ARE YOU READY FOR THE BEST FAST OF DANIEL EVER?
“But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” (Romans 8:9)
In Daniel 10 in the Bible, we see that, for 21 days, Daniel decided to fast in order to find favour, wisdom, and understanding from God.
Nowadays, amongst the list of things that get in the way of our relationship with God, distractions are ever present, and they come in all forms of entertainment and secular information which constantly bombards us.
The Lord Jesus said: “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” (Matthew 13:9). The purpose of the Fast of Daniel is exactly this – to open our ears to the voice of God.
We live in a reality where we are constantly bombarded by various voices, at times, simultaneously. The problem is that most of these words and opinions don’t meet our needs nor lead us in the right way; otherwise, everyone’s life, including yours, would be completely different, and much happier.
That is why it is important to listen to the Voice that really matters. However, this becomes more and more difficult, since the other voices will never be silent unless we make them silent ourselves.
This is the purpose of the Fast of Daniel. If you commit yourself to this challenge, you will be able to hear the Voice of God and receive instructions from Him so that you will not only be able to solve your problems but also completely change your life.
For this to happen, it is advised that you abstain from secular information for 21 days. This includes news, music, movies, or any other form of entertainment that could divert your thoughts and your focus from your goal of listening to God. After all, to achieve something so important and decisive like this, you cannot afford to have any distractions.
How important is the baptism with the Holy Spirit and how do you reach Him?
“If you have to invest in something in your life, the most important thing you can invest in is the Holy Spirit”
Bishop Macedo
Family, financial, marital, emotional, physical problems – whatever the situation or the need of the human being, the Holy Spirit is the solution. This statement was made by Bishop Macedo, during a message that was recently broadcast. According to him, the Holy Spirit is the biggest investment anyone can make. Besides the fact that the Holy Spirit leads one to the Kingdom of God, He also gives people the faith, capacity, strength, and wisdom necessary to overcome every problem in this world. “If you have to invest in something in your life, the most important thing you can invest in is the Holy Spirit”, Bishop Macedo advises. The reason why many people’s lives within the church do not change, is due to the absence of the Spirit of God within them. They do not have it because they do not want to give themselves up. They are guided by their own thoughts and desires, and they live according to their own will. They belong to an institution, but not to the Kingdom of God. The apostle Paul knew that among the converted Romans, there were also false converts who were born of the flesh.
“But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” (Romans 8:9)
“The apostle Paul is incisive in his statement because many Christians were not sincere in their conversion. Though some professed the faith, they still remained committed to the pleasures of the flesh and inclined to be guided by their emotions. This is what happens to many Christians who know the Word of Truth; they have spent years in the church, but fail to make their lives the centre of God’s will. They live in spiritual ‘lukewarmness’, so they cannot receive the Holy Spirit”, Bishop Macedo explains. Unfortunately, this is the reality of most people inside the church. They say they believe in the Lord Jesus, but their behaviour, attitude, and character does not match the Word of God. Their lips keep uttering lies, deceit, and gossip, and so they are weak and inconstant. As long as they insist on immoral behaviour, they will never receive the Holy Spirit. “You can even preach, heal the sick, cast out demons, evangelise – you can do all this and still be full of demons. Because the devil wants to make people believe that these people are servants of God, when in fact they are not. Their behaviour is contrary to the Christian faith”, Bishop Macedo warns. Someone who has the Spirit of God lives an honourable life. They have nothing to be ashamed of, they have good eyes, and they are merciful, tolerant, and compassionate. When this person’s life is consecrated and dedicated to the altar of God, they live happily. There is peace in their house. If you are convinced that the Holy Spirit is lacking in your life, the first step to receiving Him is to abandon what is wrong and start obeying the Word of God. “When one begins to practice the Word of God, he begins to walk towards the Lord Jesus and, walking towards him, he will receive the Holy Spirit”, Bishop Macedo says. Be defined, let go of sin, rid yourself of your desires, of your will; then come before God and put yourself at His disposal so that He may come into your life.
WE RECEIVED HIM
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23)
I wanted to belong to Him not a religion.
“Today I have true peace, joy and I want to tell everyone about what I’ve received! I am now a new person because of my experience during the 21 days. It was then that I surrendered myself totally to God. I had to erase the religious mentality I picked up from my background and understood that I needed to have my own personal relationship with God. From then, I started to see changes in my way of thinking and behaviour. I spent more time reading my Bible to really understand God’s will for myself. I let go of all the things that I noticed did not please Him. I made Him my all and He gave me His all in return.”
Priscilla Theodore
Learning to believe in myself again
Being a long-term member of the church and feeling stuck – whilst knowing that God wants to have a personal relationship with you – is the most distressing feeling.
My life was based on how I felt; I was constantly depressed, and I allowed doubts to control my mind.
I went into the 21-Day fast reluctantly and with little hope. An assistant told me that receiving is by faith and not through emotions, so I needed to use my faith to believe that I would receive Him.
I started praying and to simply obey. It wasn’t an easy journey, but I now have God in me.
Abiola Oladunni
It only gets better and better
I received the Holy Spirit a few years before the first 21-Day purpose was announced; however, every time it comes around again, it is always an amazing revival.
Each purpose only gets better. Due to taking part in these purposes, I no longer waste time with things that cannot add to me. The Fast involves things that I consider should be apart of our lives, such as praying, fasting and staying connected to God’s thoughts. By doing these things already, when the Fast comes again, we gain even more than we expected.
Something I love about the 21-Day Fast is the messages that are shared with us; they are strong, and I always learn something new! I also get to discover more about myself and about God and, without a doubt, I can get closer to Him. I become more conscious of what I need to change to remain saved, and with that in mind, I must tell you that you develop an inner strength that helps you overcome anything in life.
Yolanda Napoli
Cutting all ties with the world
Becoming frustrated while being in church is one of the worst things to happen, yet, sadly, it happened to me.
When I took part in the 21 days, I decided to cut off all remaining ties I had with the world. This included certain friends outside and even inside the church. I even quit my job, as I knew it had links with my old life. I was so serious that I placed a sacrificial offering on the altar and did everything I could to show God how much I truly wanted Him.
On the last of the 21 days I received the Holy Spirit, and it was the best day of my life. This purposeful faith was exactly what I needed, and it is most probably what you need too.
Denise-Claire Lamun
A new me
The 21 days was exactly what I needed. I say this because I always struggled to take my relationship with God outside the church. I would always plan to seek the Holy Spirit at home and meditate on the word of God, yet I never had the strength to do it. However, during the 21 days I had no distractions, and as a result, I was able to take small steps each day to develop the intimacy with God that I had never had. I have now established my relationship with God and I am also born of Him.
David Kinganga
Seeking a new nature
The 21 days provided renewal and revival for many people, but they pushed Davina to overcome herself.
“Throughout 2015, I spent a very long time trying to overcome a certain sin in my own way. I would feel guilty, but would never truly repent. I kept this sin under the carpet. As a result, the sin took me away from God. Every day, I only felt further and further away from Him.
As I sat down in church, I was spiritually dead. I was oblivious to what was really going on.
It was during the 21 days that I realised how deep I had sunk. I realised how much I needed God. In order to be completely focused on Him, I disconnected from everything else. There were no more distractions or excuses. Once I found the root cause that explained why I was always falling behind, I was able to break this cycle.
Davina Taylor
Getting rid of the mask.
“Inside I was full of hatred, but on the outside I told myself my life was fine. The reality was that those around me didn’t like my split personality; sometimes I would be nice and other times I was the exact opposite. I spent months trying to change things, but it seemed hopeless.
I didn’t see that the way I was behaving was not right and hurt those around me. I just couldn’t see how wrong I was.
Today, I am a completely new person and through the Holy Spirit I have self-control. The 21-day Fast of Daniel played a big part in this.
I learnt where I was going wrong and how I could change. When I received the Holy Spirit I was no longer the same. The only way for me to continue being successful is to continue investing in my spiritual life.”
James Ahanonu
Learning to smile again.
“My troubled past influenced me to become a troubled teen and eventually a bitter and depressed adult with a very short fuse. One of the biggest steps I had to take to change was to let go of the things that I’d seen and heard growing up that had hurt me deeply.
Forgiveness sounds easy in theory, but in practice it takes courage. I gave over my past and everything that I had been to God and today, I am completely differently.
My life has a brand new meaning. I am a different person; I am stronger and bolder to face difficulties that may come my way.”
Leanne Nolan
An end to my frustration!
“I had a bad temper that I couldn’t control. Despite being this way I always wanted to grow into a decent man. I’d heard a lot about what to do to receive the Holy Spirit, but I never really applied it to my life – hence why the change I wanted to see in myself never took place. When I decided to humble myself and take God seriously, it was as if I was hearing about Him for the first time after being in church for about a year. I wanted this self-control, peace, and joy that I lacked. But above all, I wanted to know who God was, so I fully threw myself into the fast.
I was 16 at the time and sacrificed my BlackBerry simply because I wanted all the negative links that I was cutting during the fast to remain cut. Four years on and I’m still reaping the benefits of the decision I made as a 16-year-old boy, which was to take part in the 21-day Fast of Daniel.”
Gabriel Adebayo
Attention worth seeking for.
“The service at the UCKG helped me understand the reason why I felt so empty inside. Change became something very real to me, but every time I attempted to convert, I would fall right back to my attention-seeking ways.
This was because although I wanted to be different, I was never decided, but the day I made up my mind, the only attention that I wanted was God’s!
I let go of everything that would separate me from Him starting with my past.
Today, I can say that I know the true meaning of the word ‘happiness’. The attention I thought I lacked, I have received from the One who well and truly gives it in abundance. I am whole within and there is no club, drink or wild party that can do what God has done for me.”
Paulett Bandeira
A true commitment.
“When I was younger, a male family friend abused me. I didn’t understand it at the time and as I grew older, I suppressed it. But in the back of my mind, I knew it was the reason why I would hook up with so many girls just to forget the past and prove my masculinity.
So though I wanted to have a serious relationship, I couldn’t help myself. My unfaithfulness was okay in my conscience, because I believed that God knew I had a good heart, despite all the bad things I did…I was wrong!
Today, I am a faithful married man because I surrendered to God the root of my problem and He transformed everything.
He gave me the greatest gift of all—His Holy Spirit. I changed individually and consequently, me and my partner, Yasmin, changed as a couple.
I am faithful to her and we do everything together. There is now trust and commitment in our relationship because I have a true commitment with God.”
Tapiwa Senah