Dear Precious Prayer Partners,
(Mat 6:16) Moreover when you fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. (Mat 6:17) But you, when you fast, anoint your head, and2 wash your face; (Mat 6:18) That you appear not to men to fast, but to your Father which is in Heaven: and your Father, who sees in secret, shall reward you openly. (Part 2)
So, did you eat too much on Thanksgiving? Did you remember to thank God for all His blessings this year, even the ones that haven’t come yet or the ones that were denied? That’s the hard part, isn’t it? When things seem to be getting worse, for some of us, and we are facing such hardships we could never have even imagined. How can we thank God for letting them happen? How can we count it all joy, as He says in James 1:2-3, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.” How can we believe He is still in control and working all things together for our good, as He says in Romans 8:28?
As Ricky Ricardo would say, “Let me splain.”
I mentioned in last month’s newsletter that when you pray and fast together, you will hear God’s voice speak to you from His word. He will touch your body, your mind, your emotions, your family, your finances, and any area of your life you need Him to touch. Have you tried fasting? It doesn’t work just to know about it. You have to do it and when you do it, faithfully, you will see His evidence to His word in Matthew 6:18. Your Father will reward you openly…
Let me tell you of my personal test to see if God’s word on fasting was true for me, as it is for others I have read about.
Napoleon Hill, who I mentioned last month, also tested the power of fasting once again, as he did for his son who was born without ears.
Napoleon needed to have oral surgery and have all his teeth removed. He believed through the power of fasting he could do it without any Novocain. He just focused his mind on beautiful places and on things that kept his mind occupied away from what was happening. What happened? He did it. No Pain. No Novocain. Amazing!
Well, I had the opportunity to see for myself if such a thing was possible.
It just so happened when I read Napoleon’s story I needed to have oral surgery for one tooth. Napoleon fasted a week for a whole mouth. I decided I would fast three days for one tooth.
As I settled into the dentist chair I saw his nurse getting the giant needle ready to jam a number of times into my gums to make sure I would feel no pain. No Pain! What about the pain of getting the needle? As she approached me with an, “it will be alright look” on her face, I said, “That’s O.K. I won’t need that.” She looked at me with a, “Yes you will,” expression, as she smiled slightly. “No, that’s O.K. I can handle it,” I said. Then the doctor spoke up. “Dominick, you don’t understand that tooth is abscessed and I am going to have to chip away at it, to get it all out, even at the bone. You are going to need that needle,” he said. “No, really I don’t,” I said. “O.K.,” he said. “I’m putting this needle right here next to you and at the first sign of pain you are getting it,” he insisted. “O.K.” I said.
As he began to drill and chip away I immediately started to focus my mind on Jesus. I was easy because that is what I had been doing the last three days during my fast. I focused on Jesus and me walking to one of my favorite spots in the Adirondack Mts. I would go to as a young teenager. Pharaoh Lake nestled in the woods, with fast running trout stream that ran into it. The lake was surrounded with lean-to’s, a three sided building with a roof over it and a log floor.
I pictured Jesus and me sitting there, by the campfire, watching the sunrise with fish jumping in the lake. The smoke from the campfire, we had made for breakfast, was rising up into a clear blue sky. The chill in the air was taken away by the hot chocolate we were drinking as we sat there. Then the doctor interrupted, “That’s it we are all done,” he said. “That was truly amazing you must have a very high pain threshold,” he commented. “That was truly amazing,” I said back to him. I couldn’t believe it myself.
“No I don’t have a high pain threshold at all, I just spent the time with Jesus on a lake as you worked on my tooth,” I said. He looked at me kind of strange. Only the Lord and I would really know that this fasting stuff really works.
The doctor couldn’t deny what he had just seen so he came up with a natural explanation, a high pain threshold. The reality was a supernatural experience that only God could have made possible. I didn’t care about the doctor’s doubt and skepticism. It was real, it worked, and so does God’s word. There is power in fasting that you will only find if you do it yourself. The power comes from living in God’s word and believing what He says is true, no matter what others say. People will question your belief and even cause you to doubt. Mark 2:18 “And the disciples of John and of the Pharisees used to fast and they came and say unto Him, why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast? Mark 2:19 “And Jesus said to them, can the children of the bride fast, while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. Mark 2:20 “But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days. Jesus expects us to fast because it gives us a power in Him we can only receive when we deny ourselves and seek Him.
Isn’t it interesting that the very first recorded fast in the Bible was for a bride and Jesus is fasting now for His bride now? Matthew 26:28 “For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. (Mat 26:29) But I say unto you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new Jesus tells us that some things need more than belief and prayer. Matthew 17:21 “This kind does not go out but by prayer and fasting.”
Some versions of the Bible leave this verse out. We can’t afford to. If prayers haven’t worked. If the laying on of hands hasn’t worked. Maybe we need to go a bit further in our diligence. As you fast He will open the scriptures to you even more through His Holy Spirit. Fasting brings you closer to Jesus and He becomes more real to you in your daily walk. Feeding on His word, instead of food, conditions your mind to focus on Him instead of your situations. Try it. See His word come alive and find strength in your time of testing to develop perseverance.
God Bless You,
Bishop Nick and Sandy
As we do each year we make a short list of our immediate needs to start the New Year off on a solid note for the ministry to consider in your Christmas giving.
These are our immediate needs for the upcoming year:
$925.00 Envelopes for mailing our Newsletter
$1,480.00 Printing supplies (ink, paper) for Newsletter
$1,750.00 Ministry vehicle maintenance
$2,954.00 Ministry vehicle insurances
$5,500.00 due on new ministry motor for motor home
$1,256.00 Postage for ministry Newsletter mailing
$2,400.00 Yard work and grounds keeper for New Beginnings
$4,500.00 Ministry RV space rental for the year
$5,700.00 Utilities for ministry
Thank you for your yearend giving to make it possible to start the New Year fresh for the work of the Kingdom.