On My Heart...Fasting

I'm linking up with Casey again this week.

I have been thinking about fasting a lot this week.

It's been brewing in my heart for awhile now, but I didn't really know why.

I met with my friend E.H. for coffee on Monday. She was telling me about a book she's been reading about the importance of practicing the disciplines of our faith. She said that the book was talking about how fasting, as it was written in the Bible, was emphasized in the same way that prayer was. Neither of us had ever thought about it like that before. If fasting is supposed to be as important as prayer is in our lives, why aren't we doing it more?

I have never fasted for a personal reason. Any time I've ever fasted was either for the 30 Hour Famine I used to participate in with my youth group, for any important meeting I had at my old church, or for something big happening at church that our pastor asked us to fast for. While none of those reasons are wrong by any means, I started feeling this week like I haven't been fasting in all the ways I could be.

Dictionary.com defines fasting as:

an abstinence from food, or a limiting of one's food, especially when voluntary and as a religious observance; fasting.

a day or period of fasting.

Jesus talks about fasting in Matthew 6:
When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
(Matthew 6:16-18, NIV)

I also found this quote on fasting on this website:
Fasting was an expected discipline in both the Old and New Testament eras. For example, Moses fasted at least two recorded forty-day periods. Jesus fasted 40 days and reminded His followers to fast, "when you fast," not if you fast.

Also, this website gives a listing of all the occurrences (and possible occurrences) of fasting in the Bible.

Anyway, all this to say that fasting has been on my heart a lot lately. I've been realizing that there are many big decisions my husband and I make in life without fasting and really seeking God out in every way we can. It's something I want to change and will be changing for sure.

What are your thoughts on fasting?

Prayer

I have really been struggling with prayer lately...
It's not that I don't pray. I do...occasionally. I do when a need arises. I do when I am getting frustrated or worried or scared. I do when I don't know where else to turn. But, I don't think I truly understand what it means in 1 Thessalonians 5 where it says, "Pray continually".
I understand the concept. I understand that it means I need to live my life in a constant state of prayer. Where everything I say and do, I am speaking to God and asking for His guidance, will, and direction. Where I'm pleading on behalf of those around me who are struggling. Where I am praising my God for the blessings He's putting in front of me. I understand the concept...but I don't think I've ever truly put it into practice.
I think it's precious when little ones pray before meals or pray before they go to bed at night. And, I think it's so important that they learn how to talk to God when they are young. Unfortunately, I think many times we all continue to live our lives only praying that way. I know every time Josh and I sit down to dinner together, we pray before we eat. But, we aren't praying every time we go out to eat or every time we grab a snack. We aren't always thanking God for the food we eat before we eat it. It's almost like a routine for us, a habit we've had since we were little; that we only think to pray when we are having a formal meal together. It doesn't mean that I'm any less thankful for the food, but it means that I don't truly understand how to live my life praying continually.
I hate the fact that I don't stop and pray for someone every time they ask for it. I will get a text or an e-mail, asking for prayer, and many times I don't stop what I'm doing to pray for it. Why is that? Why do I only remember to pray for others when I'm at church or at Bible study and someone else brings them up? Why am I so unwilling most of the time to take a moment in my day to pray for someone?
We are going through a new series in church on the book of Philemon. We went through the first 7 verses of this very short book on Sunday. It hit me during the message that I really need to learn to stop and take the time to pray for others. Again, it's not that I don't...I just don't always do it as often as I should. But beyond that, to pray for them even when they haven't asked for it. It blows me away to know that the senior pastor at my church prays for each and every person by name that fills out a connection card at Calvary. That's a good 1000 people! It got me thinking that if he can take the time out of his busy schedule to pray for 1000 people every month, I can certainly pray for all of my family and friends as well. And, not even just that I can, but I truly want to now. I truly want to lift up those around me. I know they go through stuff just like I do, but I don't always know when and what they are going through. I don't want to only lift them up when I know something is wrong, I want to lift them up every opportunity I get.
I also just want to be a better encourager. I have many amazing people in my life that send me encouraging texts or emails quite frequently and I am so grateful for them. I want to be a better encourager. I want God to put specific people on my heart that need to be encouraged. I want to be a better servant of Christ. I want to be more like Him in every aspect of my life. I know it's going to be hard and I know I'm not going to be perfect, but I want to wake up every day with a desire to pray for and encourage those around me to keep going on this walk. To keep looking up to God for direction and wisdom. To keep seeking His will. I don't want to learn more about Him to keep it to myself. I want to learn more to share it with others and encourage them to walk closer to Him. That is my prayer for today.

New Start

Josh and I are SO excited! We are moving into a two-bedroom home in just a few weeks!
I still can't believe it's all happening. Josh is starting his new job in the next couple of weeks and we are able to move into a bigger place! But, I guess I should back up to the beginning of the story...
Josh has been working for the school district for a little over two years now. He went from working at a year-round elementary school to working at a traditional high school, where he also gained another traditional elementary school that he splits his time at. When he switched from the year-round school to the traditional one, he took a pretty big cut in pay. Not that he actually received a lower hourly wage, but he lost days in the year, so his checks were a lot smaller. It was fine at the time for us, because I was offered a job at a flooring company that would pay me about double what I had been making at the church. We prayed about it and felt a peace about him switching schools and about me taking the job at the flooring company.
We did not, however, realize that after four months, I would be laid off from the flooring company due to our lovely economy. Fortunately, I was able to file for unemployment. We struggled to live on a reduced income for quite a few months. The school district then offered some of the employees in Josh's position the option to time sheet an extra hour a day at work, since some of them were also splitting up their time between two schools. It was such a blessing to be able to get a little extra money every month from that. Even when our health insurance went up in August, it still ended up being a nice increase in his pay check. During this whole process, I applied for quite a few different jobs, had a couple of interviews, but nothing panned out.
Fortunately, another opportunity presented itself for Josh. A job opened up in the school district for the position directly above where Josh was currently working. It also happened to be in-house only, which meant that Josh had a pretty good chance of getting the job if he decided to apply for it. After praying about it, we definitely felt like he needed to apply. God proved Himself to be amazing yet again through the whole process. Josh ended up being only one of two people who applied for the job. He had an interview the next week and found out a few days after that he had gotten the job! Not only does the job pay more hourly, but he will also be working year round at the district office itself, which is a BIG increase in pay for him each month. He has not started his job yet, but is supposed to be starting sometime in the next two weeks. And with the other exciting opportunity that was presented to us, it couldn't come at a better time.
Some good friends of ours from church (who are also now related to my sister) own a two-bedroom home they rent out. Their current renters came to them last week to let them know that they would be moving out by the end of the year, possibly sooner. We were offered the opportunity to rent the house and knew that it was definitely a gift from God. The rent is not much higher than what we are currently paying for our apartment, and with Josh's increase in pay from his new job, it won't be a financial burden in the least. Things moved along a lot quicker than we expected and we signed our rental agreement on Sunday afternoon. We put in our 30 day notice at our apartment complex on Sunday as well. We are planning to move in before Christmas, if all goes as planned.
With everything that has gone on in our lives this past year, we really feel like God is giving us a new start. Josh is starting a new job and we are moving into a rental that will feel like our own home (we can paint, hang things on the walls, and plant things in the yard!!). We have also recently had a new desire to really take on our Biblical roles in our marriage in a way we hadn't been before. We really want to serve and love each other the way God calls us to, even when we get frustrated at the little things in life. We are also on a plan to get rid of our debt as soon as possible. I told Josh that I really feel like God is allowing us to have a new start in all aspects of our lives. I know that God desires more from us and we are trying our best to live our lives in a way that truly pleases Him. I am very excited for 2010. It also seems quite fitting to me that Josh just turned 25 and that I will be close behind him in just under two months. Not that 25 is that significant of an age, but I feel like it is going to be for us. I know as long as Josh and I continue to seek God in all we do, whether it be how we spend our money or how to love each other better, everything will be great! And, even if we experience pain along the way, which is inevitable, I know it will only make us stronger in Christ and closer to each other.