City of Refuge Fellowship
Building Bridges Through Prayer
Fasting for God’s Voice
We have often thought of fasting as a way of getting God’s attention. The truth is that we have God’s attention, His eyes are always on us and His heart is always toward us. Fasting is a discipline that gives our attention to God so that we can hear His voice, know His heart and walk in His will.
At CORF we are beginning a corporate fast each Friday for the purpose of hearing God’s voice more clearly and drawing near to Him in intimacy. Each Friday we are asking each other to keep a fast of God’s leading and our honest choosing that will give an opportunity to spend concentrated time with God. Whether you choose to fast a meal, an activity, television, the internet or some other part of your life the key is that the time of fasting is spent with God. This is not a time to petition or intercede but rather a time to worship, to open our hearts and to hear from God.
The second part of this fast is that we make a true effort to share with one another what God is speaking into our lives. One of my greatest encouragements is to hear from others how God is speaking and leading them. It brings me joy to see them grow but it also encourages me to keep pressing in and to keep listening closely. If you would choose to join us in this fast, please consider using the comments section below to share what you hear from God, how He is speaking and the words of joy, love and kindness that He is speaking over you and your life. abie@cityofrefugefellowship.org
Recent Comments
I was listening to a song and in the song it states “Christ looked beyond my faults and saw my need.” My heart melted with this revelation that Jesus always looks beyond my faults and sees that I am in need of Him and He pours out more and more of Himself. He is always generous with His love, grace and forgiveness. As I thought on this I realized that this is not only a gift, but also a requirement. God said to me I require you to do the same. Look beyond your faults and beyond the faults of those around you and just look to your need and their need. I am reminded that we are all in need of additional love, mercy and grace and if Jesus who is perfect can look beyond my faults how much more should I being full of faults, be able to look beyond the fault of others.
John 13: 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
11/14/09 2:34 AM | Comment Link
I have been reading a lot about God’s greatness in creation. Yesterday I was thinking about the fact that God simply spoke and the world came into being. I started thinking of how the Bible gives us examples of how God speaks and creation obeys, the earth stood still for Joshua to continue a battle, animals came 2 by 2 to Noah, Jesus told the wind to stop and it did. It then hit me that the only part of creation that does not quickly obey when God speaks is us, those created in His image. I immediately had a a new sense of God’s love for me. Even in my disobedience, even though I don’t always tremble when He speaks, He keeps speaking. He did not create me to be useful to Him, if so He would have cast me away when I showed that I would not always listen. He created me to be loved by Him and then in response to love Him. There was something wonderful about the thought that God keeps speaking to me that made me want to be much more careful to listen, to tremble and to obey. I truly want to join with the rest of creation in recognizing the magnitude and value of God’s voice and becoming a willing listener rather than one whom God always has to interrupt.
11/14/09 7:53 AM | Comment Link
I was reading through Corinthians 1 yesterday, and I wanted to share a passage that really struck me. “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man, God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it” (Cor.1 10:13) That passage reminded me that when faced with situations and temptations there will always be a morally right solution to it. So many times in the past, I have chosen the sinful option instead, but looking back God has always provided me with an escape even if I foolishy didnt take it. It’s something I’m learning more and more everyday as I am tempted by past experiences, but knowing God will always provide me with an escape makes it so much easier when faced with them.
11/14/09 10:25 AM | Comment Link
As I reflected on Jesus’ love today the Holy Spirit reminded me of a few wonderful aspects of His love. Jesus never loses sight of His love for us. His love for us is faithful and sure. His love never waivers and it is always constant and strong. His love is not based on what I can do, or what He can get from me. Jesus’ love for us is based on His heart and who He says we are. Jesus says we are His beloved this is how He defines us and how He chooses to see us. His love is perfect, pure and everlasting. His love is our reward and our peace.
Just one look on your face, Just one glance at your eyes, My whole world has changed. Oh I seek only to see your face, I don’t want to go anywhere with out you God, without your presence. Oh let me see your face, the beauty of your holiness God. Take me into the holy place. Only one word comes to mind, Only one word to describe… HOLY!
11/20/09 3:18 AM | Comment Link
Something that I have struggled with in my early Christian life is hearing and knowing when God is speaking to me. It is something that I have prayed about and tried to figure out ever since I accepted Jesus into my life. I tried everything to find the answer to this question, but nothing I was doing seemed to give me the answer I was looking for.
Today during my time with God, he gave me the answer I was looking for. I was working in the Experiencing God book and the unit I began today was titled “God Speaks”. I was very excited and finally ready to get the answer that I have been desperately craving. But that excitement quickly disappeared and dissappointment crept over me. The first line I read was “He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God” (John 8:47) So i was sitting there thinking to myself, well this really stinks. But a voice in my head told me to keep reading and not be discouraged (I know now that voice was God) I read through Day 1 of that Unit, and my excitement was back.
Several points that were made answered several of the questions that I had been having. The first one being: “When God spoke, the experience was usually unique to that individual” Before, I had been asking other Christians how they heard God and what he sounds like, etc. I now realize that hearing God’s voice is a unique experience and it isnt the same for every person. The other point that was made was about being patient and learning to wait for him to speak. Before, I was always in a hurry and just wanting him to speak to me without really developing a relationship with him first. I tried to skip over that relationship and just find answers and directions for my life. I know now that God is more interested in a love relationship with me and the reason I struggle to hear him speak is because he wants me to develop a deeper relationship with him. And that is what I am taking out of today, and I will make my relationship with God the number 1 priority in my life.
11/20/09 9:02 AM | Comment Link
The Father’s Love: We have a heavenly Father, whose ability to love and connect to us is not hindered by passed wounds or flaws or unresolved issues. Loving us is more than something He does our heavenly Father is love. His love allows us to rest in His peace and fills us with joy. His love sees us completely and brings out our very best. His love opens up possibilities that we did not even know where available. His love strengthens, purifies and transforms us. His love protects us and makes us complete. His love is perfect.
12/4/09 3:16 AM | Comment Link
I have been amazed over the past few weeks that as I’ve fasted to hear God speak, He’s truly spoken to me as never before. Even though I feel that I’ve learned to hear God’s voice more clearly over the past several years, this time is different. He is speaking to me in such a crystal clear way. I think part of the speaking is that I am tuning my ear to listen to Him. I am no longer refusing to believe that I am worthy of His love and therefore am unworthy of the time He would take to speak to me. He loves me!!! He accepts me. There is no work I need to do to acheive perfection in His eyes. To Him I am already what He wants. He only desires my heart to be His. Then He can speak to me without distraction, without my fear of being unworthy, He can just speak…and I can believe Him when He says He loves me.
12/4/09 9:43 AM | Comment Link
During my time with God today, I was working in my “Experiencing God” book and was learning about the crisis of belief. (Crisis of belief is when you are faced with a decision whether to believe God for what He wants to do through you or go your own way and miss what He has purposed for your life.)
While I was working through this unit, God was speaking to me about a crisis of belief that I was faced with about a year ago to this day. I was reminded of this because God wanted me to remember that when you trust him and put your faith in his plan for you, He will fulfill his promises. And as I sit here today, it overwhelms me with joy and thanks that he did do what he said he would in my life. I believe He wanted me to share my crisis of belief here today, so here it goes.
Thanksgiving of last year, my life was in complete turmoil. I was in school at Clemson University (South Carolina) and everything in my life was going in a downward spiral. I was addicted to several different drugs, while having urges to experience harder and more dangerous ones. My grades were going down, as was my class attendance. I was losing relationships with friends I once had, and only hung out with my roommates, who were also heavy drug users. I was really depressed about pretty much everything going on in my life. So my crisis of belief occurred during my Thanksgiving break while I was at home. I remember lying on my bed just overwhelmed with depression and confusion. At this time I had pretty much lost any faith in God that I had, but that day I prayed for the first time in a while. God clearly spoke to me and gave me an opportunity to change my life.
“Tell your parents everything” is what he said.
I had been hiding everything for years now and the thought of telling them made me sick. I wanted to fix my life by myself without the help of anyone, including God. But something in me knew that I had to trust God in this situation. So I did, and told my parents all of the troubles and things going on in my life.
Skip ahead to the present day, and God has fulfilled his promise to me. The list would go on forever of the things that God has done for me this past year. But I sit here today so thankful that I chose faith in God during that crisis of belief. I learned the amazing things that God can do in your life, if you just have faith and trust him. And he wants me to remember this time in my life when faced with future situations.
12/4/09 10:25 AM | Comment Link
I began a new unit in my “Experiencing God” book today and it was very meaningful and encouraging for issues that I am currently dealing with. The first thing I read in this unit was the title, which read “Adjusting Your Life to God”. As soon as I read that, God clearly spoke to me and said your way of living has been “Adjusting God to Your Life”. It’s shameful to admit, but it’s true. I have made some adjustments in my life because of my faith in God, but there are also other adjustments that either I didn’t make or made on my own terms. Henry Blackaby writes “Your adjustments and obedience will be costly to you and those around you.” That is the reason why I have been hesistant and disobedient with many of the adjustments that God wanted me to make. It is costly sometimes and everyone knows change doesnt feel good. I know I don’t like the feeling of change, so if giving the option usually I’ll choose the least painful path even if I know God wants me to do it differently. But I’m missing out on what God has planned for me, if I keep disobeying him. Blackaby states that your faith will be most clearly demonstrated by your actions. Actions include adjustments and then obedience to live your life with God. My struggles come with the adjustment part. I feel for the most part, I usually will display obediance by trying to live my life as sin-free as possible. But there is a problem with that. As Blackaby writes, “We tend to want to skip making adjustments and go directly from believing God to obedience.” That is so true for my life. Obedience is much easier than making adjustments, but I’m not really showing my faith in God by doing that. My time with God today really opened my eyes to a lot of things, and has encouraged me to make some adjustments in my life. I thank the Lord for showing me this and always loving and being by my side.
12/11/09 1:30 PM | Comment Link
In Ephesians 3 Paul wrote that he was praying that all believers would “would know the love of Christ which passes knowledge”. I am being reminded each day that God’s love is beyond what I know and beyond what I understand. The steps He orders, the experiences He ordains and the opportunities He provides go beyond my knowledge which also means they go beyond what I am comfortable with, but they do not go beyond His love. In fact, all these things are because of and perfectly aligned with His love.
These last weeks, especially the Friday fasts, are teaching me more and more about how much I am loved and how much more I need to trust God’s love. Things that I don’t understand are no less in God’s hands than those things that make perfect sense to me. To acknowledge God in all of my ways is beginning to mean that I will trust His love in every circumstance and yield to His will in every trial. I believe that the Apostle Paul’s prayer is being answered in my life, each day I seem to know the love of Christ more. I am becoming more aware, more alert and more willing to be loved.
12/12/09 8:11 AM | Comment Link
I continue to be amazed that when I seek Him with all my heart He is ready and waiting to sit with me. I know that His heart is for me more today than I’ve ever known it and it really fills me with peace. I am beginning to hear what He says to me and about me and trust His words more than the words in my own mind or from any other source. When I sing, “He loves me!” I really believe it. I am grateful for the opportunity to sit in His presence whenever I desire to draw near to Him and He closes the gap and becomes so close to me. What a privilege. I am learning to see His face and hear His voice in a new way and I love that.
01/22/10 11:30 AM | Comment Link