Call on Heaven: A 25 Day Journey of Prayer and Fasting

Welcome to Call on Heaven: A 25 Day Journey of Prayer and Fasting.

It is our team’s hope that this journey and these days will prove to be formative, life-giving, and fortifying. Whether it is your first time participating in a fast or if fasting is a common spiritual practice in your life, we are glad you are here and confident God is going to use this time powerfully to draw you into a deeper relationship with Him.

Fasting is a tangible discipline to help a believer become more like Christ. It is an invitation to set something aside, often physical food, for a period of time in order to prioritize and cultivate a deeper spiritual hunger for the things of God. Fasting helps you lean closer and listen more intently for the wisdom of the Spirit, and it helps remind you that Jesus is sufficient for all your needs.

While fasting has largely been either mystified or neglected in the Western Church, it is a discipline worth pursuing by all believers. Donald Whitney writes that “Jesus expected his followers to fast,” as per his words in Matthew 6:16-17, “And when you fast…” Not to mention that Jesus Himself fasted, as seen in his 40-day fast in the wilderness immediately following his baptism. He practiced this discipline and taught his followers how to fast in accordance with the Scripture and in ways that pleased the heart of God.

Fasting is an invitation to participate in a tradition of sanctification. It is to be done on purpose and for a purpose: to strengthen prayer, to seek God’s guidance, to grieve, or to repent and return to God; to align our ways with God’s ways and our thoughts with his thoughts. Fasting is a demonstration of humility, of surrender, and of a willingness to go without so that you can gain something truly eternal and life-altering: more of God.

Throughout this 25-day journey, this resource will help you gain clarity about the essentials of fasting. We’ll give you four key themes to come around as you practice this discipline and aim to substitute something good for someone better. Each day we’ll walk you through Scripture, a short devotion, reflection questions or thoughts, and a prayer, all of which you can use to shift your focus more consistently toward God.

Richard Foster wrote that “fasting must forever be centered on God. It must be God-initiated and God-ordained… fasting reminds us that we are sustained “by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4). Food does not sustain us; God sustains us. In Christ.

If you are nervous about practicing this discipline, know that emotions like these are completely normal and understandable – fasting can be intimidating but we encourage you that it is also worth the challenge. So stick with the practice and allow any cravings to lead you to hunger and thirst for God.

We are eagerly expectant for how God is going to show up over the next 25 days, and we are encouraged to know that collectively, we will be seeking God with all of our hearts, our minds, our souls, and our strengths.