“But seek first His Kingdom and His
righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well”…Matthew 6:33
As we approach the Easter season- a time filled with unique
spiritual opportunity, as many in our community consider the Person and work of
Jesus- we want to challenge you to seize this opportunity to fast
forward in your life and faith, to fast from several items (even good
things!) for the purpose of moving forward in both the
righteousness and Kingdom of God.
It is our hope and prayer that as you implement the ideas
outlined below, God will use these challenging experiences to both draw
you closer to Himself (i.e. seek His righteousness) and impact
others with the Good News of Jesus (i.e. advance His Kingdom). We challenge you to take on at least one of
these concepts each week between now and Easter. Feel free to add more ideas of your own that
you feel would be beneficial to you in your personal journey of faith, and to others in your circles of
influence. Allow God to lead and direct
you as He desires in this season. The
most important thing you can do is listen to Him as He speaks, and follow Him
forward in obedience when He does.
All that to say, here are some thoughts on fasting
forward in this season…
-
Fast from…a meal
-
to seek His righteousness…by
nourishing yourself on God’s Word in Psalm
42 and by asking Him to make you more satisfied and delighted in Him than
you are in physical food and drink
-
to advance His Kingdom…by inviting
someone who doesn’t know Jesus to go to lunch with you, and taking that
opportunity to share with them the hope you have in Him
-
Fast from…a TV show that you enjoy
watching
-
to seek His righteousness…by
focusing your attention on God’s Word in Philippians
4:4-9 and by asking Him to reveal to you how your entertainment choices
impact your thoughts, attitudes, and actions
-
to advance His Kingdom…by taking the
time that you would normally watch that show to spend intentional time with
your spouse, and by deciding together to pray for and intentionally encourage a
couple who you know is going through a difficult time in their marriage
-
Fast from…a sporting event that you
enjoy watching (March Madness, anyone?)
-
to seek His righteousness…by
nourishing yourself on God’s Word in Colossians
3:1-4, 15-17 and by asking Him to set your hope in His triumphant death and
resurrection rather than in your favorite team’s latest victory
-
to advance His Kingdom…by taking the
time that you would normally watch that event to spend intentional time with
your kids, and by setting up a play date with a family that doesn’t know Jesus
-
Fast from…reading your favorite
book, magazine, etc
-
to seek His righteousness…by
nourishing yourself on God’s Word in Ephesians
2 and by asking Him to make you more compelled by the grand story of the
Gospel than your favorite earthly stories
-
to advance His Kingdom…by writing
down your own story of salvation and transformation, and by taking the
opportunity to share it with someone who doesn’t know Jesus (note- we will provide you with a tool to
help you do this during our upcoming Storylines
series)
-
Fast from…an unnecessary purchase
(e.g. clothing, household item, entertainment item)
-
to seek His righteousness…by
nourishing yourself on God’s Word in 1
Timothy 6:17-19 and by asking Him to reveal to you those areas in your life
where you find your identity and security in possessions rather than Him
-
to advance His Kingdom…by taking the
money you would spend on that item and using it to meet a tangible need (i.e.
clothing) in someone else’s life
-
Fast from…using Facebook, Twitter,
and other forms of social media
-
to seek His righteousness…by
nourishing yourself on God’s Word in 1
John 4:7-21 and by asking Him to enable you to love others selflessly and
sacrificially, just as He has loved you in Jesus
-
to advance His Kingdom…by taking a
(primarily) online relationship with someone who doesn’t know Jesus to a deeper
level by inviting them to have a face to face conversation over coffee, ice
cream, etc (your choice!)
-
Fast from…listening to music
-
to seek His righteousness…by
nourishing yourself on God’s Word in Psalm
150 and asking Him to give you a constant spirit of worship, and by
revealing to you how you can worship Him in everyday ways
-
to advance His Kingdom…by purchasing
a Christian music album (you choose the artist!) on iTunes for a friend who
doesn’t know Jesus
-
Fast from…eating out as a couple or
family
-
to seek His righteousness…by
nourishing yourself on God’s Word in Isaiah
58 and by asking Him to give you a heart of “true fasting” toward the poor,
oppressed, and forgotten, as is described in this passage
-
to advance His Kingdom…by taking the
money you would normally spend on that meal, movie, etc and sending a less
fortunate couple or family out for an evening (note- offer to keep their kids too, if they have that need)
We pray these ideas will provide you with some helpful “food
for thought” (no pun intended J)
as you consider how to best “seek first” God and His Kingdom in
this Easter season and beyond. We can’t
wait to see what God has in store for us individually and collectively as we
seek Him in faith and obedience!
