Join us as we do less, more intentionally.
Join us from January 5th to January 26th as we seek God through prayer and fasting. We will be meeting at the church on January 8th, 15th, and 22nd at 7:00pm to pray corporately for our families, our city, and our world!
What is fasting?
The goal of fasting is to draw nearer to God. Biblical fasting always has to do with eliminating distractions for a spiritual purpose; it hits the reset button of our soul and renews us from the inside out. It also enables us to celebrate the goodness and mercy of God, and it prepares our hearts for all the good things God desires to bring into our lives. Remember, your personal fast should present a level of challenge, but it is very important to know your body, your options, and most importantly, to seek God in prayer and follow what the Holy Spirit leads you to do.
What are the different types of fasts?
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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 fruits and vegetables for food.
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This fast is sometimes called the Jewish Fast, and it 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 6:00am to 3:00pm, or from sunup to sundown.
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This fast is common for those who do not have much experience fasting food, have health issues that prevent them from fasting food, or wish to refocus other areas of their life that are out of balance. For instance, someone might abstain from using social media or watching television for the duration of the fast, and then choose to carefully bring that element back into their life in an orderly fashion at the conclusion of the fast.
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This fast calls for drinking only liquids, typically water with light juices as an option.
When do we fast?
At Highlands Church, we encourage fasting for 21 days each year in the month of January as part of a season of focused prayer as a church family. This year, we are also encouraging fasting during 7 Days of Prayer in August. You may also choose to fast at other times during the year for your own spiritual development. It’s very typical to fast a single meal, a whole day, or three days or more. The timing of your fast is not as important as the strength of your focus on God as you fast.