True Fasting: Isaiah 58:1-5

Fasting often is understood as stopping something. For instance, not eating food for a select period of time. However, this is only half of what we are called to do. The purpose of fasting is to actually do something productive with the time you have from stopping a particular activity.

‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,
   ‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
   and you have not noticed?’    “Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please
   and exploit all your workers.

True fasting is this:

⁶ “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
   and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
   and break every yoke?
⁷ Is it not to share your food with the hungry
   and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
   and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
⁸ Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
   and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness^[a] will go before you,
   and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
⁹ Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
   you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

Fasting is more than stopping a particular activity. It is using the free time to seek God, and serve others. When we fast like this, God see's it and honors it. If we simply skip a meal, we are missing the point.

Miami, OK

Cairistiona, Ezra, and I visited Miami, OK this last weekend to see if we would be a good fit for ministry there. We discovered that their is a need at this Friends church that we could possibly be able to fill. And although that need is clear, we are still uncertain about moving.

I desire to be 100% certain that is where God is calling us to. It seems silly to go to OK if we are not certain God is telling us to go. It is so hard. Life right now seems so not sustainable. What are you leading us to do Lord? We promise to be faithful.

Returning from F2F

After reterning from F2F, God has laid a couple of thoughts on my heart that I feel need to be written down so that I do not forget them,

1. Fight for your relationship with God.

2. Fight for your relationship with you family.

These two are the most important things in your life. Always remember that.

The third thought is where God may be leading us in ministry. We feel called to family ministry. Teaching parents how to disciple their own children. How to communicate well in marriage. How to have and develop successful relationships with family and others. How to build community.

Show us how to do this Lord, I pray.

Be Holy, as I am Holy

Holiness. I can be holy thorough Christ. I am holy in Christ. I am made perfect in Christ. Although I have not already obtained all of this, I continue to push forward. I continue to run the race.

Sometimes, my relationship with God feels empty. I do fall into the trap of working for God rather than with God. I long so desperately to be obedient that I forget the point. Relationship with God.

God loves me. He desires me. I love God. I desire God. Do not let the "stuff" or "work" get in the way of that relationship. Cling to Christ with everything you have.

Suffering for the sake of the Gospel

We have been reading about Quakers throughout history and I have discovered something interesting about their understanding of holiness. That is that suffering is kind of a good think. With suffering, comes joy. That is when we are led by the Spirit in the suffering. Suffering for sufferings sake is terrible, but suffering for the Gospel can potentially bring joy.

How this happens is a mystery to me. It is definitely a gift that has to come from God.  A lot of it I believe begins with my motivation. Why do I persevere? What am I fighting for. If it is for Jesus, the joy will come.