07 Sep Church Wide Fast 2016

As you may have heard over the last few weeks, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of this week are days we have marked off for a fast in our church.

If you are unfamiliar with what fasting is, here is a short description of it:

Fasting is an ancient and Biblical practice of self-denial, particularly with regards to food. Over the past few years, as we have done this as a church body, we have experienced God’s grace and nearness in increasing ways. We fast to deny self, seek God’s wisdom, believe for a personal or relational breakthrough, but most of all, we fast because we want more of God!

As we head into the fall, I am really expected to see God move among us and touch our lives and community, and that kind of thing begins with all of us opening our hearts before God, and being real and vulnerable with Him about the true state of our hearts.

I would encourage you to take time to pray a number of the Psalms each day, to give thought to the emotional honesty of each, and allow that honesty to push you deeper into an experience of God’s heart. What are you overjoyed about? What are you frustrated about? What are you expectant of? Allow those Psalms to give voice to things inside you.

And, of course, I’d like to invite you to worship and pray together this Friday, both at 7 am and then again at 6 pm over in Elevate. I know over the years that we have done this, over and over again people experience God in new ways, and are thankful that they made the relatively small sacrifice of forgoing a few meals in order to remind themselves of who their hearts really belong to.

So, turn off that TV, put away those distractions, and just for a few days, choose to press in to God’s heart and Word for you and your family! If you’re married, grab your spouse’s hand and just pray for them, or grab your children’s hands and pray for them—you will be marking them in a unique way.

Will you believe with me for God’s best for us and for our city this week?

Looking forward to it!

Morgan

P.S. We anticipate being very full and possibly even near seating capacity this weekend. When you arrive, would you consider sitting in the middle of an aisle if you are able? And, if you arrive late and we are full, please be open to sitting in our Family Room—it is set up with an audio and video feed for you. We are monitoring our seating and parking situation and praying through next steps to work through those elements in the very near future.