I know that your grace is good to me. I see a peace. Oh, how can this be? A matchless king of all, made the blood pass for me. I'm flying higher than what I do. Good morning, church family. Happy Lord's Day. We will now begin our service. Sing, "Lord, I lift." (SINGING) Lord, I lift your name on high.

Lord, I love to sing your praises. I'm so glad you're in my life. I'm so glad you came to save us. You came. You came from heaven to earth to show the way. From the earth to the cross, my debt to pay. From the cross to the grave, from the grave to the sky, Lord, I lift your name on high.

Lord, I lift your name on high. Lord, I lift. Lord, I lift your name on high. Lord, I love to sing your praises. I'm so glad you're in my life. I'm so glad you came to save us. You came. You came from heaven to earth to show the way.

From the earth to the cross, my debt to pay. From the cross to the grave, from the grave to the sky, Lord, I lift your name on high. You came from heaven to earth to show the way. From the earth to the cross, my debt to pay. From the cross to the grave, from the grave to the sky, Lord, I lift your name on high.

Lord, I lift your name on high. Lord, I lift your name on high. Lord, I lift your name on high. Good morning. Welcome to Breen Community Church. Let me get a few announcements before we get started. First of all, today, our members meeting is at 2 o'clock. And so that's just enough time for you to go grab lunch, come back, and right at 2 o'clock-- not 202, not 203, but right at 2 o'clock.

So please come into this room before we make an announcement asking you to come in. Try to come in here five minutes before. So right at 2 o'clock, we can get started. And then after that, obviously, we have booths that are set up. And even if you're not a member and you just kind of want to know what's going on at church, you can go and visit.

Some of them have people there. Some of them don't. But those of you who are members, obviously, after the second service, we'll be able to-- not second service. After the members meeting, you'll be able to go out and interact. And some of them are looking for recruits. Some of them are just informational.

So you can go there and just-- you'll find out what's going on at church and how different people are serving at the church. And so that's going to start right at 2 o'clock. So go and grab lunch. You can grab it and come back and eat it in the cafe, or you can grab it and come back.

So that's going on. College Welcome Lunch is happening on October 23 to 1245. If you have any questions about that, please contact Pastor Nate. And then Thanksgiving regional dinners. So if you are willing to open up your home, it can fit anywhere from 15 to 20 people. If you can sign up for that, they're going to distribute-- the people who are signing up.

And then for Thanksgiving dinner, we're going to have regional dinners. And then for those of you who will participate, please sign up. If you haven't signed up yet, please sign up so that they can put you into the groups, appropriate groups, as soon as they can. And then one last thing is the outreach team has a fasting and prayer sign up that's outside.

And I know it's designated for people who are praying for loved ones that they're trying to invite for November 6, where the gospel message is going to be preached. And then there's going to be a Q&A session afterwards. But even if that's not the case, if you can sign up and help pray for them, and even if that's not the case, my message this morning is going to be on prayer and fasting.

And so I want to encourage you guys to get in the habit of praying and fasting. So if you want to do that without signing up, that's also OK. But if you want to participate and get emails as a reminder, there is a table set up outside for prayer and fasting table.

So if you can go there and sign up, it'll be easier. I think we've been having some issues online accessing the page. And so if you want to go directly, that will be there after service. This morning, after we pray for the offering and pray set, our sister Grace is going to be coming up.

And she's going to give her testimony. And we'll be baptized this morning. So again, if you are visiting us for the first time, we have a offering basket, offering thing, right against the wall. As you're going out, you can drop off your offering there. And for the rest of you, if you are paying electronically, please try to use Zelle.

Venmo and PayPal is open. But we want to encourage you to use Zelle more than the others if you can. All right, let me pray for us. Let's pray. Gracious, loving Father, we thank you so much for loving us, persevering with us, being patient with us, reviving us, that we may worship you, love you, honor you.

Lord, we pray that your word will continue to guide us and lead us, that your spirit will convict us, that your love will continue to guide us. Lord, let our singing be done in spirit and in truth. And even in our giving, may it be done as an act of worship, Lord God, to please you and honor you.

May it be multiplied for your use, your kingdom, and your glory. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Let us all rise as we sing these phrases. This first song, we introduced it last week from Everlasting. And the song is inspired by Psalm 90. And I would like to continue to read Psalm 90 from verse 12.

"So teach us to number our days, that we may get a heart of wisdom. Return, O Lord, how long? Have pity on your servants. Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, and for as many years as we have seen evil.

Let your work be shown to your servants and your glorious power to their children. Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us. Yes, establish the work of our hands." So with that, let us sing the song. O God, before the mountains were brought forth, O'er days of spring and summer felt the earth, from everlasting you are God.

We dwell beneath the stars in ancient skies, a thousand years are nothing in your sight, from everlasting you are God. And though our days are held within your hands, your perfect love and favor have no end. We rest within the wisdom of your plan, everlasting God. O God, when joy and tragedy collide, and loss reminds us life is but a sigh, from everlasting you are God.

And though our days are held within your hands, your perfect love and favor have no end. We rest within the wisdom of your plan, everlasting God. O God of light, our ways are known to you, but by your grace you're making all things new. So satisfy us in our numbers and aims, establish every effort while we wait, from everlasting you are God.

And though our days are held within your hands, your perfect love and favor have no end. We rest within the wisdom of your plan, everlasting God. And though our days are held within your hands, your perfect love and favor have no end. We rest within the wisdom of your plan, everlasting God.

Let's sing grace and peace. Grace and peace, oh, how can this be? For lawbreakers and thieves, for the worthless, the least. You have said that our judgment is death, but all eternity without hope, without rest. Oh, what an amazing mystery, what an amazing mystery, that your grace has come to me.

Grace and peace, oh, how can this be? The matchless king of all paid the black class for me. Slaughtered man, what atonement you bring. The vilest sinner's cause can be blest, can be free. Oh, what an amazing mystery, what an amazing mystery, that your grace has come to me.

Grace and peace. Grace and peace, oh, how can this be? The songs of gratefulness ever rise, never cease. Loved by God and called as a saint, my heart is satisfied in the riches of Christ. Oh, what an amazing mystery, what an amazing mystery, that your grace has come to me.

Oh, what an amazing love. Oh, what an amazing love I see, what an amazing love I see, that your grace has come to me. Oh, what an amazing love I see, what an amazing love I see, that your grace has come to me. Oh, what an amazing love I see, what an amazing love I see, that your grace has come to me.

Oh, what an amazing love I see, what an amazing love I see, that your grace has come to me. Amen. You may be seated. Yikes. Hi, I'm Grace Nafiti. And this is my testimony. I am not the same person I was in 2011 when I first became a believer.

In fact, I'm not the same person I was three years ago when I first became a believer. I'm not the same person I was three years ago when I first came to Berean. Christ changed me inside out. He spun me around and made me brand new. Completely clean is such an understatement when describing what the blood of Christ did for me.

Before I was a believer, I was someone who didn't know God too well. However, not only did I know pain, but I allowed it to drive every decision I ever made until I asked God to be my everything. He allowed me to go through so much tribulation that made me unknowingly desperate for him to do everything that I did.

I was raised in a Christian God-fearing home. God was ever-present in my daily life, or in our daily lives. It would be impossible to suggest or to even think that God does not exist. I knew from an incredibly young age that God was the foundation which our family was built upon.

My parents' faith was so strong, and their relationship and their love for Christ was unlike anything I've ever witnessed and still is to this day. Yet I struggled every day since I was a child with the idea of Christ being my God and that he had my best interest at heart.

Yet being the loving, almighty, wonderful father that he is, he loved me still. Backstory. I struggled a lot growing up. From elementary school till the end of high school, I suffered from depression, anxiety, suicide, anorexia, drugs, alcohol abuse, and the inability to cope. I was raped and molested at a young age.

I attempted suicide more times than I can count on my fingers and toes. I was a broken mess, seeking love and comfort every direction I looked. Yet I never found it because I was never looking in the right direction. I was always looking to Christ. In fact, I rejected him the same way people rejected me.

I grew up feeling like I was worth nothing, like I was garbage piled up on the side of the road. Little did I know the plan God had for me. The last time I attempted suicide was my last year of high school, my junior year. Lying in a bathroom full of blood, my parents found me and saved me.

Even unconscious, I could hear my mama and my daddy crying out to God that I was born to bring God glory and that they'd continue to hold on to that dream my mama had before I was born. God was going to use my life in a mighty way and that they trusted that he would do just that.

In those moments as they cried out to God and I was in and out of consciousness, it was as if God was moving my heart. I believe he was telling me that it was now or never, that everything that I was craving, everything I desired, and everything I needed was him.

No matter how far I pushed him away, he loved me anyway. That week, I wrestled with my flesh and struggled to understand why I was so moved by God to live for him when I was so desperate to end my life. I cried out to God and prayed for forgiveness, that I would live the life he had planned for me and that I wanted him to be my everything.

To be the air that I breathe, the reason I live, and the love that I need. Although unsure if I would be able to walk daily as a believer and stand firm for the word and for my faith in Christ, at that moment, I knew I would be choosing to walk alongside my parents and their support in walking the straight and narrow and the road less traveled.

I would not be alone. A book my daddy often talked about was the book of Joshua. How fitting, since his only son is named Joshua. Ha ha. But during this time, two verses my daddy often mentioned that would help me look at my fears and uncertainty through the eyes of the word were these.

Joshua 1.9, "Have I not commanded you, be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified nor dismayed, for the Lord our God is with you wherever you go." And Joshua 24.15, "But if it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourself today whom you will serve, whether the gods which your father served, which were beyond the Euphrates River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living.

But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." I cannot say that life was peachy keen after choosing to walk this walk of faith. There were many more heartbreaking trials and tribulations that I would go through, terrible decisions that my sin and worldly desires would choose to go through, and struggles I still wrestle with to this day.

But daily I put my trust in the one who saves, and daily I pray for endurance to continue to run towards God and flee from temptation. As of September 24th this year, I am now three years in my sobriety from drugs and alcohol. Hallelujah. Even with all this, God is so faithful.

I have yet to go through anything on my own. He has been there every step of the way, guiding me, holding my hand, and helping me through it all for his glory. God truly wastes nothing. My life was what the world deemed a failure. The educators in my life called me stupid and hopeless, and a medical professional referred to me as unsalvageable, worthless.

As much as I wanted to accept all those titles in my life, Christ died so that I could be saved. He loved me so much that he did not let me go to someone like me, who has felt worthless my whole life, yet to be told that I am worth a lot, that God sent his only son, whom he loved so much, to die so that I could live and have a fighting chance to be in his presence.

Well, that is just something I cannot waste. I am who I am because the I am tells me who I am, and I am his. Thank you. Thank you, Grace, for that powerful testimony. I feel like I don't need to preach. You guys are all fed already. If you can turn your Bibles to 2 Chronicles 7, 13-14.

I'm going to be taking a one-week break, and I want to talk about prayer and fasting. I'll explain why as I go. Let me read 2 Chronicles 7, 13-14. "If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people, and my people who are called by my name humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." Let's pray.

Heavenly Father, I pray that you would anoint this time, anoint these words. May it go forth and accomplish what you have ordained. I pray, Father God, that as we have come to seek you, open our eyes, soften our hearts, our ears, that we may hear from you and you alone.

In Jesus' name we pray, amen. The reason why I wanted to take this day to emphasize the prayer and fasting is because of what we see going on around us. Those of you who have been a Christian for a while, 20, 30, 40 years, maybe plus, imagine if we fell asleep in the 80s and 90s, and we woke up today to see what is going on around us.

It is shocking. It is shocking how far the church has fallen, how far our society has embraced immorality so openly, and has become so desensitized because the media is pushing it in our face. Now, it happened, obviously, through the years. And we'd be shocked by one thing, and then we'd get used to it, and push the envelope further, and then we'd get used to it and push the envelope further.

But if you remember what it was like back in the 80s or 90s, or even just 20 years ago, it is shocking what is on television. It is shocking what the politicians are saying. We have today in our culture where abortion is being debated inside the church. Again, if this is the only Christianity you've known, maybe it's normal to you, but even the most liberal of denominations, this discussion was not going on inside the church.

The killing of babies is being debated among Christians or professing Christians. That is shocking how far we have fallen. The government is trying to get it so that young children can choose to have a sex change without the permission of their parents. And they are trying to even push that if the parents are against it, that child services can come and actually take away your children.

Shocking. This is not just wrong, it's shocking that this is even being debated, that this is being talked about. And if you speak against that in the medical field, you could even lose your license. That's how far it's gone. We're talking about Christian persecution. We've always talked about it.

We've always prayed for North Koreans. We've prayed for the communist government in China and the Middle East. This week, there was an article that came out that PayPal was actually going to target people who say things that are hurtful. Meaning, we know exactly who they're targeting. If you basically say that homosexuality is wrong, that you're against sex change for children, that they have the right to come into your bank account and take $2,500 from your bank account and shut you down.

PayPal, right? We're trying to move away from PayPal right now. And I hope all Christians do. The fact that they had the audacity to actually even leak that out, that half the country, more than half the country, believes that this is wrong. And to have no ripple in our culture that somebody's saying something like that.

I mean, obviously, every biblically-minded Christian would have to take that stand, because that's what the Bible says. And if PayPal is bold enough to say something like that, think about all the other institutions that are openly hostile toward the Christian faith. What's coming next? So, we are in a culture where it is not possible to be a nominal Christian.

That our environment is forcing us to take a stand. Do you believe it or not believe it? That you will either live your life compromised in the biblical faith, professing to know God, and yet by your life denying Him, or persecution is coming. Banks are going to target you.

Your school is going to target you. We're not that far away from college entrance interviews that they will ask you, "What is your position on homosexuality?" And if you give the wrong answer, they will not let you in based on that answer. We are not that far away from your job interviews.

I'm not talking about years. I'm talking about even now. The companies are actually openly saying things like that. HR is coming and saying things like that. If they interview you and they ask you that question, "What is your stance on homosexuality?" And you give the wrong answer, if you give the biblical answer, that they will not hire you.

We're there. On top of that, we've been talking about nuclear war probably the closest to we've ever heard before, at least in my lifetime. And I know that there was a Cuban Missile Crisis back then. But for the first time, at least in my life, where there's actually talks about, "Was Russia crazy enough to do this?" And if they do, what are we going to do about it?

Maybe some of you, it's a little bit more personal than that. As crazy as the world has become, as immoral and as bold as they have become, maybe you just lost your job. Maybe you're having problems at home with your wife and husband. Maybe you're struggling with your children, uncertainty of future, whatever it may be.

The world has gone mad and it's crazy. So when we're in these situations, our temptation is to, first and foremost, especially in the Western world, is we need to organize. We need to march. We need to get enough signatures. And we need to get people in the right office.

We need to change this legislation. We need to fight all of this. And all of these things have its place, and it's great. Because you and I live in a free country. The majority of the people in the world do not have the freedom to speak. They do not have the freedom to vote.

So when the government says that if you go to church, we will shut down your business, they have no way to fight that, the majority of the people. But you and I don't live in that country. We have the freedom to speak. We have the freedom to march. We have the freedom to vote and speak out.

But along with that, there is a great temptation to think that we're going to fight their power with our power. And we have completely missed the point. The text that I read in 2 Corinthians 7, 13-14 is a dedication service after they built the temple where God comes and says, "This is the reason why this temple was built." And to remind Israel of that time and for many generations to come that this is the purpose of God's presence in Israel.

He says, "If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain." You notice here, He says, "If I shut up the heavens." God is sovereign. He doesn't say, "When your enemies have become strong." He didn't say, "When poor decisions have been made." God is completely sovereign. And even to this day, as crazy as things have become in our generation, we still believe in a sovereign God.

God is not any less sovereign today than He was yesterday or 10 years ago or 100 years ago. He's the same sovereign God who has absolute control over all things. He says, "If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, if you see that there is desperateness in your land, and if My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face, turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." He says, "I will hear, and I will heal, and I will forgive if you recognize that it is I who is sovereign." Our natural tendency in the Western world is to organize, to march, to elect, to speak, to have conferences, write books, start a blog.

There is a place for all of these things, especially because we have the freedom to do that. We have the access to do that. But the primary place for a Christian, when we see that we are desperate and we are in need, is to humble ourselves before God and seek His face.

And our first instinct ought to be to pray. And our second instinct ought to be to fast, to pray and to fast. See, in the early church, fasting was a given. And I'm not saying this this morning because I have this figured out, and I want you to follow my example.

In fact, I am saying this because of the exact opposite. We have become self-reliant. We've been doing this for so long. We just plug in the holes, do the right thing, place the right people, certain personalities, certain giftedness, and we can keep this thing going. But we know that true fruit comes when we are desperate before Him.

We can hold on to a form of godliness and yet have no power. We work hard, we labor to establish what we can do, but there's no power. Radical transformations. You know the testimony that Grace gave this morning? No amount of counseling would have changed her. No amount of program, no amount of discipleship would have saved the girl in that position.

It was the power of God. Power of God. And I believe probably the prayers of her parents brought the power of the gospel into her life. There's no amount of organizations, there's no amount of work, no amount of marching, no amount of writing that can bring a soul that was that lost to be able to give her testimony this morning.

In the early church, it was a given. Matthew 6.16, it says, "Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as hypocrites do." He said, "Whenever." He didn't say, "When you decide," or "If you pray." He said, "Whenever," because he understood. The early church understood. In fact, if you read the scriptures in the Old Testament and New Testament, you cannot escape example after example of example of them praying and fasting constantly.

In Acts 13.2, when the first missionaries were being sent out, it said, "While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart from me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.'" When was the Holy Spirit ignited? When they were praying and fasting.

Acts 14.23, "When they had appointed elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, they commanded them to the Lord in whom they had believed." Even Jesus himself, before he enters into ministry, he goes into the woods and he prays and he fasts for 40 days and 40 nights.

Now, he gets tested by the Word of God, where it says, "Well, God said this and God said that." But we forget, and then we emphasize in that, that we need to know the Word of God because Satan is going to twist the Word of God. But we sometimes skim over the fact that he fasted for 40 days and 40 nights before he had this encounter with Satan.

A call to prayer and fast is the first response when we see a sense of urgency. It is the first response. Not something we do after we have planned, after we have worked, say, "Lord, bless our work, bless our speech, bless this sermon." But the first thing that God calls us to do is to humble ourselves and pray and seek him.

Whatever we do without prayer and fasting leads to arrogance. It leads to human reliance. It leads to our pride. We think that our organization somehow did it. We figured out how to do small group. That our way of discipleship is somehow more superior than the church down the street.

That my pastor can preach better than your pastor. And we become arrogant to think that it is our work, it is our work, it is our ability, it is our talent, it is our experience that caused this fruit. Where we know full well that Jesus says, "You cannot bear fruit until you abide in me." The first call is to pray and to fast.

Fasting is a way of humbling ourselves before God because our natural tendency is to become proud. Whatever you do, you become proud. Even with our children, if they do a little bit better, we compare with other children. When they work a little bit faster, when they read a little bit better, our tendency all our lives is to compare.

And as soon as we see ourselves a little bit better, our natural tendency is to become proud. So if we're not actively seeking to humble ourselves, it doesn't matter what kind of personality, whether you talk a lot, or whether you have a soft voice, whether you're introverted or extroverted, when we don't humble ourselves before the Lord, we actively allow pride to seep into our hearts.

Fasting is one of the most tangible ways for us to humble ourselves before God. Psalm 35, 13 says, "But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth, and I humbled my soul with fasting." I humbled myself with fasting. So first and foremost, fasting is an active way for us to humble ourselves, recognizing that we are desperate for Him.

In fact, the Day of Atonement is the only time where God commanded fasting. He calls us to fast. He says we ought to fast, but Day of Atonement, it was commanded to fast. In fact, it was so prominent in the Israelites in Acts 27.9, when Apostle Paul addresses it, he says, he calls the Day of Atonement "the fast," just simply "the fast." If you read that not knowing, you wouldn't know that he's talking about the Day of Atonement.

Every Jew knew. Instead of saying, "The Day of Atonement, the Day of Atonement," they would just call it "the fast." And the reason for that is because that's how the Bible describes it. In Leviticus 23.17.27, it says, "On exactly the tenth day of this seventh month, in the Day of Atonement, it shall be a holy convocation for you, and you shall humble your souls and present an offering by fire to the Lord." On this Day of Atonement, they were all to fast.

It wasn't just a few priests and a high priest that went and did all the work and the whole rest of the nation just stood there and watched. The whole nation fasted. Leviticus 23.32, "It is to be a Sabbath of complete rest to you, and you shall humble your souls on the ninth of the month at the evening, and evening until evening you shall keep your Sabbath." The Day of Atonement was a constant reminder that they were in constant need of God.

Even if they had the greatest Day of Atonement last year, even if they gave sacrifices throughout the year, the Day of Atonement reminded them repeatedly over and over and over again that they are desperate in need of God. That's why in Joel 2.12-13, when Israel is called to repentance, it says, "Yet even now, declares the Lord, return to me with all your heart, and with fasting, weeping, and mourning, and rend your heart and not simply your garments.

Return to the Lord God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in loving kindness, and relenting of evil." We have to humble ourselves. Jonah 3.5, when the reluctant prophet went and preached the gospel, reluctantly, the power of God's message brings the whole evil city to repentance.

And this is the people of Nineveh believed God, and they called, "A fast," and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least of them. So the first act of every Christian when we are faced with urgency is not to organize, to write, to complain, to put fingers, to work harder.

No, the first and the most important thing that God calls us to do is to humble ourselves and pray, to seek Him, to go to Him. Secondly, fasting is the greatest spiritual weapon that we have. Not our intellect, not books, not training, but prayer. Ephesians 6.10-12, it says, "Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in strength of whose might?

His might. Not the might of the leaders, not the might of the organization, but His might." Why? Because, "Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil." Schemes of the devil. There's a reason why this language is used, because the devil's work is constant scheming.

You don't see it coming. When you are under the influence of our enemy, you do not know it. That's why he calls it scheming. And you notice here, he says, "Put on the full armor of God, so you can get your sword, and go find where they are and attack them." He doesn't say that.

He said, "No, so that you can withstand the schemes of the devil." In other words, he's constantly coming for you. It's like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour, and he's coming for you. You don't have to go look for him. He's there. And he says, "Put on the full armor of God, so that you can withstand the scheme of the devil." You see, when we are fighting for righteousness without prayer, you are falling right into the trap of the scheme of the devil.

Because you're fighting with your might. You're fighting with your strength. That you think that somehow, if you have enough accountability, that if you read enough books, if you memorize enough scripture by your own strength, that somehow you're going to overcome the scheming of the devil. He says, "To rely on him, for our struggle is not against flesh and blood." In other words, you're not going to see it coming.

You're not going to see it coming. You're not going to see, "There's the devil. There's what he's doing." He said, "No, he's scheming." "Your struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world, forces of darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places." So when the devil is active, and it is effective, you don't even know about it.

And the more effective he is, the more you are unaware that that's what he's doing. It is something that I've observed through the years, that sometimes righteousness without prayer and humbling ourselves before God, sometimes does more damage than good. Let me tell you why. Because righteousness easily turns into self-righteousness when we are not humbled before God.

Every good thing that we do turns into judgment of others when we are not constantly humbled before God. And so the devil schemes, even with the greatest intention, even with all our studies. The devil is constantly scheming to trip us up. And that's why he says, "After you put on the full armor of God," Ephesians 6, 18-19, "with all prayer, petition, pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert, with all perseverance, petition for all the saints, and pray on my behalf." Pray, pray, pray, pray, pray.

After you put on the full armor of God, he says, "Pray, pray, pray, pray, pray, pray, pray." Fasting is praying with an exclamation mark. You're not simply petitioning. You're crying out. That's what fasting is. In Colossians 4, 2-3, it says, "Devote yourselves to prayer." Devote yourselves to prayer. "Keep an alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving.

Pray at the same time for us as well." Pray, pray, pray. Devote yourself to prayer. Do you remember that story in Matthew 17, where his disciples go out and they're casting out demons, and they couldn't cast out this one particular demon, and they come out and say, "Lord, we did all these miracles, and we couldn't cast out this demon." Remember what Jesus said?

He said, "But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting." There are certain things that God will place in our lives that can only be cast out by prayer and fasting. God will allow certain things that are happening in our lives because God wants us to pray and fast.

There's turmoil, struggle, political, financial, whatever that may be. There are certain things that God allows in our lives, in our generation, in our churches, so that we can pray and fast and humble ourselves before Him. Because God's greatest desire for us is not to live in peace and harmony.

It's not so that you and I can live in a country where we are free to gather together. That is not His greatest desire. If living in a free country and having the freedom to say whatever we want, raise our children however we want, evangelize wherever we want, then that's what He would have given us.

But that's not His greatest desire for us. His greatest desire for us is Him. It's Him at all times. So sometimes persecution is what's best for us. Sometimes turmoil is what's best for us. Sometimes financial instability is the best for us. Sometimes the greatest thing that can happen to us is isolation and loneliness.

Because in the midst of loneliness, we find the preciousness of Christ. When things are dark, the light shines even brighter. The greatest thing that He has given us is to pray. Pray, pray, pray, pray, pray. But fourth and finally, and this is where I want to camp out for a little bit, because I believe that ultimately in Jesus' words, fasting is an expression of hungering and thirsting for God.

Remember in Matthew 9, 14 to 15, John's disciples come and ask Jesus, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast but your disciples do not fast?" And Jesus said to them, "The attendants of the bridegroom cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them. Can they? For the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast." Now what does that mean?

Why are they fasting before Jesus came, and then while they came they didn't fast, and then after He leaves, He says they will fast again? So according to Jesus, what is the purpose of fasting? The purpose of fasting is longing for God. That's what He is saying here. He says, "Before I came, they were fasting.

But now that the bridegroom is here, there's no need to fast because I'm here with you. But one day I will be gone and they will fast again." So what is the purpose of fasting according to Jesus? It's longing for Christ. Longing for Christ is the most tangible way that you and I have to humble ourselves and cry out, "We need you." More than food, more than entertainment, more than any temptation in this world, I desire you.

That's what fasting is. In Luke chapter 14, 16-20, Jesus gives a story about people who wouldn't respond to the call to the banquet. And obviously He's talking about the kingdom of God. And this is what He says. "He said to him, 'A man was giving a big dinner and he invited many.

And at the dinner hour, he sent his slave to say to those who had been invited, 'Come, for everything is ready now.' But they all, like, began to make excuses. The first one said to him, 'I have bought a piece of land and I need to go out and look at it.

Please consider me excused.' Another one said, 'I have bought five yoke of oxen and I am going to try them out. Please consider me excused.' Another one said, 'I have married a wife and for that reason I cannot come.'" John Piper in his book, "Hunger for God," in explaining this text, says this, "The greatest enemy of hunger for God is not poison but apple pie.

It is not the banquet of the wicked that dulls our appetite for heaven, but the endless nibbling at the table of the world. It is not the X-rated video but the prime-time dribble of triviality we drink in every night. For all the ill that Satan can do when God describes what keeps us from the banquet table of his love is a piece of land, a yoke of oxen, and a wife." It is not Satan, it is not the powers, it is not the government, it is not Russia, it is not North Korea.

He says, "It is a piece of land, a yoke of oxen, and a wife." Fasting is one of the most tangible ways that we can come before God and say, "Yes, I am committed to you. You are my groom. You are my Lord. You are my treasure. I struggle, I am tempted, my eyes continue to wander, but Lord, help me.

I am married to you. I hunger and thirst for you." In Psalm 42, 1 or 2, it says, "As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for you, O God." When was the last time you can honestly say that you panted for Christ? When was the last time you can read this Psalm and say, "Yes, this is my prayer.

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?" When was the last time you were so thirsty that you couldn't think of anything else but to drink? Jesus says, "I am the living water." The water that you drink of this world, you will drink and you will be thirsty again.

He said, "I am the bread of life." The bread that you eat, you will eat and then you will have to eat again. But I am the bread of life. He who eats of me and drinks of me will never hunger and never thirst. Hungering and thirsting is expressed in our fasting.

He said, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied." Not the one who wins a lottery. Not the one who goes to the right church. Not the one who has the right friends or gotten a better job or saved enough money. Not the ones who are the more organized.

Not the ones who read more or more experiences. No, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. If I was to take a survey in this room and ask how many of you are satisfied, I know, I've been talking to all of you, but I've been in ministry long enough to know That a large percentage of people at all times inside the church are always dissatisfied with something.

Some of you may express it. Some of you keep it to yourself. A majority of us live day to day unsatisfied. Unsatisfied with our husbands. Unsatisfied with our wives. Unsatisfied with our children. Unsatisfied with our work. Unsatisfied with our circumstance. Unsatisfied with our church. Unsatisfied with our government. We live day to day unsatisfied.

Thinking that if this changes, if my marriage changes, if my children changes, if I get a better job, if I can pay off my bill, I could be satisfied. But he says those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be satisfied. Because our satisfaction doesn't come from this world.

There's nothing that the world can do to satisfy a soul that is hungering and thirsting for Christ. No amount of money. Even if the Dodgers won. It will temporarily satisfy you. But you will have to win again. And again and again. He says those who are satisfied are those who recognize they're hungry and thirsting for Christ.

That's what fasting is. We humble ourselves before God, recognizing that he is our satisfaction. And so we empty ourselves of all distractions and say, "Lord, I want you." That's what fasting is. If Christ and the gospel is nothing more than a security blanket, you don't need to do anything more.

You've already arrived. Because you're already justified, most of you. Because you already believe. You're already at church. You're already at Bible study. So there's nothing more to do because you're already arrived. So from this point on, everything else that you're asked to do, everything that you feel pressured to do, is just more.

But if Christ is your life, you will be hungering and thirsting until the day you meet Christ. See, whatever we find the greatest joy, we want more of it. I've never heard somebody go to a restaurant and eat fantastic food and come out and say, "I've experienced that. I will never come here again." No.

You want to come. You're looking for opportunities to come. You want to invite your friends to come. You visit some place and it's awesome. It's like, "Oh, I'm going to do this more." Because it brings great joy. It gives you rest. Even if you're tired at the end of your trip, you feel rested, don't you?

And you want to do it again. You save money. You sacrifice. You'll work overtime in order to do it again. If Christ is just your security blanket, you already have everything that you need. But when Christ is your life, you become very sensitive to sin because sin hinders you from this life.

If Christ is your life, every encumbrance that causes you in your path to Christ, you want to get rid of. Sin is hindering you from life. See, fasting is for us to take a break and put aside everything and to come before the Lord and say, "You are my life.

I need you more than my bank account, more than my wife, more than my children. I need you. More than bread. More than food. I need you." That's where prayer and fasting is. The reason why I wanted to give this message is because our church is growing. And humanly speaking, the pastors and elders are overwhelmed.

How are we going to clean the bathroom? We're running out of parking. We need to rip up these walls again, make more seats. We need more people in our children's department. We need more of everything. We need more counselors. We need more teachers. We need more organizers. And yet our church keeps growing.

Even if we're not doing an A+ job, the church keeps growing. Now that's a good thing, right? Because God called us to gather. He called us to make disciples of all the nations. He didn't say make disciples of this many people. But I have a growing sense of nervousness and anxiousness.

Not because the church is growing. Not because of the numbers being filled. Not because we don't have enough space. That's not where my anxiousness is. Because we've gone through this many times before. And I know God will provide. The growing sense of anxiousness is we becoming more and more self-reliant.

That as a church continues to grow, and we become accustomed to doing things without desperately hanging to God in prayer. Because the worst place for a Christian to be is to be fruitful without dependence on God. That things are happening when we're not desperately hungering and thirsting for them.

Because our natural tendency is to think, I know how to do this. Because I've done it before. And people are coming. And so as a result of that, we become proud without desiring to be proud. We're filled with self-reliance because we're growing. And we are more susceptible to the schemes of the devil than ever.

The areas that you and I are the most weakened are the areas that you think you are the most gifted in. You know, when somebody comes up here, and every one of you who is baptized, you're not used to speaking up here. So you spend a lot of time prepping, going over your grammar, praying, asking for people to pray, making sure that God covers your weakness, that you don't say something heretical.

You are desperate. I don't need to do that. I've been doing this for 35 years. So when people ask me, do you get nervous? No, I don't get nervous. So I was nervous this morning because my son was up here. And I was nervous for him. But it's in the areas that we are, what we think we're good at, is where we're the most vulnerable.

If you're good with money, that's where you think you don't need God's help. If you're good with people, you don't need to pray because you're good at it. If you're good at organizing, you don't need God's help. You can do it. But that's where we are the most vulnerable.

If you think you're smart, and you're wise, and you're articulate, that's where you are the weakest. Because we are the least dependent on the areas that we think we're good at. Organizing forces us to humble ourselves and to empty ourselves and come before God and cry out, "I need you.

I need you." Let me give you some dating advice, all right, since we're at the end of the sermon. Okay. And those of you who aren't dating, all right, I'm going to get to you too, okay? We live in a culture of poking. I don't know if you still do that on Facebook, right?

You just kind of poke, right? And you kind of poke to see who's interested, right? And so it's a number game. Go on the website, like dating website, and it's like, you know, poke, poke, poke, poke, poke. I poked like 15 people, and then three of them poked back, right?

And they said, "Oh, I have a chance with these three." And then so you poke a little bit further, and then, "Oh, one responded. Okay, that's the one that I have the greatest chance." And then you go out and you meet them, and then you get disappointed, right? That's the pattern that I've seen, right?

And so dating in this culture is just kind of like weighing the pros and cons, and where do I have the greatest chance, and then see what works, and if it doesn't work, or they don't seem like, ah. So it's like risk, you know, risk. Basically dating today is risk management, right?

You've learned to like how to save face, and the least risk, and the most chance, right, to playing the numbers game. As a father, and I'm telling you, I think all fathers will tell, will probably agree with me, don't poke, right? Because you're, if you want to date somebody, you got to make up your mind first that that's the one you want.

Because you're not going fishing. You're not tapping to see which one's ripe, right? You're not buying a watermelon. This person that you want to date may be the mother of your child. This is a person that you're going to walk with, with the rest of your life. So you're not just going or just randomly seeking which you have the greatest odds.

You have to pray, and you have to make up your mind that that's the one that I want. And so you're supposed to take a risk. You're supposed to put your neck out there so that she can say, nah. But you've made up your mind, and you're willing to win her over.

So don't pick a girl that you're not willing to change your hairstyle for. Don't pick somebody and say, God, if she doesn't like what I like, I don't like, that's not for me. That's going to be your wife. Of course you're going to change your hairstyle. Pick somebody that you're willing to die for.

Pick somebody and then work to get that person. And if she says no, stick your neck out again. Oh you're clapping. But that's what dating was meant, that's what men are called to do. You're supposed to pursue them, but you have to first make up your mind, is she the one that I want?

I think because of the way that we're dating, it overflows into our marriages. We're kind of like, okay, I'm going to do this, I sacrifice, so you should sacrifice. It's like, no, you're picking somebody that you're saying, I'm going to die for you. As Christ died for me, I'm going to die for you.

So you don't go pick around to see which one's ripe. No, you make up your mind, and then you commit to that. And there's pain that comes with that. You get embarrassed, humiliated, hurt. But she's worth it because you've chosen her, and she has qualities that you want for the rest of your life.

So you make up your mind first before you go to her. So that when you get married, and this is for married men, that you're willing to die for her. Yes, change your hairstyle, wear different pants, watch different movies. But we have guys who can't give up a single thing.

No, you're called to be her Christ. How can you ask her to marry you if you're not willing to die for her? Now why do I say all this? I'm not trying to get into marriage counseling or dating counseling. How much of our frustration is coming because we're poking around with Christ?

If I do this, will he do this for me? If I sacrifice this, am I really going to be able to get that? And because of this fear, we're always watching Christ from a distance. We get blessed by testimonies, people who talk about their love for Christ. We're always regurgitating information that other people are sharing, but it's never yours because you have not committed.

You have not chosen. Christ wants us to know that he gave himself for us. Now he wants us to give ourselves for him. And he is worth everything that you can possibly imagine to give up. Revelation 3.20 says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come into him and will dine with him and he with me." Notice he didn't say, "Open the door so I can just come in." He says, "Open the door so I can come in and dine with you, that I can have banquet with you." He said, "I came to give life and to give this life abundantly." He doesn't want you to just be justified.

He didn't just want to save you from hell. He wanted to restore the life that God placed in you before sin came in. He wanted you to know the joy, the everlasting joy that can only be found in the author of life. He wasn't just offering hell insurance. He came to give life, to give this life abundantly.

So fasting and praying isn't just opening the door. We decide, "I'm going to start banging. I'm going to be the one who's going to knock on this door. I know what's on this other side. So I'm going to put aside all this other stuff so that I can have Christ above all." So for that end, I want to encourage all of us, including myself.

And I want to keep doing that because this is a big blind spot in the Western culture and in our church. I am so thankful that when I first became a Christian, that the people that was leading me were prayer warriors. Their weakness was the Bible teaching was shallow.

So that was their blind spot. But man, to this day, when I think of prayer warriors, I mean, they pray. They have prayer school. They have prayer meetings. And then we'd have Bible study. And then at 10 o'clock, we would go. And these are high school, young college students, from 10 to 3 in the morning, every Friday, every Friday.

I don't know how many times we fell asleep, and then somebody would poke us and wake us back up, and we're mumbling in our sleep. But that's how I understood what Christianity was, because that was when I first became a Christian. I am not preaching this message because that's where I am.

I am preaching this message because I have drifted far from that. And I don't want our church to continue to go down this path. Until we pray, we cannot, we cannot ask God to bless us. Because as soon as we think we are blessed, without desperately hanging to Him, we will think we did it.

So let's pray. Let's commit ourselves to pray. Let's saturate everything to pray. Let's prioritize prayer. Let's devote ourselves to prayer. And then wait and see what God will do. Let's pray. As our worship team comes up, I want to encourage you to take this time to come before the Lord and to commit yourself.

Lord, I want to and I need to humble myself, to empty myself. I've been living my life independent of you. Even though I'm studying the Bible, even though I'm active at church, I've become independent without prayer. Lord, I desperately need you. So as our worship team leads us, let's take some time to petition the Lord in our prayer.

Let's all stand up for the closing praise. As the dear, as the dear pity for the waters of my soul longing after thee. To you alone, may my spirit yearn. You're my friends and you are my brother even though you are a king. I love you more than any other, so much more than anything.

I desire and I long to worship thee. I want you, I want you more than gold or silver. Only you can satisfy. You alone are the real joy giver and the apple of my eye. You alone are my strength, my cheer. To you alone may my spirit yearn. You alone are my heart's desire and I long to worship you.

And I long to worship you. Let's pray. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me besides quiet waters. He restores my soul. He guides me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil for you are with me.

Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You have anointed my head with oil. My cup overflows. Surely goodness and loving kindness will follow me all the days of my life. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Lord, help us that this would be our true confession. That you are my shepherd, you are our shepherd, and that we would desire nothing else and nothing more. We pray, Father God, as you send us, that you would allow us, give us the strength to be the aroma of Christ.

That we would commit ourselves to pray and seek your face. So that you can hear us. That you would forgive us. And that you would heal our land. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. God sent his Son. They called him Jesus. He came to love. Heal and forgive. He lived and died.

True by my body. An empty grave is there to my Savior lives. Because he lives, I can face tomorrow. Because he lives, all fear is gone. Because I know he holds the future. And life is worth the living just because he lives. Amen.