THE FAST GOD HAS CHOSEN – PART 2

Isaiah 58:6-12
“Is this not the fast that I have chosen: To loose the bonds of wickedness, To undo the heavy burdens, To let the oppressed go free, And that you break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, And that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; When you see the naked, that you cover him, And not hide yourself from your own flesh? Then your light shall break forth like the morning, Your healing shall spring forth speedily, And your righteousness shall go before you; The glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; You shall cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’ “If you take away the yoke from your midst, The pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, If you extend your soul to the hungry And satisfy the afflicted soul, Then your light shall dawn in the darkness, And your darkness shall be as the noonday. The LORD will guide you continually, And satisfy your soul in drought, And strengthen your bones; You shall be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. Those from among you Shall build the old waste places; You shall raise up the foundations of many generations; And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In.

(The 12 specific benefits of Prayer and Fasting continue from yesterday)
The more praying there is in the world the better the world will be, the mightier the forces against evil everywhere. Prayer, in one phase of its operation, is a disinfectant and a preventive. It purifies the air; it destroys the contamination of evil. Prayer is no fitful, short-lived thing. It is no voice crying unheard and unheeded in the silence. It is a voice which goes into God’s ear, and it lives as long as God’s ear is open to holy pleas, as long as God’s heart is alive to holy things. God shapes the world by prayer. Prayers are eternal. The lips that uttered them may be closed in death, the heart that felt them may have ceased to beat, but the prayers live before God, and God’s heart is set on them and prayers outlive the lives of those who uttered them; outlive a generation, outlive an age, outlive a world.

3. Healing and deliverance (vs. 8) – Then your light shall break forth like the morning, your healing shall spring forth speedily,
4. Walking in righteousness and holiness (vs. 8) – And your righteousness shall go before you; (Read more about the 12 specific benefits of Prayer and fasting on tomorrow’s devotion.)

We hope you were encouraged and strengthened by these words. Please spend some time mediating on them and praying the prayers below.

Sincerely,

Rev. Obadiah Swen
Pastor, Bethel City of Glory

Application and Prayer for Today
1. Thank God for healing and deliverance (Isa. 58:8, Isa. 53:3-5, Mt. 8:16-17) – Pray for God to cause our light to break forth like the morning, and our healing to spring forth speedily,
2. Thank God for giving us the ability to walk in righteousness and true holiness (Isa. 58:8, 2 Cor. 5:21, Lev. 19:2) – Pray that we will live holy and righteous lives and that our righteousness will go before us;