From the beginning of VIVE Culture, we have made it a priority to seek God first in prayer. We do this collectively as a community in January through 14 Days of Prayer and Fasting as we begin a new year. Together, we faithfully seek God first, trusting in Him alone to create a lasting impact in our lives, city, church, and world. Every day we have a prayer focus and Bible verse that we are praying through together.
WEEK 1 PRAYER & FAST FOCUS POINTS BEGIN JAN 9TH. EVERY MORNING AT 7 AM THERE
WILL BE AN ENCOURAGEMENT FROM ONE OF OUR TEAM MEMBERS FOR THAT DAILY PRAYER TO START OUR DAY TOGETHER. CLICK THE IMAGE ON THAT SPECIFIC DAY.
WHY WE PRAY?
The power of prayer deepens our dependence on Him and sharpens our faith. When we pray we choose to put everything in God’s hands knowing that His hand will show up in every aspect of our lives and in those around us.
The act of prayer is what creates our intimacy with God. We can practice the spiritual habit of prayer knowing that our requests go to a God who hears us and who invites us to be intimately involved in His plan. For this reason, we pray in confidence knowing that our prayers are powerful and can bring about change in any circumstance.
There are no levels to this. We all can enter prayer with a posture of trust, openness, and faith, believing that God can do far more than we could even ask or imagine. It’s not about our circumstances, it’s about our heart stance.
1. Prayer sharpens our faith.
2. Prayer creates deeper intimacy with God.
3. Prayer is powerful and brings about change.
WHY WE FAST?
Fasting is the ancient practice of choosing to abstain from food for a certain period of time. It is a spiritual discipline, the purpose of which is training to become more like Jesus. The motivation for our fasting is to draw closer to the heart of God. Fasting is a Christian discipline to break the power of the flesh in our life – our desires, sins, and cravings – and to feed on the Holy Spirit.
1. Fasting is a spiritual disciple that helps focus our full attention on God.
2. Fasting isn't about us getting more from God but rather God getting more of us.
“Fasting helps us to express, to deepen, and to confirm the resolution that we are ready to sacrifice anything, even ourselves, to attain the Kingdom of God.” - Scot McKnight.
In summary, fasting is not about getting from God but it is about getting to God.
There are different types of fasting, and we recommend prayerfully considering which practice is best for you at this time.
LIQUID FAST: Consuming only liquids for a specific period of time
PARTIAL FAST: Abstaining from specific kinds of food. For example, Daniel Fast
TV/SOCIAL MEDIA: Choosing to abstain from certain technologies for a specific period of time
