21 DAYS OF PRAYER & FASTING

21 Days of Prayer & Fasting, Day 21: Easter Sunday – “He Is Risen!”

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the most astounding, the most monumental, the most consequential event in all of human history. There is not single event in the history of the world that has as much significance as the resurrection. It is the foundation of the gospel. It is the center point of our faith. Without the resurrection of Jesus Christ, our faith – indeed our very existence – would be pointless.

read more

21 Days of Prayer & Fasting, Day 20: Saturday – “Make It As Secure As You Can”

Today is Saturday. Matthew is the only gospel that records a narrative on the Saturday between Jesus’ death on Friday and his resurrection on Sunday. This part of the story is one of the most important proofs of the historicity of Christ’s resurrection. Because the fearful Pharisees and the power-hungry Romans collaborated to secure the tomb by sealing the 2-ton stone and setting a Roman guard to keep watch, there is no natural explanation for the tomb being empty on Sunday.

read more

21 Days of Prayer & Fasting, Day 18: Thursday – “Let This Cup Pass”

Today is Thursday of Holy Week – the day our Savior prepared and celebrated the Passover meal with His disciples. It was on this evening that He prayed His famous “High Priestly Prayer”, on which we have meditated for the last four days. Following this very eventful evening, He  went with His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray before He was betrayed and arrested and led to the cross in just a few short hours. We look in this devotional at those words He prayed to His Father just before His arrest.

read more

21 Days of Prayer & Fasting, Day 17: Wednesday – “One”

This is one of those passages that reminds us – when something is repeated, we should pay attention. In verses 21-23, Jesus prays the same thing multiple times: that His Church and it’s people would be unified. That’s you and me. But what does He mean? With so many divisions and denominations in His Church, is unity even possible?

read more

21 Days of Prayer & Fasting, Day 13: Saturday – “Father, Glorify Your Name”

Every word Jesus spoke and every miracle God did through Him revealed some aspect of God’s nature to everyone watching and listening. God was glorified as those experiencing life with and around Jesus witnessed him healing the lame, calming storms, raising the dead, feeding enormous crowds – and most importantly, forgiving sinners. No one understood at the time, but Jesus knew that He was on a path moving toward the cross, planned by the Father from before the foundation of the world.

read more

21 Days of Prayer & Fasting, Day 12: Friday – “That They May Believe”

Jesus was told that His friend Lazarus was sick, yet Jesus did not rush to Bethany to help. Instead, He took His time, knowing the miracle that was about to happen…Today, we reflect on Jesus’ prayer as He lifted His eyes to His Father, knowing that though His friend Lazarus had died, He possessed the resurrection power to call Lazarus out of the tomb. Notice something unique and interesting about this prayer of Jesus – we will explore it further below.

read more

21 Days of Prayer & Fasting, Day 11: Thursday – “Come to Me”

In Jesus’ prayer in verse 25, Jesus is basically calling out the pride and arrogance of the religious leaders of the day. They were intellectually and spiritually proud – contrasted by those who would come to Jesus in humility and repentance, with submissive faith like “little children.” And Jesus offers Himself, in verses 28-30, to those who do come to him tired and weary, but with willing, repentant and open hearts.

read more

21 Days of Prayer & Fasting, Day 9: Tuesday – “Desolate Places”

Though Jesus is fully God and co-equal with the Father, His connection to His Father was vividly seen in His devotion to getting away and alone to “desolate places” and praying. In this passage in the fifth chapter of Luke, Jesus had just healed a leper and would follow this time of prayer by healing a paralytic and many more. But He only operated in the strength that the Father would provide – and He would receive that strength through His times on His knees before the Father.

read more

21 Days of Prayer & Fasting, Day 8: Monday – “Deliver Us from Evil”

This can be a very confusing line in Jesus’ prayer when you think about it. God actually never leads us into what we typically think of as “temptation.” We often think of temptation – in English – as a seduction to evil, and this is, of course, something that God would never do. The Greek word used here (peirasmus) actually means “a test” – and Jesus, in His prayer, uses it in this sense – more related to trials that God would allow for the testing of our faith in order to develop perseverance and character in our lives.

read more

21 Days of Prayer & Fasting, Day 1: Monday – “My Soul Magnifies the Lord”

Mary was carrying the Messiah, the Promised One, in her womb and knew from her encounter with the Angel Gabriel that the birth of this child would change everything. Through Him would come the fulfillment of every Old Testament prophecy and promise, forgiveness of sins and redemption for all mankind. Her response in prayer and praise in this “Magnificat” reflects a heart that loves God deeply and wants what He wants.

read more