Fall 2009 40-Day Fast, Day 1: Bless

Slow Down And Show Grace by Francis Chan   (16075 KB)
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Today is the first day of our church’s traditional fall fast. We spend 40 days incorporating a spiritual discipline into our lives that will help us grow in God and break the fast on Thanksgiving. Some people fast from specific foods, or refrain from habits; some go cold turkey on coffee, sweets, alcohol, television, sarcasm, or buying unnecessary items. Other incorporate a new practice into their lives: finding someone in need to help every day, exercise mixed with prayer, reading a devotional or spending more time with God.

It’s become my habit to ask God what he would suggest for my fast. And this time I felt he told me to focus on blessing. Learn about what it means to bless and practice it. Bless someone everyday: someone whom I struggle to love, someone whom I have overlooked or not given that much thought to, or on a given day someone I care about deeply and want to bless even more.

I started by listening to a message by our friend Francis Chan called “Slow Down and Show Grace.” Francis is pastor of Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, CA, and he speaks frequently for my nonprofit ministry Hawaiian Islands Ministries. What I love about Francis is how authentic and transparent he is about where he is on the journey with Jesus. This message really spoke to me and was one of the catalysts that pointed me to make this a 40 Day Fast of Blessing. I hope you’ll take time to listen to it, too.

First 15 min is devoted to a guest speaker. Francis’ main message begins at 0:15 in to the podcast.
If you enjoyed Francis’ message, consider subscribing to the podcast. Both audio and video versions are available on iTunes.

Posted via email from 40 Day Fast