Day 13: If My People
As you continue to fast and pray, the Enemy may try to convince you that this sacrifice is not worth it … after all you’re just one person. What kind of difference could you possibly make? In 2 Chronicles 7:14, a verse many are familiar with, God says, “If my people…” Do you know what it takes to be God’s people? You have to first be God’s person. It takes one person at a time saying yes to God and putting Him first! The full verse reads:
“If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. —2 Chronicles 7:14
First, in order to be the people of God, you must be a person of God. The next thing God requires in this promise is humility.
Once God’s people begin to humble themselves through fasting, He invites us to pray and seek His face. The Amplified version reads, “shall humble themselves, pray, seek, crave, and require of necessity My face.”
Fasting, I believe, is our way of stepping into the heart of God that grieves for hurting, broken humanity that He created and loves. Fasting embraces emptiness and starves haughtiness. It is a form of withdrawing from normal life in the regular world that we live in, emptying ourselves of not just food, but anything else that we “seek, crave and require of necessity” other than His face.
We should fast not just food, but entertainment, media and worldly junk—delicacies from the world’s table—things that contaminate and limit the power of a fast. Fasting is our ‘body language’ to God. When we fast, we are expressing our heart hunger for Jesus, and how serious we are about hearing His voice and following His ways. From a place of humbleness when we pray and seek His face, we get His eyes, His ears and His voice. We position ourselves to be ‘lifted up’ to see what He wants us to see, to hear what He wants us to hear and to learn the sound of His whisper guiding our steps. When we pray and seek Him instead of just what He can do for us, we are compelled to proceed to the next step: turning from wicked ways.
When we seriously commit to humble ourselves, pray and seek His face and turn from wickedness, He promises to hear us! He promises to forgive our sin and heal our land. Our land—this nation—deeply needs healing. One person alone cannot stop the sin of abortion in our land, but God can when we humble ourselves and seek Him. One person alone cannot stop the tide of immorality sweeping America, but God can forgive our sin and heal our land.
This promise is for all of us, every day: If we will—He will. When you fast and pray in this way, it will affect generations! When we lay a solid foundation of humbling ourselves in fasting and in prayer and in turning from wickedness, the impact will be immeasurable.
January 18, 2013 | Permalink26 Responses to Day 13: If My People
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Talita says:
God is Great,good and Migthy. I’m entering my last two days of 14 days fasting. Lets keep on praising Him. Because he a good God. Amen
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Titilia says:
Indeed Lord i will refrain from eating delicacies from the worlds table. Amen.
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mary ojuro says:
I joined the fast I have been fasting The Daniel fast from am to 3pm. Yesterday 1/17/12 @ 5pm was involved in a head on collission, Thank God nobody was hurt and I walked out of the car nothing broken or missing AMEN TO GOD – Have been going through a lot with my marriage, Job, Kids &finance but This is my new beginning for me i believe everything that I lost is comming back to be in four fold AMEN AMEN AMEN. The devil has lost
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Donna says:
Sometime during the last couple days of this fast I’ve switched over from believing God for the “things” I needed God to make right – to understanding that God is the thing I need and then all things would be made right! Today I step out of my own way and become less full of myself – I am walking in victory as I’ve never done before and it feels great. If I will – God will? Wow – it really is simple – isn’t it!!!
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Don says:
Lord, I thank you for your everlasting promises! I thank you because you promise to bring healing to any of our situations, if we do our part. Fasting and praying is our part. Believing and seeking you is our part. Thank you for making the plan so clear that even a young lad can understand. I thank you for your promises-truly I believe your promises. I pray for this nations, and for the believers of this nation. Touch them with your mighty hand, even right now. Bless and protect your children. Bring confusion under your order. In the name of Jesus. Thank you for your promises again! In your name I pray.
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Godchild says:
God is good, for I had decided at the beginning of the fast I would fast from all things so that my mind, body, and soul would be humble under the mighty hands of God. If one can put thousands to flight what more can all that have joined in on this fast do. stay encouraged.
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Shungu Sanyamandwe says:
Today i am so encouraged and i would like to encourage all those who are on this fast. I have seen God come through for me in the last 2 days. I have been praying for my finances and honestly speaking i did not have much to meet my day to day needs. However in the last 2 days God has supplied money through friends and family to hep me meet the need without me even asking. I am floored that he is faithful. Why do i struggle to trust him so when he has proved himself time and time again.
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Sandra says:
A Holy Spirit inspired message indeed! The enemy has been trying to tell me not to fast this time around and giving me so many reasons to postpone it. I thank you for today’s message. This is what I fight back the enemy with – the Word of God. Thank you for the encouraging words you give us each day, you will never know how much they impact us. Fellow fasting family, keep on, if you fall get back up, the Lord is our Strength.
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Juju says:
I believe this 21 days of fasting is worth everything. It declares that we are God’s people, we are seeking His face and voice through fasting and praying, so He shall see and hear us from heaven, and will forgive our sin and heal our land! Amen!
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Kay Clark says:
THIS speaks to me today. I am seeing a wonderful inside change …a little here, a little there …I am seeing God move. I am understanding and the Holy Spirit is helping me. Praising in this fast!!!
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Rajneet says:
Amen!!!!
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Today, I just joined you in the fasting stage. For the last few years, I’ve been wanting to approach the Lord with this type sincerity. I realize even in my best state, it’s altogether vanity. Thank you. I am reaching to receive what God wants for me.
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anointedchild says:
Amen, these are inspiring words that compels me to keep fighting. Gods will be done in the earth as it is in heaven. God wants us to realize that we will walk on mountains and through valleys (highs and lows) but wants us to continue following Him through it all because He protects, guides and feeds us daily.
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Marianna says:
Thank you Pastor Franklin. I felt led to say that we will see the enemy (who try as he and his minions may to attempt to break our beloved nation, families & faith) will be confused,exposed & will fight among themselves until complete defeat, just like in Judges 7:22, (where Gideon defeats the Midianites!)
Praying for you & your family for additional anointing, favor & perseverance as well! When God’s people pray, praise & fast, we will see that this will confuse our enemies, causing them to fight against each other, exposing themselves until they are completely under Jesus feet, where he belongs!
To God all the glory. -
Vickie says:
It is a joy to come before Him in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ humbling our self,pray, seek His face and turned from our wicked ways. He promise to hear us,answer us,forgive our sins and heal our land. I ypraise Him that we are His people translated from darkness to His kingdom as we fasting and pray He is faithful to forgive us and heal our land in Jesus name amen
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kelly says:
Thank You for the encouraging word and for being so transparent in saying how UNspiritual you feel sometimes even this long into the fast. I’m only on day 9 as I started after you all. I know what you mean about the battle. Thank You Jesus that we can lose some of the battles but still win the war. I think one of satan’s most effective weapons is to take our failures and make them LOOK like mountains, when in reality they are really mole hills as the saying goes. failure is temporary faith is eternal. Even as I woke up this morning being the 9th day, this rar into the fast, I awoke talking to Him about the my day approaching. My petitions were mingled with gratitude and peace. God is so good at what He does in our lives we don’t even notice it most of the time. Reguardless of a christians view on fasting, we must remember that He was addressing His disciples, His bride, His beloved when He said “WHEN you fast.” In my half asleep, half awake state this morning I felt the longing of my “first Love”. The severe illnesses that I have endured lately that have stolen my joy didn’t matter. I wanted to lay there and pray for a long time. I know if I endure til the 21 days (probably beyond) that He will visit me.
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Tembe says:
Amen. Can someone help me here, can i take porridge made from corn with vegetables only of course? Thank you in advance
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I heard a preacher say the other day ” If you dont’t believe the 1st 4 words in the bible you’ll have a hard time with the rest of it”, ” In the beginning, God!” I think that’s what fasting does. It simlpifies our faith to consider His Love extended to others. Our appetites are tied to the wickedness in our hearts. We don’t just eat to live, we live to eat ( not just us fatty’s folks ). If we pray for a discerning spirit, the holy spirit will lovingly hold up that mirror that God’s Mercy will make clear. My last prayer this morning before getting up was ” Lord help my unbelief, help me to believe down in my bones, Jer. 29:11, that your thoughts towards me are sweet,and prosperous to an expected end”. Father, I ask you to send holy angels to the battles of these fasters, that whatever weapon the enemy tries to form against them will not prosper in the name of Jesus. IF YOU FAST WITHOUT READING HIS WORD—YOU ARE TOOOOO STRONG—IT IS “HIS” STRENGTH THAT WINS THE BATTLES!!! God Bless!!!
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stacey says:
Once again, a much needed Word. Thank you Lord and thank you Pastor Franklin.
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guibithja says:
WOW.Praise the Lord for this powerfull word of the day.Fasting is our body’s language to God expressing our heart hunger for Jesus to change our world,when we join prayer to fast and seeking God’s face by humbling ourselves as person or people of God, we will affect generations, healing will come,restauration will come and long term blessing will be poured into our lives and our land.Glory to God.
We are committed to seek God by fasting and praying no matter what and the impact will be immeasurable. -
yaw says:
Hello sir,
I am from Ghana. I started the fast with you as directed..Interestingly there is a small church close to where i stay,they are also doing the fast on your dates .kindly, remember me in this prayers.My business has collapse ,i am being ejected from my room with my three children, I am thinking of how to pay my children school fees for next term (snr high) let the whole congregration remember me in prayer for a breakthrough.
yaw -
Christine says:
I have learned that God Values humility. If we humble ourselves, it makes us vulnerable to Him and He in turn can work through us. If I humble myself, and pray and fast, my heavenly father will hear my prayer. We are Really His people though our acceptance of Him. We need to continue humbling ourselves and He will lift us. Praise be to His name.
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elizabeth says:
This indeed is very true ”We should fast not just food, but entertainment, media and worldly junk—delicacies from the world’s table—things that contaminate and limit the power of a fast.”
AMEN!!!!!! GOOD WORDS.
LORD, HEAL OUR LAND!!!