Over the last year or so, the Lord has been teaching me a lot about the difference between “if” and “when.” American evangelicalism is very familiar with the philosophy of, “if,” but not so familiar with the “when.”
Do you know the difference?
Let’s talk briefly about each by taking a look at a couple of spiritual disciplines in God’s Word:
- Prayer
- Tithing
- Fasting
We could look at a whole host of others, but these are at least recognizable (“if” not practiced) by most.
What does the Bible say about our options regarding these three things? Is it, “iffy” or pretty clear?
First Prayer:
“In those days when you pray, I will listen.” Jer. 29:12
“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others…” Matt. 6:5
“But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen…” Matt. 6:6
Now Tithing (giving):
“You shall tithe all the yield of your seed that comes from the field year by year. .. Duet. 14:22
“…Bring your full tithe to the Temple treasury so there will be ample provisions in my Temple. Test me in this and see if I don’t open up heaven itself to you and pour out blessings beyond your wildest dreams…” Malachi 3
“For although Levi wasn’t born yet, the seed from which he came was in Abraham’s body when Melchizedek collected the tithe from him…” Hebrews 7:10
“On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come.” 1 Cor. 16:2
And what about Fasting?
“so you are to go, and on a day of fasting in the hearing of all the people in the LORD’s house you shall read the words of the LORD from the scroll that you have written at my dictation. You shall read them also in the hearing of all the men of Judah who come out of their cities…” Jer. 36:6
“Announce a time of fasting; call the people together for a solemn meeting. Bring the leaders and all the people of the land into the Temple of the LORD your God, and cry out to him there…” Joel 1:14
“Next Jesus was taken into the wild by the Spirit for the Test. The Devil was ready to give it. Jesus prepared for the Test by fasting forty days and forty nights…” Matthew 4:1-3
“When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting…” Matthew 6:16
Not much wiggle room I would say. Seems like God expects His children to be living lives of prayer, fasting and yes, giving back to Him—commonly referred to as ‘tithing.’ He doesn’t do this to be oppressive, but to teach us to be more like Him. Think of the example Christ gave us when He walked among us.
- He constantly prayed though He himself is God and the argument could have been made that He wouldn’t need to as much as the rest of us (Matthew 11:25, Luke 23:34-35, Matthew 26:44, Matthew 14:23, etc.)
- He GAVE the ultimate gift in giving His own life for our sins!
- He himself fasted before kicking off (officially) His earthly ministry (Luke 4)
If this was the pattern set by Jesus, who are we to think we can do an end around the most basic foundational disciplines of the Christian life?
Of course, we can’t—not if we truly desire to live victoriously and experience God’s power in our lives.
So why did I pick these three?
Because these are the disciplines that precede power—if we’re not fired up about prayer, tithing, and fasting, then we should not wonder why we never seem to experience God’s power and provision in our lives.
Another reason I chose these three is because they also seem to be the ones most believers constantly struggle with —a true conundrum since this is the road we must travel to experience the abundant life Jesus came to bring (John 10:10).
Soooooo, want to know a secret I’ve discovered?
If you struggle with all three of these, start with just one—Fasting.
Why? Because fasting brings focus, power, a deepening love for the Savior, a greater reliance on Him, a deeper love for others (that makes us less selfish and more “giving”), a more humble attitude, plus a longing for Him that can only begin to be fulfilled through talking to Him (prayer)…
That is why the entire staff at Southbrook Church is smack dab in the middle of the 21 day Daniel Fast. We desperately need Jesus and we long to see Him do greater and greater things in our midst. So we’re positioning ourselves to be His instruments of change—to be the vehicles through which He marks the body of Southbrook, the community around us, the world, and ultimately, the future!
We’re expecting great things from our great big God!