In the spiritual and social traumas we are facing, I find it necessary to discuss in detail praying and fasting, the first principle that takes your spiritual life from milk to meat. Note that God calls us to fasting and praying (Matthew 6:16-18). While voluntary, it is an expectation of your walk with Him for purposes of communication, devotion, reevaluation, repentance, and direction.

What is prayer? Prayer at its core is simply communicating with God. In the way that Adam and Eve once communed with God by engaging in listening and speaking, prayer is the two way communication between you and God.

How do we pray? Speaking to God is very simple. Think about what you’re trying to say, and ensure that you say it straight to Jesus. You can do this in thought process (from your heart), or out loud (from your mouth). Regardless, it’s the content of your heart the Lord hears and evaluates (1 Samuel 16:7). If following the template that Jesus gave in the Lord’s prayer (Matthew 6), you should never forget to discuss your dependence on Him, His magnitude/your worship of Him, your personal asks of Him, His direction for you, and His will for you. It’s not necessary to be formal. We can come before the Lord humbly (1 Peter 5:6-7, 2 Chronicles 7:14) with boldness (Hebrews 4:16) for the expectation of meeting Him in that moment (Jeremiah 29:12-13).

The equally important part of prayer is receiving a word back from him. While discerning the voice of God is a deeper conversation, the voice of the Lord boils down to what he’s given in His Word (2 Timothy 3:16). Instinctively, the simplest way to hear the voice of God and know it’s the voice of God is to read your Bible. There you will read the unadulterated words of the Lord for your life. Discerning the Word’s significance for our life comes as you open your heart and ask the Lord to reveal to you what it is that you need to know (Hebrews 4:12).

Why is prayer important? If we’re talking physically, regardless of personality type, the heart, mind, and soul are the core of our rationale. Our heart, the throne of the mind, is susceptible to swaying based on what we perceive to be our reality (Jeremiah 17:9). Prayer when coupled with principles of humility, earnestness, transparency, and righteousness, forces our mind to have a Christ-centered perspective. This perspective is what aligns our will with God’s will. Prayer provides a safe space for stress management, allowing us to put our anxieties on the Lord. This release, again, allows us to acknowledge that the Lord is greater than any of our problems. Prayer also allows a space for intimacy with the Lord. When done earnestly, prayer allows us to open ourselves up to the Lord in our purest form by which we build a stronger relationship with him.

Fasting is the practice of depriving yourself for the purpose of hearing, receiving direction, repenting, asking for favor, and drawing deeper intimacy from the Lord. In this process, you go into a state of seeking and surrendering unto the Lord. While fasting is an outward practice, it is coupled with an inward change of heart by which you become tunnel visioned on the Lord. There are three basic types of fasts: a Daniel fast, by which you give up all sugars and foods not directly from the earth; a liquids only fast, by which you give up all solid foods; and an absolute fast, by which you drink and/or eat nothing. Practically speaking, aside from daily necessities, times of fasting are to be devoted to studying the Word and prayer, keeping out outside distractions to help with focus and resolve. In these outward practices coupled with prayer, inward devotion and alignment should be talking place.

For the times that we are facing, fasting and praying are a necessity to ensure that we are doing what God would like over our passions. There seems to be no right answer and lots of opinions concerning racial tensions within America. Regardless of belief, we should always consult the Lord on such matters. For such a time as this, I find it appropriate to fast and pray. While I must note that both fasting and praying are independent disciplines to be done voluntarily and within the confines of your personal relationship with God, I urge us all to take time to fast, pray, and seek the Lord.

From the examples of Ester (Ester 4), we can go before the Lord in a time of prayer and fasting for deliverance, protection, wisdom, and favor. In this time, we need all of that and some. Not to fast in vain, I’d like to discuss briefly the concept and blessings of true fasting (Isaiah 58).

In this chapter, those who were fasting had been doing so from a place of vanity and selfishness. They were blinded by their own sin and had no humility, obedience, or righteousness in their motivations. The Lord then gives instructions for how to truly fast with true inward intention that is shown through outward expression. He gives the following practical steps:

Get yourself right with the other people around you. Don’t do wrong against them. Stop oppressing others (physically, metaphorically, emotionally, etc.).
Be loving. Don’t just make it right. Love. Show love. Have your inward expression of forgiveness, empathy, grace, and love, shown through acts of service.
Don’t point your fingers at others, fix your own heart.
Be careful not to speak wickedly.
Be obedient. Delayed or omitted disobedience is still disobedience.
Be repentant.
Be earnest. All of these things must be done in honesty and out of the transformation of your heart. Not under empty ritual or from a place of lackluster service.

In exchange for these steps being both followed and internal change implemented, the Lord promises to:

“Loose the bonds of wickedness, undo the heavy burdens…” These being direct results of our actions.
Give you healing, provision, righteousness, protection, favor, guidance, legacy, soulful satisfaction, honor/prestige among your peers, and hear your prayers.

In this time when we need healing, provision, righteousness, protection, favor, guidance, protection of our legacy, legacy, soulful satisfaction, peace, honor, intimacy with Him, and grace, I personally will be fasting. I will be obedient for such a time as this to intercede on behalf of our country, generations, and brothers/sisters. For you it might be interceding on behalf of the country or world, or simply interceding for your family. Either way, when we fast, pray, and seek the Lord, we need to do so earnestly and unto God.