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It is finished.

Isaiah 43:19 – Behold, I am doing a new thing. When I read this verse I’m always reminded of the unique ways that God responds. When He is going to do something it’s probably not the way that you would expect.

When I went into this fast, I had chosen a focus. There were a few areas that I wanted to increase my discipline(spiritual, physical, financial), and unknowingly I had already planned out how God could respond to my prayer & fasting. I had expectations to what the end result would be if I was ‘successful’ in this fast. Over the course of the three weeks my expectations were torn away.I guess I was expecting some miraculous breakthrough. A story that would be printed in books, something read from the stage at church. After all I was giving up so much. I was sacrificing most everything that was a regular part of my diet. But I didn’t get my breakthrough, I got His.

I came across this verse about halfway through the fast. 1 Samuel 15:22 – Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice. My attitude was all wrong.(no surprise there) I was taking the old testament route thinking that my offering, my sacrifice was what pleased God. That it was those things that entitled me to the response I wanted. God has no need for anything we can give, its our obedience that He wants.

Now it may not sound like it, but this was my breakthrough. Through obedience will come discipline. The reason I felt any lack of discipline in my life was because of the pursuit of selfish desires. Are my financial decisions based on obedience to God or that new gadget I want to buy? Do I work out to take care of my body like a temple of God or because I want to look better at the beach? And is my study time to further my knowledge of the Bible or to better know God?

So God responded in a new way, an unexpected way. Fasting has been a great discipline in my life and has really brought me closer to God.

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Pray for us.

Any and all novelty has worn off this week.

I think between people talking about food, watching people eat food, and the commercials for Taco Bell and Domino’s, we were about ready to punch someone. But we didn’t. All kidding aside this week has actually been pretty tough for us.

Life kind of caught up with us. Things got busy and when we might usually go and grab a hot-n-ready pizza from Little Caesar’s that was no longer an option, and it hurt. I kinda feel silly admitting that but the ‘quick fix’ we used to run to(all to often) wasn’t there this week. The odd thing is that I’m pretty sure if the situation were reversed, if I couldn’t eat most fruits and vegetables, and my diet was made of meat bread and dairy, I think things wouldn’t be so painful.  Maybe that’s something to try for February.

Moving on, I heard a verse on the radio the other day that has given me some reassurance this week. Hebrews 12:11 Being that discipline was one of my prayer goals for this fast, it was nice to run across this passage. It’s no cheeseburger, but its still pretty good. So 2 weeks down 1 to go. We are starting to plan our transition back toward the foods we’ve been without, while still remaining on the healthy side of things. Even with the pain of this week I’m still happy with how things have gone. See ya in a week.

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We made it through the first week! And it wasn’t as bad as I thought. On January 3/4 Erin and I started a 21 day Daniel Fast. It’s a corporate fast that our church is taking part in along with 3 other churches in Peoria. What a way to kick of the year! It was a dramatic departure from our usual diet but we were both excited to see how it would go.

I’ve done fasts in many different forms and lengths before, partial fasts for an extended period of time(from soda or sweets), and full fasts for a few days at a time(nothing to eat), and the Daniel fast seemed like it could be a fun challenge! The Daniel Fast is a partial fast based on the book of Daniel. In Daniel 10:2 Daniel fasts for 3 weeks and only eats only fruits and vegetables and drank only water. Its from this that we draw our restrictions.

Its has been a great week. Erin has been cooking up some fantastic new recipes to keep us on track, and while we still wish some of the dishes had meat or cheese in them overall its been very satisfying. So far the paella and the taco soup have been my favorites.

The best part by far is the real reason for the fasting. To draw closer to God. I have been on a new bible reading plan and as we started this fast I have read along as the Israelites were wandering through the wilderness. God was providing them with mana, yet they still complained. I couldn’t help but feel a connection on my first morning eating muesli for breakfast and thinking “This just doesn’t taste good, I’m only eating to get food into my system.” I’m not doing this because it will taste good, it’s so I can focus on God. I was not aware of how much enjoyment I got from food or how big a part of our life it was. Eating was at times even just a form of entertainment.

This first week has seemed very powerful. And I look forward to the weeks ahead. I think God has great things planned for this fast as well as the rest of the year.

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