fasting and prayer Archives

30 Lessons Drawn from the Miracles of Jesus – #16

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Persistence Eventually Gets God’s Attention. (Matthew 20:30-34; Mark 10:46-52)

Man kneeling and praying, depicting persistence — Photo by Naassom Azevedo on Unsplash

We are now at the 16th lesson we can learn from the miracles of Jesus and today, we are looking at the miracle of the restoration of sight to a blind man or two blind men, depending on whose account you read. Also, I am writing this one with one of our authors, Demiana Odinaka. At first, Jesus appeared not to be paying any attention to them, but as they persisted, He budged. In these passages, we see persistence win over the attention of Jesus, stopping Him right in His tracks. Even though the crowd tried to shut them up, the blind men cried out to Jesus even louder. You see, Jesus once taught His disciples to “ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened” (Matthew 7:7-8, NIV). When you have asked (prayed casually), and sought (prayed fervently), and still haven’t received the miracle you seek, maybe it is time you walked up to that door and knocked, maybe even banged on it (fasting and praying).

30 Lessons Drawn from the Miracles of Jesus – #15

Reading Time: 2 minutes

woman fasting and praying — Photo by Diana Simumpande on Unsplash

Some Challenges in Life Can Only Be Overcome at the Altar of Fasting and Prayer (Matthew 17:14-21).

Woohoo! We’re already half-way through our miracle lessons. Hope you’re excited. 😁

In our 14th miracle lesson, we saw this same story where Jesus had been away on a prayer retreat with Peter, James and John (Matthew 17:1) when a man brought his severely sick child to Jesus’ disciples. They tried all the prayer styles Jesus had taught them and still couldn’t heal the boy. Fortunately, Jesus returned before the man’s debilitated faith died off completely. He proceeds to heal the man’s son with just a command.

The Fasting And Prayer That Move Mountains

Reading Time: 4 minutes

silhouette photo of man on cliff during sunset — Photo by Zac Durant on Unsplash

Jesus promised that if we spoke to a mountain (anything that poses as a problem or challenge in our lives), even with a mustard-seed-sized faith, without doubting in our hearts, it would obey us and do whatever we asked it to do, including removing from its place and throwing itself into the sea (figuratively speaking) – Mark 11:23-24 (NIV); Matthew 17:20. In fact, in the first Scripture, He further promised that whatever we asked God for, in prayer, will be done for us. And in the second one, He ended with, “and nothing will be impossible for you.” What, then, are the benefits of fasting and prayer as Christians, you might ask, if we can only speak to a problem and get it solved? 🤔

The Question

The important question we find ourselves asking, however, is why is it that when we pray over a sickness or need, which is a mountain in its own right, we don’t always get answers? Come on, let’s face it. Sometimes (if not most times), we pray with so much faith (way bigger than a mustard seed; in our own eyes, at least) and no doubt soever in our hearts?

Tag: fasting and prayer