Over these past 21 days of prayer and fasting, we have set aside our comfort to seek something more valuable. It is impossible to spend time calling on God, asking Him to bring Heaven down, and there be no change because God is faithful, and His Word promises that He responds to the prayers of His people.

Throughout these past few weeks, God has shown up and moved in an extraordinary way. People have been saved, set free, and miraculously healed. There’s so much to celebrate, but the exciting reality is that this is only the beginning. There is still more that God wants to do!

In Ezekiel 47, we see an interesting story. The prophet Ezekiel has a vision where he sees a river flowing from God’s temple. As the water flows from the temple, it grows deeper and deeper. It starts ankle-deep, then becomes knee-deep, then continues to deepen until it is uncrossable. On either side of the river, there are many trees, and in the water, there are swarms of fish. The most extraordinary part is that at the place where the river reaches the Dead Sea, the salt water becomes fresh water. The place that was once dead and unlivable was changed so that it was fresh and full of life.

This story serves as a beautiful illustration of what we can expect in the days ahead. This season of prayer and fasting has been incredible and full of life, but the water is only ankle-deep. We have seen only the beginning of God’s work, not the end. There are more miracles that God wants to do. There are more people that God wants to save. As we have fasted and prayed, we can have confidence that Heaven is coming and our best days are still ahead!

Scriptures

Ezekiel 47:1-12 (NIV)

The man brought me back to the entrance to the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was trickling from the south side.

As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. He asked me, “Son of man, do you see this?”

Then he led me back to the bank of the river. When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. He said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, where it enters the Dead Sea. When it empties into the sea, the salty water there becomes fresh. Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea. But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt. Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.”

As we approach the end of this fast, you are probably sensing that over the last few weeks God has begun uniquely moving in your heart. Fasting has a way of quieting our hearts so that God will not only start to work in the situations we have been praying for, but he often works deeply in our hearts as we draw close to him.

Leviticus 6:9 gives us a clear picture of God’s presence in our lives. God had descended on the Tent of Meeting and kindled a fire. God’s instructions to his people were to keep the fire burning. God told Moses: “Give Aaron and his sons this command: ‘These are the regulations for the burnt offering: The burnt offering is to remain on the altar hearth throughout the night, till morning, and the fire must be kept burning on the altar.’”

God would say that every day a burnt offering would be offered in the morning at 9:00 a.m. and in the evening at 3:00 p.m. It was a reminder that devotion to God was to be continual and ongoing.

The idea behind the burnt offering is that of total devotion to God. It was a symbol of the commitment of the worshiper. Nothing would be left of the sacrifice; it would have been totally consumed on the altar in the presence of the Lord.

God has started a fire inside of us through this fast, and it is our responsibility to keep what God has sparked in each of us burning. That will require total devotion to him because it is spiritually deadly to stop what God has started in you.

This fast has given us the opportunity to give up certain things to seek God on a deeper level. While our seeking God may look different after this fast is over, the commitment and intentionality of spending time with him should remain the same.

God has started a powerful work in your life; keep the fire burning.

Scriptures

Leviticus 6:9 (NIV)
“Give Aaron and his sons this command: ‘These are the regulations for the burnt offering: The burnt offering is to remain on the altar hearth throughout the night, till morning, and the fire must be kept burning on the altar.

Leviticus 6:13 (NIV)
The fire must be kept burning on the altar continuously; it must not go out.

Imagine this. You are going about your day like usual until you hear tragic news. A family that you know well has come across a devastating financial loss and needs $100,000 to make up for their debts. You are heartbroken for them and want to do something to help. A friend of yours who also knows the family hears about the news and decides they will help them by covering the $100,000. They want to keep the gift anonymous, so rather than paying the family directly, they ask if you would be willing to deliver the funds personally. You are thrilled with the news and have decided to give the funds as quickly as possible. You meet with the family and hand over the money they need to cover their debt. They are thrilled and so grateful to receive such a generous gift. Even though it wasn’t your money, you were still able to be a part of making a massive difference in their lives.

This perfectly illustrates what it looks like for a believer to operate in the power of the Spirit. When it comes to healing the sick, raising the dead, and casting out demons, we are not the ones who are doing it. Instead, we are just delivering the resource that has been given to us by God. That’s why when Jesus is teaching the disciples how to minister to others, he says, “Freely you have received; freely give.”

As believers, we don’t have to worry about whether or not we have the power to impact the lives of those around us. Jesus has the power, and He has freely given it to us! Our responsibility is to go out and share with others the power that God has made freely available through the Holy Spirit.

As you go throughout your day, look for opportunities to minister to those around you. You have freely received, so go out and give!

Scriptures

Matthew 10:5-8 (NIV)

These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of Heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.

If you’ve been fasting food at any level, you’ve more than likely been hungry at this point in the fast. When we come to John 4, we see the disciples in a similar situation that we have found ourselves in. They were hungry! It was time for lunch, so they went into a nearby village to find something to eat. After successfully securing their meal, they return to find Jesus and offer him some food. Unexpectedly, Jesus denies their offer and tells them that he has food they know nothing about.

At this moment, the disciples are confused and are asking themselves if someone else brought Jesus food while they were gone. Jesus continues to say that his food is to do the will of the one who sent him. And as if the disciples aren’t confused enough, Jesus goes on to tell them a proverb about harvesting. It’s safe to say that the disciples were completely clueless about what was happening at this point.

The problem that the disciples had, which caused them to miss what Jesus was talking about completely, was that they were looking at the whole situation from their natural point of view. All that the disciples could see was their immediate need that they were hungry and needed food to eat. Jesus, on the other hand, was looking at the situation from a supernatural perspective. Jesus was not concerned with eating lunch. Jesus was concerned that the village they got lunch from was filled with lost people who needed to be saved.

So often in our lives, we can miss what Jesus is doing because we are looking at our situation with physical vision rather than spiritual vision. Like the disciples, we can find ourselves going through a place filled with people who don’t know Jesus, and our primary concern is not sharing the Gospel; it is getting something for lunch.

That’s why a season of prayer and fasting is so refreshing. We become less concerned with what we need and more concerned with what God wants to do in us and through us. When we take our eyes off ourselves and set them on doing God’s will, we start to see what Jesus meant that the “fields are white for harvest.” We begin to see opportunities to pray for people and see them healed. We start to notice people who are down and give them an encouraging word. We see lost people all around us and choose to step out in boldness to share the Gospel.

The opportunities are endless because the harvest is now. Resolve to step out in faith and obedience today and watch what God will do!

Scriptures

John 4:27-38 (NLT)

Just then his disciples came back. They were shocked to find him talking to a woman, but none of them had the nerve to ask, “What do you want with her?” or “Why are you talking to her?” The woman left her water jar beside the well and ran back to the village, telling everyone, “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could he possibly be the Messiah?” So the people came streaming from the village to see him. Meanwhile, the disciples were urging Jesus, “Rabbi, eat something.” But Jesus replied, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about.” “Did someone bring him food while we were gone?” the disciples asked each other. Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest. The harvesters are paid good wages, and the fruit they harvest is people brought to eternal life. What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike! You know the saying, ‘One plants and another harvests.’ And it’s true. I sent you to harvest where you didn’t plant; others had already done the work, and now you will get to gather the harvest.”