1 Chronicles 16:11

Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always.

Psalm 4:1

Answer me when I call to you, O my righteous God. Give me relief from my distress; be merciful to me and hear my prayer.

Psalm 145:18

The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.

Proverbs 15:29

The LORD is far from the wicked but he hears the prayer of the righteous.

Matthew 7:11

If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

Luke 6:12

One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.

Luke 18:1

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.

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Romans 8:26

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

Philippians 4:6

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Colossians 4:2

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.

1 Thessalonians 5:17

pray continually;

1 Timothy 2:8

I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.

Hebrews 4:14

Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.

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James 1:7

That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord;

James 4:3

When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

James 5:16

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Questions About Prayer

1. What is prayer?
2. Why do we pray?
3. What happens if we don’t pray?
4. Why do we struggle with praying?

What does God want from us when we pray?

Matthew 6:9-13 “Pray, then, in this way:‘Our Father who is in heaven,Hallowed be Your name. ‘Your kingdom come.Your will be done,On earth as it is in heaven. ‘Give us this day our daily bread. ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’ 

• Hallowed be your name – acknowledging all glory belongs to God – we need to tell Him we agree
• Your kingdom come – God’s kingdom is not set up on this earth – yet – but it will be
• Your will be done – God has a perfect will for my life – I’m surrendering control to Him
• On earth as it is in heaven – I want Him to have the same freedom in my life as He has in heaven
• Give us this day our daily bread – asking God to provide my needs – daily – not looking ahead – focusing on the present
• Forgive us our debts – a debt is something I owe to someone – we are asking God to wipe away my sin – I owe a payment for my sin, but God paid it 
• As we have forgiven our debtors – forgive me like I, forgive those who have wronged me
• And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil – as I follow You, please lead me away from things that would cause me to stumble and deliver me when I lead myself into trouble
• For Yours is the kingdom – Your kingdom is the only one that matters and I want you to rule my kingdom
• The power – your power is the greatest and I yield to it
• And the glory – my life bringing you glory is all that matters
• Forever – in this life and for eternity

The structure of the prayer is simple 

• Focus on God and who He is first
• Acknowledge His control and will in my life
• Ask Him to meet my needs and the needs of those around me
• Ask for forgiveness and direction 
• Reiterate He is all that matters

Our prayers do not have to follow this exact pattern, but we must realize our regular prayer life will ultimately model these things.

Look at David’s prayers in Psalms and other Old Testament prayers

         David’s Prayer for Protection Psalm 3

         David’s Prayer for Favor Psalm 4

         David’s Prayer for Guidance Psalm 5

         David’s Prayer for Mercy Psalm 6

         David’s Prayer for deliverance from Persecution Psalm 7

         David’s Prayer for God’s Help Psalm 13

         David’s Prayer Psalm 23

         David’s Prayer For Trust Psalm 25

         David’s Prayer & Fasting Psalm 35

         David’s Prayer For Forgiveness Psalm 51

         Elijah’s Prayer at Mt. Carmel 1 Kings 18:36-39

Prayer and fasting – 40 days – 

6 specific things: 

• Thankfulness
  What has God done for me?
  What things has God given me that I take for granted?
  
• Church
  Staff
  Vision – not my personal preferences, but God’s direction for us
  
• Our families and homes
  Spiritual Leadership
  Loving my family the way God wants me to
  
• Outreach
  Who are we in our community?
  Personally taking initiative to invite people to church
  
• Giving
  Do my offerings to God reflect His blessings to me?
  
• Personal spiritual lives
  Time spent with God every day
  Does my time with Him alter my worldview?

Types of Fasts in Scripture – this is not an exhaustive list – just a few things for us to consider from scripture.

1. To prepare for ministry. Jesus spent forty days and nights in the wilderness fasting and praying before He began God’s work on this earth. He needed time alone to prepare for what His Father had called Him to do (Matthew 4:1-17; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-14).
   
2. To seek God’s wisdom. Paul and Barnabas prayed and fasted for the elders of the churches before committing them to the Lord for His service (Acts 14:23).
   
3. To show grief. Nehemiah mourned, fasted, and prayed when he learned Jerusalem’s walls had been broken down, leaving the Israelites vulnerable and disgraced (Nehemiah 1:1-4).
   
4. To seek deliverance or protection. Ezra declared a corporate fast and prayed for a safe journey for the Israelites as they made the nine-hundred- mile trek to Jerusalem from Babylon (Ezra 8:21-23).
   
5. To repent. After Jonah pronounced judgment against the city of Nineveh, the king covered himself with sackcloth and sat in the dust. He then ordered the people to fast and pray. Jonah 3:10 says, “When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, He relented and did not bring on them the destruction He had threatened.”
   
6. To gain victory. After losing forty thousand men in battle in two days, the Israelites cried out to God for help. Judges 20:26 says all the people went up to Bethel and “sat weeping before the Lord.” They also “fasted that day until evening.” The next day the Lord gave them victory over the Benjamites.
   
7. To worship God. Luke 2 tells the story of an eighty-four-year-old prophetess named Anna. Verse 37 says, “She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.” Anna was devoted to God, and fasting was one expression of her love for Him.

• Fasting was an expected discipline in both the Old and New Testament eras.
• Fasting and prayer can restore the loss of the “first love” for your Lord and result in a more intimate relationship with Christ.
• Fasting is a biblical way to truly humble yourself in the sight of God.
• Fasting enables the Holy Spirit to reveal your true spiritual condition, resulting in brokenness, repentance, and a transformed life.
• Fasting will encourage the Holy Spirit to quicken the Word of God in your heart and His truth will become more meaningful to you.
• Fasting can transform your prayer life into a richer and more personal experience.
• Fasting can result in a dynamic personal revival in your own life and make you a channel of revival to others.

What should I fast?

• Food
  Food is the most common thing to fast 
  • What types of food fasts are there?
    • Total – nothing to eat or drink at all
    • Food – but still drink water and juices
    • Daniel fast – eat fruit and vegetables only, drink water and juice
    • One meal – choose not to eat a particular meal each day – use that time to pray (breakfast or supper are most common)
    • A particular kind of food – bread, sugar, soda, sweet tea, etc… don’t fast something you wouldn’t want anyway (kale)
    • Eating out – you’re only going to eat at home
• An activity 
  • Social media – for the period of the fast, do not get on social media at all. If you would like, you can post a final message saying you are taking a break from social media for the purpose of spending more time with God each day. You do not have to explain it all if you don’t want to
  • Video games – choose not to play any video games for the time period
  • Online shopping for pleasure – no browsing Amazon, walmart.com, Pinterest, Etsy, Ebay, etc. 
  • Netflix, Prime, Disney +, or sports on TV

My suggestions for our Young Adults group:

• Social media – this is a great place to start for our group. Most people in your life will ask you at some point over the 40 days why you aren’t on social media anymore. That’s a great opportunity to tell them why you’re doing the fast.
• A meal each day – it amounts to an extended period of intermittent fasting. Many of you have tried that to loose weight or get in better shape in addition to working out. This would be different, because you want to pray during the time you would normally eat.
• A particular type of food or drink – give up your favorite thing (bread, cake, sweet tea, etc)
• Other activities – video games, tv service, online shopping, etc
• If you have fasted before, you might consider something more substantial that just one meal each day 

What are the specific goals of our fast?

• God’s direction and vision for our church as a whole – we want to be unified
• God’s favor in our community – continued opportunities and new opportunities
• God’s wisdom for our staff (Pastor Brady)
• God’s provision – continued and increased giving by our people
• God to eliminate the pandemic
• God to heal our country – racially, politically, socio economically, morally, etc
• God to strengthen our families – starts with the husbands and fathers (or single moms), flows to everyone else. As a single Young Adult, you are responsible for your own spiritual growth and walk
• God to teach all of us individually how much we need to follow Him and His plan for our lives – spending time with Him every day

I hope you will consider joining us for this crucial 40 days.

PWG