Cultivating Spiritual Hunger

Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him. Mark 1:12–13

Even Jesus disconnected from the world to fast and pray. Matthew, Mark, and Luke tell of Jesus going to the wilderness for forty days and forty nights. They also describe other times when Jesus pulled away from the demands of the crowds, His ministry, and even His closest friends to pray.

There are times that we, too, need to pull away from the things of the world and focus on God. “The things of the world” can certainly include more than just food. In fact, in our world they are more likely television, movies, Facebook, Twitter, cell phones, and the Internet. None of these things are wrong in and of themselves, but they are avenues for a mental and spiritual crowd to gather around us and drown out the Holy Spirit’s voice.

Fasting is a means of disconnecting from the distractions of daily life and consciously choosing to bring God into greater focus. Giving up physical nourishment is the first step in engaging that process. If you think about it, though, in day-to-day life we nourish our souls as well as our bodies. We do so through reading, talking, socializing, playing, and entertainment. When our souls are full of those things, we often don’t hunger for God.

Fasting is a means of disconnecting from the distractions of daily life and consciously choosing to bring God into greater focus.

During this time of fasting, we are sure to feel physical hunger, but let’s be intentional about cultivating spiritual hunger as well. Let’s draw away from the crowd and lay aside for a season the activities we use to nourish our souls. Instead let’s enter a state of spiritual hunger, a craving for righteousness. Jesus said that being spiritually hungry is a blessed state, because there we can be sure of being filled with food that truly satisfies our deepest needs (Matthew 5:6).

Prayer is reaching out and after the unseen; fasting, letting go of all that is seen and temporal. Fasting helps express, deepens, confirms the resolution that we are ready to sacrifice anything, even ourselves, to attain what we seek for the kingdom of God. —Andrew Murray

Bible Reading Plan: Matthew 6

Prayer Focus: During this time, you will find that being still before the Lord will set you in a place of increased strength, peace, and hunger for God. Are you disconnected from things that nourish your body and soul? What do you need to deny yourself to make this a powerful time in your life?

And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant.”

—1 Kings 18:36

The sacrifice referenced above was a declaration that Elijah was a servant of the Most High God. Elijah belonged to God, and he represented God to the people. However, Elijah’s boldness was not a result of who he was; it was the result of knowing God!

As children of God under the New Covenant, we don’t have to be timid or fearful when coming to God in prayer. We can approach Him boldly.

Let us then fearlessly and confidently and boldly draw near to the throne of grace (the throne of God’s unmerited favor to us sinners), that we may receive mercy [for our failures] and find grace to help in good time for every need [appropriate help and well-timed help, coming just when we need it]. (Hebrews 4:16, AMP)

It’s intimidating to think about taking a fearless, confident, bold attitude when coming before God in prayer. Yet this is exactly what we are admonished to do! God has already settled the issue of our access to Him, but we can be assured our access is not because of our own righteousness. It’s because of what Jesus did on the cross.

We can come to the throne in such outrageous boldness because Jesus was outrageously righteous! When we pray, we come to God in the authority of Jesus’ name, and we can be confident that we will find grace, mercy, and perfectly timed help.

Fasting is not an end of itself; it is a means by which we can worship the Lord and submit ourselves in humility to Him. We don’t make God love us any more than He already does if we fast, or if we fast longer. Fasting involves God in the problem. Then in the strength of God, victory is possible. —Elmer L. Towns

Bible Reading Plan: Genesis 14

Prayer Focus: Do you approach God with timidity or confidence? Seek God boldly today knowing you are fully forgiven and Jesus has made you righteous. When you approach God in prayer, seek a fresh revelation of who He is in your life.

Seven times Elijah told him to go and look. Finally the seventh time, his servant told him, “I saw a little cloud about the size of a man’s hand rising from the sea.” Then Elijah shouted, “Hurry to Ahab and tell him, ‘Climb into your chariot and go back home. If you don’t hurry, the rain will stop you!’” 1 Kings 18:43–44, NLT

“How do I know God is going to say yes to my prayers?”

This is a common question many people have as they seek a confident prayer life. However, it’s important to recognize that prayer is not just about the answer; it’s also about glorifying God in the process of waiting for the answer. It is our responsibility to check our motives and believe God hears us.

We see an example of the process of prayer in this story of Elijah (1 Kings 18). Elijah climbed to the top of the mountain to pray for rain to come. As he waited for the rain, he continued to pray, believing God would answer. When he finally saw a small cloud, he told Ahab to get ready because the rain was coming. Elijah knew what to pray for, and God heard him the first time he prayed. But there was preparation that needed to take place in order for Elijah to receive the answer to his prayer.

Prayer is not just about the answer; it’s also about glorifying God in the process of waiting for the answer.

It is no mistake that God waited until Elijah had prayed seven times before He answered. In the Bible, seven represents completion. In this story, seven represents the completion of God’s process regarding Elijah’s prayer request.

God does not want merely to answer our prayers; He wants to spend time with us to prepare us for the answer that will come. Many times we want to skip over the process involved in engaging God in prayer as we wait for our answer. But it is this very process that works maturity in us and prepares us for the answers our prayers bring (James 1:4).

The reason why many fail in battle is because they wait until the hour of battle. The reason why others succeed is because they have gained their victory on their knees long before the battle came…. Anticipate your battles; fight them on your knees before temptation comes, and you will always have victory. —R. A. Torrey

Bible Reading Plan: Genesis 13

Prayer Focus: What prayers of yours are still awaiting an answer? Throughout this fast, thank God for His process at work in you…and trust Him.

But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. James 1:6, KJV

What do you expect when you pray?

When we pray with earnest expectation, we are exercising our faith. The earnest prayer of righteous people produces powerful results (James 5:16, NLT), and the most earnest prayers come from us when we recognize our need for God.

There can be a natural tendency to shrink back when praying for the seemingly impossible, but we must remember that nothing is impossible with God (Luke 1:37). If we know the promises that God has given us, and understand His character and the principles by which He works, we can pray with confidence and trust Him for the answer.

The most earnest prayers come from us when we recognize our need for God.

What has caused you to waver in your expectation with God? James reminds us that faith and wavering are actually contradictory—James says “nothing wavering.” Know that God never wavers in His love for you. You can trust Him completely.

There is no way that Christians, in a private capacity, can do so much to promote the work of God and advance the kingdom of Christ as by prayer. —Jonathan Edwards

When we depend upon organizations, we get what organizations can do; when we depend upon education, we get what education can do; when we depend upon man, we get what man can do; but when we depend upon prayer, we get what God can do. —A. C. Dixon

Bible Reading Plan: Matthew 5 Prayer Focus: What are you trusting God for in this season? How can you line up your expectations with the Word of

God when you pray? Find promises in His Word that answer your need and write them down today.

Clean House

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

—Romans 8:5–6

Have you ever looked at the top of your refrigerator or in the deep recesses of your couch cushions and noticed the filth that has built up over time? Even though we might clean on a regular basis, there are times when we need to go…a little deeper. We realize that what appeared to be clean on the surface was in all actuality, quite filthy.

The same thing can happen spiritually. As we go about our daily lives, there are things that can build up over time. Even if we worship, pray, and read our Bible regularly, the different temptations, pressures, and cares of this world can build up quietly and end up consuming our lives. Without even realizing it, we can lose our peace, joy, and passion for the things of God. Our service to God, which used to fill us with life and excitement, becomes a tiresome duty that we must fulfill.

Fasting is the deep cleaning that helps us take our minds off of the things of this world and instead have a refreshed focus on the things of the Spirit. Fasting offers an incredibly effective way to get into the nooks and crannies of our souls and bring all those dusty old habits, broken mindsets, and rusty attitudes out into the light of God’s truth.

Fasting is the deep cleaning that helps us take our mind off of the things of this world and instead have a refreshed focus on the things of the Spirit.

In fasting and prayer, our service to God returns to something we want to do rather than something we have to do.

One of the reasons for fasting is to know what is in us…. In fasting it will come out. You will see it. And you will have to deal with it quickly or smother it again. —John Piper

Bible Reading Plan: Genesis 12

Prayer Focus: As you pray and fast today, ask God to show you any areas where you could use a refreshed spiritual focus. Pray as David did in Psalm 51:10–12 that God will cleanse your heart, renew your spirit, and restore the joy of your salvation. Pray with confidence, knowing that He wants to fill you with His life and peace.

On day eight you might experience: ~ fatigue—let yourself have extra rest if you need it ~ achiness and a headache ~ irritability ~ fogginess

All of these symptoms are normal and will pass. Make sure you keep your water intake up. If you’re eating fruits and vegetables that contain a lot of water, you may not have a desire to drink much water. However, keeping your water intake up will help you flush out the second round of toxins that your body is releasing and help relieve the symptoms more quickly.

Finally, more than ever this is the time you have to be vigilant about your spiritual focus. Great days are ahead, and you will be so glad you pushed through this day and didn’t give up!

This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy. Listen to him.”… And when they looked up, Moses and Elijah were gone, and they saw only Jesus.

—Matthew 17:5, 8, NLT

On the Mount of Transfiguration three disciples had an experience that showed us the Father’s plan for the New Covenant. Jesus took Peter, James, and John up to the top of a mountain where He was transfigured into His glorified state. Up until this point, the Jews had related to God through the Law—represented by Moses and the prophets, one being Elijah. Inspired by what he was seeing, Peter eagerly offered to erect three tabernacles—one each for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. Then a loud voice from heaven was heard: “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy. Listen to him.”

When the disciples looked up, they saw only Jesus.

You cannot earn God’s pleasure, but you can experience it to a greater degree as you follow Jesus Christ.

On that mountain God made it clear that we will only discover His pleasure by following Jesus. God’s grace is freely given to those who receive new life in Him. Sometimes, though, there are areas of our lives where we do not fully embrace God’s grace. There may be circumstances or areas where we still try to earn our way to the Father.

You cannot earn God’s pleasure, but you can experience it to a greater degree as you follow Jesus Christ. As you seek God today, ask Him for a greater revelation of Jesus in your heart. Then will you be reminded that you are a beloved child of God. And that He finds pleasure in you.

If heaven were by merit, it would never be heaven to me, for if I were in it I should say, “I am sure I am here by mistake; I am sure this is not my place; I have no claim to it.” But if it be of grace and not of works, then we may walk into heaven with boldness. —Charles H. Spurgeon

Bible Reading Plan: Genesis 11 Prayer Focus: How does understanding the New Covenant of grace change the focus of your fast? As you pray and

seek after God, let His be the loudest voice you hear.

Entering week two of your fast can present a different level of challenge. Although you probably experienced a decrease in cravings after day three, you may now be experiencing a resurgence of those same cravings.

Right around this time, a metabolic shift takes place in your body. If you are consuming significantly less calories than you were before, your body naturally shifts to its own resources to find sufficient fuel. These hunger pangs you are feelings right now are basically your body asking, “Hey, what’s up? Are you going to give me some more calories, or should I move on to the next available source?” That next source means reserves stored mostly in your fat cells and somewhat in your muscles.

During the second week it is so important to remind yourself why you are doing this. This is when we truly realize how weak we really are, how much we need God’s strength and grace, and not only physically to keep us from eating. We need His grace to be more compassionate, slow to anger, less judgmental, more pliable, more forgiving, and more generous.

Over the next couple of days, if you stick to your fast, here’s what will happen to your body:

1. Your metabolism will slow down. In other words, it will shift to a mode of operation where it requires less energy—or calories to function.
2. A cycle of internal consumption will begin to use your energy stores in the form of fat—and some muscle. To minimize muscle breakdown, drink two glasses of whey protein a day.
3. Because toxins that we consume and don’t eliminate are stored mostly in fat, you will also hit a new level of detox as your body starts using up your fat reserves.

Hang in there! The best is yet to come.

The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. —James 5:16

Fervency speaks to our level of intensity, passion, and persistence. Many times, we can lose our passion in prayer or stop praying for certain things altogether because we lose heart or give up. But God invites us to keep them before Him and trust Him for an answer in His time (Matthew 7:7–11).

The Old Testament prophet Elijah practiced a lifestyle of fervent, intense prayer and witnessed incredible miracles in his lifetime. In the book of Kings, the story is told of a woman whose only son became ill and died (1 Kings 17:17– 24). When Elijah heard the news, he quickly took action and did what he knew best—he fervently cried out to God. Elijah fully believed that God could bring the boy back to life, and he prayed not just once but three times that the boy’s soul would return to him. He prayed fervently and repeatedly and he wasn’t going to give up. This was the result: “Then the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came back to him, and he revived” (verse 22).

Many times, we can lose our passion in prayer or stop praying for certain things altogether because we lose heart or give up. But God invites us to keep them before Him and trust Him for an answer in His time.

Elijah’s prayer was answered through his persistence and fervency. God hears your prayers as well and will bring an answer in His perfect timing. But don’t be discouraged or disheartened if the answer takes time to arrive or is not exactly what you expected. Commit to praying to God with passion and persistence, trusting the answer will come in God’s perfect way at the perfect time.

We must never forget that the highest kind of prayer is never the making of requests. Prayer at its holiest moment is the entering into God, to a place of such blessed union as it makes miracles seem tame and remarkable answers to prayer appear something very far short of wonderful by comparison. —A. W. Tozer

Bible Reading Plan: Matthew 4 Prayer Focus: As you close out this first week, continue to pray fervently for the main areas of concern in your life.

Trust God to bring an answer as you journal your thoughts and inspirations through this time.

And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.

—Romans 7:18–20, NLT

There’s an internal war that rages within each of us. Paul described this so well in Romans 7. Though we desire to do the right thing, we don’t have the power to do so in our own efforts and we mess up.

The good news is that we don’t have to rely on our own strength to make right decisions. We don’t have to be dominated by our sinful nature and end up doing the things we don’t want to do. But the only way we can live this kind of life is by yielding to the Holy Spirit and relying on the strength of Jesus Christ, not our own.

When we’re facing struggles, we must rely on God’s power alive within us through the Holy Spirit. When we are born again, the Holy Spirit resides in us and places in us the desire to do what is pleasing to God (Hebrews 10:16). The Holy Spirit always wants to do what is right and to uphold the perfect will of God, pleasing the Father in every way.

When we’re facing struggles, we must rely on God’s power alive within us through the Holy Spirit.

It is our job to lay down our stubborn fleshly will and yield to the will of God. In that moment, the Holy Spirit will be there to help us. Let’s learn to yield to and become totally reliant upon the Holy Spirit.

[Prayer] turns ordinary mortals into men of power. It brings power. It brings fire. It brings rain. It brings life. It brings God. —Samuel Chadwick

Bible Reading Plan: Genesis 10

Prayer Focus: Are there areas in your life causing an internal struggle? Make a decision today to yield to the Holy Spirit and lean on His strength, not your own, and to overcome obstacles of sin and selfishness in your life. Surrender and release those areas to God, knowing He will help you.