Day 10 Devotional “Gospel Obedience”

On your tenth day of fasting, remember:

1. Water needs to be with you at all times
2. Rest and relax as much as possible
3. Remember your prayer time.
4. The fast can get hard halfway through. If needed, seek out some encouragement from others.

Physical Effects:

1. Continued weight loss.
2. Bad breath.
3. Your senses become heightened.
4. Cravings can continue.

Today’s Quote:

At its core, the gospel is Jesus as the substitute for sinners. We could summarize the whole by saying that in his life Jesus lives in perfect submission to the will of God and he fulfills his righteous standard (the law). In his death on the cross he quenches God’s wrath against sin, satisfying the sovereign demand for justice. In his resurrection he is victorious over sin and death. All of this is done on behalf of sinners in need of redemption and offered to all who believe. This is therefore very ‘good news.’

Jesus’ life is good news, for his obedience to the Father and fulfillment of the law is for us. While we as sinners fail to keep the law, Jesus was perfectly faithful. Jesus’ death is good news because his death was a payment for our sin, and by it we are cleansed from our guilt and released from condemnation. Jesus’ resurrection is good news because his victory over death is ours and through it we look forward to a resurrection of our own.

-Joe Thorn

Todays Passage: Philippians 2:12-18

Today’s Prayer Emphasis:.

1. If needed, take some time to repent for your lack of obedience to His voice during the fast.
2. Ask God to give you a strength that only comes from Christ to obey.
3. Pray that God would continue to humble you through this fast and refine you into a more obedient servant.
4. Continue in prayer, focusing on what God has showed you to be fasting about.

Today’s Question

1. How does the phrase ‘as you have always obeyed’ help us understand what ‘work out your own salvation’ means?
2. How does the word ‘therefore’ indicate that the kind of obedience required here is motivated by the gospel?
3. What does it mean practically, when Paul says that God is working in us constantly, purposefully, and effectively?
4. Explain this statement: The powerful gospel-work of the Spirit cannot be contained within the soul; it breaks forth into a life of gospel-obedience.
5. Why does the gospel produce obedience that is without grumbling and disputing?
6. How does gospel-obedience become a light that shines in a dark world?
7. In what way is gospel-obedience an offering up of our lives as sacrifices?
8. Why do Jesus’ words (IF YOU LOVE ME, KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS) neatly sum up gospel-obedience?

Day 9 Devotional “The Pursuit of Humility’

On your ninth day of fasting, remember:

1. Water needs to be with you at all times.
2. Rest as much as possible.
3. Spend plenty of time in prayer.
4. Utilize your journal.

Physical Effects:

1. Senses can continue to heighten.
2. Cravings will continue to occur.
3. Weight loss can continue.

Today’s Quote:

Humility agrees and is glad that everything we have is a free gift of God, and that this severs the root of boasting in our distinctives. Whatever talents, whatever intelligence, what ever skills, whatever gifts, whatever looks, whatever pedigree, whatever possessions, whatever wit, whatever influence you have, put away all pride because it is a gift, and put away all despair because it is a gift from God.

— John Piper

Today’s Passages for Study: Philippians 2:1-11

Today’s Prayer Emphasis:.

1. If needed, take some time to repent for putting yourself first before Christ.
2. Ask God to give you opportunities to serve other people around you.
3. Pray that God would continue to humble you through this fast.
4. Continue in prayer, focusing on what God has showed you to be fasting about.

Today’s Questions

1. Why cant you truly love someone till you serve them?
2. Is it easy or hard for you to lord your position over anyone?
3. Is it easy or hard for you to lower your self than someone else?
4. What are your thoughts when you hear this statement: “Serving is humility in action”?
5. What are some practical ways that you can pursue humility during this fast?

 

Remember… don’t just answer these in your heads…. be sure to keep a journal as you go through this experience. Every day you will be provided with a quote, passage for reading, prayer focus and a few questions to guide you with your thought process. Spend some time on each portion, reading, praying and journaling as you go along.

Day 7 Devotional “His Protection and His Strength”

On your seventh day of fasting, remember:

1. You need to keep some water with you at all times.
2. Be sure to be getting plenty of rest (your calorie intake will be lower than when you are not fasting).
3. Continue to spend times in prayer and writing in your journal.
4. Avoid temptations by adding a little variety to what you are eating.

Physical Effects:

1. Cravings can  continue to occur.
2. Weight loss can begin.
3. Breath can smell as your body continues its detox.

Today’s Quote:

Christ’s rule is contested in the sense that while evil is even now under his sovereign rule, and even though its doom has been declared, and even though its back has already been broken at the cross, it has not yet been taken to the scaffold.

The church, therefore, has to be wary as long as it is in this world. It cannot become triumphalistic. It must seek the protection of God’s armor (Eph. 6:10–18), grace, and power. We have not yet come to the final moment of conquest when Christ ‘delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power” (1 Cor. 15:24).

Only then will all of created reality that has been fractured and broken by the intrusions of satanic disorder be eternally cleansed.

- David F. Wells

Today’s Passages for Study: Ephesians 6:10-17

Today’s Prayer Emphasis:

1. Take some time and pray through the armor of God in Ephesians 6.
2. Ask God to give you a greater sense and awareness of the Holy Spirit at work around you. Protecting you and fighting on your behalf.
3. Spend some time praising Him for being your strength and protection.
4. Continue in prayer, focusing on what God has showed you to be fasting about.

Today’s Questions

1. Go through the armor, piece by piece writing out how you have had to use that in your fast so far and how you anticipate having to use it in the days to come.
2. What are the benefits to relying on God’s armor rather than your own?
3. What can be the downfalls of leaning on your own “armor” vs. God’s?
4. What are some practical ways that you can put Ephesians 6 into practice daily?

Remember… don’t just answer these in your heads…. be sure to keep a journal as you go through this experience. Every day you will be provided with a quote, passage for reading, prayer focus and a few questions to guide you with your thought process. Spend some time on each portion, reading, praying and journaling as you go along.

What Happens When We Change Our Diet

Here’s a pamphlet with some great information on some physical things that happen when you begin to change your diet- just some helpful info for what to expect.

(Read: PDF) Symptoms to Expect — chronological

welcome

welcome to fastdown.org! we created this site for our community to connect, find resources, and encourage each other as we do the daniel fast together in hopes that we would SEE God!

click the menu links above to check out recipes, read the daily devotional, or read/comment on the community blog!