Hello  

To help us be a worldwide caring community, praying community and community of power, we will be sending out monthly prayer and bible reading resources, including bible reading plans, memory verses and some teaching on prayer.

We hope you find these resources useful and helpful.

Bible Reading Plans

Read the Bible with us this month as we look at a reading plan about finding fulfilment. You can access them on the YouVersion app or website.

Memory Verse

"And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way." 

Ephesians 1:22-23 NIV

Prayer Teaching

Prayer and Fasting

Sara Jukes

You may have heard about fasting in your everyday life; maybe during Lent, as part of a medical requirement or in other aspects of society. As Christians, fasting is to abstain from something - mainly food - for a certain amount of time, with the express intent to shift our physical focus onto Jesus and to believe for breakthrough, strength or clarity in areas of prayer. It is an act of humility and submission to God and acknowledging Him as more important in your life than all things, yet fasting holds much more weight than just this. Spiritually, it is a mighty weapon in the hand of the believer against Satan.  

We see Jesus himself talk about this power in Matthew 17. The disciples had tried to cast out a demon but it refused to move. When they asked Jesus why they were unable to cast it out but He was able, He replied; 

"…this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting." 

Matthew 17:21 

Great emphasis is placed on the "by prayer and fasting". There needed to be prayer and fasting behind this deliverance. The power of the two together wielded greater authority in the spiritual realm and therefore got results. 
 
Fasting is not a way of bribing God into giving us the things we want or desire because we know there is authority there, but it is a weapon against the enemy that is to be wielded under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  

If you have never fasted before, it is important to understand the subject and take advice on the physical impact for you personally.

Be wise.

Fast for one meal for a few times, then a day, and then build it up.

Be sensible.

More importantly than anything, let God guide you. Grow in understanding and grow in power as you learn to develop this weapon of prayer and fasting. 

Added Extras

There are different types of fasting which include: 

• Full food fast 
• Partial food fast (e.g. a certain meal or type of food) 
• Social Media fast 

Scriptures to read: 

• Jonah 3 
• Daniel 1 
• Joel 2:12-14 
• Mark 2:19-20 
• 1 Corinthians 7:5 
• Isaiah 58:6-12