Fire & Glory Days

Thank you for prayerfully considering your commitment to Fire & Glory Days. We'll start out the year with 21 days of prayer and fasting here at LifeChurch West Chester. Througout the year, there will be other times we come together for prayer & fasting.

The goal of prayer and fasting for the Believer is personal intimacy with God and clarity in hearing His voice. Biblical fasting helps you eliminate unnecessary earthly distractions and focus on Heaven’s agenda for your life, family, and church. It enables you to recognize the goodness of God and align your spirit more fully with His Spirit. For the body of Christ, fasting and prayer works to unify the family of God with one heart in prayer, worship, Bible study, and believing for corporate breakthroughs and miracles as a church. Fire & Glory days are a time to believe God for miracles in the lives of friends and loved who are lost, sick, or need to be saved. It is a time to draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

Here are the topics covered on this page:
Participant Instructions
Four Types of Biblical Fasting
Why We Fast
Steps To Prepare For Your Fast
Final Thoughts
Volunteering

Participant Instructions

  1. Prayerfully Commit to personal daily prayer times, and to as many church prayer and fasting gatherings as you can during the Fire & Glory Days.
  2. Prayerfully create your personal Prayer List of people and things you are asking God for His intervention. (Examples: Miracle healings needed, lost souls to be saved, addictions that need breaker, inner healing needed, financial and relational breakthroughs).
  3. Create a private Prayer Room at home where you can go during your fast to pray through your Prayer List, read the Word, and worship God. Try to extend your personal prayer and devotional time longer than normal. This extended time exercises your “spiritual muscle” and helps you grow stronger in faith and in deeper intimacy with God.
  4. Plan to Attend as many Fire & Glory Days as possible in the main Sanctuary at LifeChurch West Chester.  There will be gatherings nightly (Monday - Saturday) in the sanctuary from 7pm - 8pm for unified prayer and intercession. All are encouraged to join us.
  5. Prayerfully Choose Your Fast from the follow Four Types of Biblical Fasting. Remember, your fast should present a level of challenge to you, but it is very important to know your body, your options, and most importantly, to seek God in prayer, and follow what the Holy Spirit leads you to do during Fire & Glory Days.

Four Types of Biblical Fasting

The following are four basic and biblical types of fasting you can choose to do during Fire & Glory Days. Prayerfully consider your fast, asking God for His guidance and confirmation in which type of fast  or  what combination is right for you. We know that you will see fruit no matter what type of fast(s) you choose to engage in. In fact, we’d love to hear your testimonies as you journey through this fast, or testimonies from previous fasts. Click below to to share your story with the LifeChurch Pastoral Staff so we can celebrate with you.
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Complete Fast:
In this type of fast, you drink only liquids, typically water with light juices as an option. It is important to drink much more water than you usually do during the day. We suggest one ounce per pound of your bodyweight. So, if you weigh 150 pounds, your goal would be 150 ounces of water. This fast is not for the “spiritually elite’ because there is no such thing as “spiritually elite”. This is for anyone that is medically able. Still, if you are new to fasting food, we would suggest you check out the Daniel Fast and Partial Fast below as other options as you get acquainted with this amazing Christian discipline.

Daniel Fast:
In this type of fast you remove meat, sweets, and bread from your diet and consume only water and juice for fluids, and fruits and vegetables for food. This is also called a ‘selective fast.’ Most people choose this type of fast during corporate fasts like the Fire & Glory Days at LifeChurch. Some choose to start with the Daniel Fast, or a Partial Fast and move into a Complete Fast later or vice versa. The most important thing in choosing a fast is that you settle your heart as you prepare (Below: How To Prepare For Your Fast) for your time of prayer and fasting. Your preparation is a huge part of the eventual success of a fruitful time of fasting and prayer.  Daniel-Fast.com is a great resource for this type of fast. 

Partial Fast:
This fast is sometimes called the “Jewish Fast” because in scripture the Jewish people would often not eat from “sun up to sun down”. It involves abstaining from eating any type of food in the morning and afternoon. Another example of a partial fast is choosing to abstain from food for a certain meal. For example, maybe you could choose to fast breakfast and lunch but still have dinner with your family. If you are new to fasting food, we would suggest starting with this one and maybe fasting one a meal a day. This is also the type of fast that is most sustainable as you incorporate the discipline of fasting into your lifestyle beyond the 21 days.

Soul Fast:
This type of fast helps to restore and refocus areas of our lives that are out of balance. For example, you might choose to stop using social media or watching television for the duration of the 21 Days, and then carefully bring that element back into your life in healthy doses at the conclusion of the fast. The word ‘fast’ in Hebrew literally means to ‘close the mouth’ so scripturally we hold that a fast involves not partaking in food or certain types of food for a period of time. Still, not everyone is able to do this medically. If you have health issues that prevent you from fasting food the Soul Fast is a great option. If you are able to fast food, our suggestion is pairing a food fast with a soul fast.

Why We Fast

The teachings of Jesus imply that fasting should be a constant practice in our lives as His followers, much like giving and prayer are consistent practices. His teachings tell us that fasting should be regularly incorporated into our lifestyle. Here are 5 Reasons Why We Fast as Believers.

  1. Fasting is laying down the pleasures of earth so that we can take up the pleasures of Heaven. We don’t fast to lose weight or for health reasons only, we fast to grow closer to God. Fasting increases our “spiritual senses”, tunes us into God’s voice, deepens our intimacy with Holy Spirit, and increases our awareness of His manifest presence and desire to partner with us in life.
  2. Fasting increases levels of individual and corporate anointing. The Bible is clear that you gain power in the Holy Ghost through fasting. The Spirit of the Lord led Jesus into the desert to be tempted and to fast for 40 days. Luke 2:52 tells us that after this fast and time of prayer that Jesus returned ‘in the power of the Spirit.’
  3. Fasting is also a time to gain direction in life from the Lord. Many have experienced in their personal times of fasting that the Lord lifts them to see, with greater clarity, His purposes for their life. When you fast, be specific with God about His direction your life, business, relationships, or ministry opportunities. The Father loves to reveal His purpose and direction for your life. Trust Him and wait patiently for Him to reveal these things to you.
  4. Fasting is an opportunity to grow in prayer and your understanding of God’s Word. If you’re not reading and praying regularly, this is a great time to re-establish the high ground of daily prayer and Bible reading in your life again. To do this, you can use the time you would be preparing and eating meals for quiet time with God and feeding on His word. One of the most important reasons to fast and pray is to reestablish a powerful daily devotional life. If this is the only initial fruit that comes out of your fast, it  will have been worth all the challenges of the 21 Days. But we believe you will have more fruit! 
  5. The last reason we fast is this, we fast because Jesus told us to fast. Simple obedience and simple devotion is our practice. If we love Jesus and believe His heart holds good things for us, then our hearts should desire to simply be obedient to His teachings. Heartfelt obedience to Jesus’ teaching and direction is worth it every time.

Steps To Prepare For Your Fast

Several weeks or days prior to your fast you can begin to prepare your body, mind, emotions, and spirit with the following steps. Preparing for your fast is very important. Much of your success will depend on how well you prepare, so make your fast a matter of prayer leading up to the 21 days. The following steps will go a long way to assisting you in achieving goals, God’s answers, and experiencing more of the power of God in your life during the fast and beyond.

  1. Prayer is the first thing you should do in preparation for your Fire & Glory Days. Asking God for strength and His manifest presence during the fast will prove very beneficial.
  2. Consult with your doctor or health care provider if necessary. If pre-existing conditions are a concern for you, your doctor could provide you with good information that will encourage you about your ability to fast.
  3. Consult with your spouse about your 21 days of fasting and prayer. Usually, a biblical time of fasting and prayer for married couples includes abstaining from marital intimacy during a fast. This is a choice for both partners, and must be arranged prior to the fast, with the agreement that after the fast, marital intimacy will continue as before.
  4. Prayerfully determine your fast and arrange with your spouse family meal preparations. It can become very challenging for the one who is fasting to prepare meals for family members who are not fasting. Even though it is challenging for those fasting, meal prep can still be done by the one fasting with prayer, love, and a servant’s heart. If possible, meal prep should be shifted to the spouse who is not fasting. Sometimes, families decide to do the Daniel Fast or a Partial Fast together.
  5. Prepare for changes that may occur in your body. Fasting eliminates toxins in your body, so you’ll need to prepare for feelings of weakness, possible headaches, and even feelings of nausea especially at the beginning of the fast. Consider taking some time breaks during the day to relax, pray, and regain strength.
  6. Begin to alter your diet 1 to 2 days before fasting. Things like limiting sugar and dairy products and limiting your portions at mealtime are good ways to prepare. Drink lots of liquids and reduce your intake of food at least 1 to 2 days before the fast.
  7. Get moderate exercise before and during the fast if possible. This will increase blood circulation and energy.
  8. Get lots of rest prior to and during the fast. Go to bed early if possible and sleep as late as you can each day.

Final Thoughts

Every time will be a new experience as you walk through prayer & fasting with the LifeChurch Pastors and family.  As you join in the ministry taking place in the Sanctuary, seeking God and offering your worship to Him, He will reward you with answers and breakthroughs that will transform your life. When the Lord does these wonderful things in you and for you, please be sure to fill out a Praise Report so we can celebrate with you as well.  If you would like to share a Prayer Request with the Pastoral staff, please submit it using the link below.  Again, thank you for prayerfully considering this time of personal and corporate fasting and prayer. We know God will reward you as you seek Him, His will, His provision, and His intervention in your life, the Church, and the lives of those you love. God bless You! – Pastor Randy Rice
PRAISE REPORT
PRAYER REQUEST