an option.

Selective Fast
This type of fast involves removing certain elements from your diet. One example of a selective fast is the Daniel Fast, during which you remove meat, sweets, and bread from your diet and consume water and juice for fluids and fruit and vegetables for food.

Partial Fast
You can choose to This fast is sometimes called the "Jewish Fast" and involves abstaining from eating any type of food in the morning and afternoon. This can either correlate to specific times of the day, such as 6:00 am to 3:00 pm, or from sunup to sundown. You can also choose to fast meal like, lunchtime.

Soul Fast
This fast is a great option if you do not have much experience fasting food, have health issues that prevent you from fasting food, or if you wish to refocus certain areas of your life that are out of balance. For example, you might choose to stop using social media or watching television for the duration of the fast and then carefully bring that element back into your life in healthy doses at the conclusion of the fast.

WHAT DOES FASTING DO?

1. Concentrates us on God

Luke 2:37 (NLT)

“Christian fasting is unique among all the fasting of the world…It is unique in that it expresses more than longing for Christ or hunger for Christ’s presence. It is a hunger that is rooted in -based on- an already present, experienced reality of Christ in history and in our hearts.” - John Piper

2. Controls our Appetites

Matthew 4:2 (CSB)

1 Corinthians 9:25-27 (CSB)

3. Clarifies God’s Actions

Acts 13:2 (CSB)

4. Consecrates us for God’s Activity

Acts 13:2-3 (CSB)

5. Conquest for the Un-Attainable

Mark 9:28-29 (KJB)

6. Conquers the Enemy’s Attacks

Ephesians 6:12 (CSB)

Daniel 10:1-4 (CSB)

Daniel 10:12-14 (CSB)