“so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” – Matthew 6:18 NIV
The Christian life is built on such fundamental practices as fasting and prayer that we sometimes presume we know what to do and how to accomplish it. While we all agree that praying and fasting are important habits, it is simple to carry out these routines improperly.
These two themes are all about dedicating ourselves to God to make ourselves more available for his use. Fasting and prayer are private acts between ourselves and the Father. While there are no set guidelines for how frequently we should pray or fast, it is unavoidable that God wants us to dedicate ourselves to these activities.
May this piece strengthen our prayer life and clarify how we view and practice fasting. We are very blessed to have a forgiving Father who has provided us with avenues for interaction with him and the opportunity to develop our Christian potential. We are only able to approach God’s throne in these lovely ways because of God’s generosity.
Photo source: Tara Winstead
The importance of prayer.
In a two-way conversation with God, man should not only talk to Him during prayer but also listen to what He has to say. Prayer is a form of spiritual communication. Prayer, which also is communication to God is like a child talking to his father.
Knowing this is beneficial since praying to God is not meant to impress people. We pray to establish a channel of communication with our Father so we can speak with him, and get answers. What are some other advantages of prayer? Here are a select few.
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We run the risk of losing our faith if we do not pray.
Without prayer, we run the risk of languishing in our faith and succumbing to temptations and bad habits that we had previously resisted through prayer. Poor communication is a common cause of relationships to end. Likewise, God and us.
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Praying regularly leads to contentment and calm.
Our world is a sin-filled place. There are many problems and sorrows. How then do we overcome melancholy, letdown, dread, malice, and hurt? When we call on our Father, He grants us serenity that is beyond our comprehension. One of our faith’s greatest blessings is this.
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We become holy through the practice of prayer.
Our hearts get more in tune with what God wants for us as we spend more time in prayer seeking Him, and as a result, we become holy people.
What fasting entails.
To feed and strengthen our spirit man, we must deny our flesh and refrain from consuming food or a particular sort of food (fast as the Holy Spirit leads you). The author of Galatians, Paul, informs us that the wants of our spirits and the cravings of our bodies are at odds with one another in Galatians 5:16-17, “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They conflict with each other so that you are not to do whatever you want.”
Benefits of fasting for the soul.
When we fast with a pure heart and intention, much like when we pray, there are advantages we get and a greater depth of the Lord’s power and influence in our life. There are significant advantages that we experience in our lives when we make time to fast and pray by God’s Word. Our relationship with God grows closer, we gain more insight and knowledge about how the Lord wants to work in our lives, and we strengthen in the confidence and control we walk in as Christians.