The Answer Is On The Way
Daniel 10 

One of the reasons we fast is because we believe that God will bring breakthrough in response to the prayers we are praying. Whether it is for a specific need – like finances, a family situation, a physical healing, or a deep longing for more of God – our desire is that God would hear our prayers and provide an answer.

The story of Daniel chapter 10 is so encouraging in the fact that even when we do not see it, the answers we are looking for are on the way. We find in this section of scripture that Daniel fasted for 21 days. During these 21 days, it seemed as if nothing had happened, and yet it was not until three days AFTER his fast was over that the answer to his prayers came.

The Lord sent an angel to Daniel, and after his fast had ended, he received an angelic message that brought perspective to him and should serve as an encouragement to us throughout this fast. Verse 12 says, “Then he said to me, ‘Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your words.’”

Did you catch that? The angel said from the very first day Daniel began to fast the Lord heard his prayers and sent a response to his prayers. The same can be said for us – the moment that we start praying is the moment that God starts answering. It might not match up with our preferred timeframe; it might not be exactly when we hoped it would happen, but we can know that God’s timing is perfect, and the answer is on the way.

The moment you start praying He starts providing.

As you bring your needs to Him, He brings breakthrough for you.

The moment your heart turns to Him is the moment His hand moves to you.

Sometimes it is not in the timeline you set; sometimes the miracle doesn’t surface in an instant. But even when you can’t see it, He is sending the answer to your prayers.

When we fast, we are humbling ourselves, settling our hearts on the supernatural, trusting that God is hearing us – working for our good and His glory. With that, you can know your prayers are powerful, that God has heard every one of your needs, and He is moving on your behalf.

There will be breakthrough because you chose to fast and pray, and God is sending an answer. It’s already on the way!

One of the greatest revivals we see in the early church is in the city of Ephesus. Ephesus was a pagan city full of evil, including rampant sorcery and witchcraft, sexual immorality, and the worship of false gods. Ephesus was ripe for a Great Awakening! Acts 19 describes the events that led the city of Ephesus to experience such a powerful move of God that it transformed the entire city.

When the Apostle Paul first arrives in Ephesus, he immediately finds some fellow believers, and his first question to them is if they’ve received the Holy Spirit. They responded that they’d not even heard of the Holy Spirit, so verse 6 tells us, “When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.” Paul understood that if the city of Ephesus were going to experience the spiritual awakening God desired, His people would need to be full of the Holy Spirit.

Paul then spends two years preaching powerfully in the synagogues and throughout the city. Verses 11-12 tell us that “God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured, and the evil spirits left them.”

Miracles are taking place, evil spirits are leaving, and then we see a radical event demonstrating just how powerfully God was working in people’s lives. Verse 19 tells us, “A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.” A drachma was equivalent to a person’s daily wage, so based on the average salary in America today, fifty thousand drachmas would be between four and five million dollars!

People are being saved, baptized, healed, and filled with the Holy Spirit. They are parting ways with evil and turning to Jesus by the thousands. The city of Ephesus was experiencing a Great Awakening! This is what we are praying for our cities, our state, and our nation. We desperately need God to sweep across our land so that we might see millions turn to Jesus as their Savior!

Acts 19 provides great insights into what must happen if we are going to experience such a Great Awakening in our nation today. Believers must be full of the Holy Spirit, praying for people to be healed and sharing the message of Jesus with those who don’t know Him. These 21 days of prayer and fasting are preparing us for a season of increase in what we’ve seen God do over the past several years. God wants to do more through each and every one of us, but for that to happen, we must continue to get ready for awakening!

Scriptures

Acts 19:1-21 (NIV)
“While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?” “John’s baptism,” they replied. Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. There were about twelve men in all. Paul entered the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God. But some of them became obstinate; they refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way. So Paul left them. He took the disciples with him and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord. God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them. Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of the Jesus whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.” Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know about, but who are you?” Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding. When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus, they were all seized with fear, and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed what they had done. A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas. In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power. After all this had happened, Paul decided to go to Jerusalem, passing through Macedonia and Achaia. “After I have been there,” he said, “I must visit Rome also.”

Something we all love to see is an over-the-top gift to a person who didn’t expect it and didn’t earn it. Viral videos of extreme generosity are some of the most watched on YouTube. Oprah’s 2004 extravagant act of generosity has become so etched into the fabric of our society that nearly 20 years later, the phrase, “You get a car, and you get a car!” has become part of our normal American vernacular.

We love to see people get a gift they don’t deserve; there is something fun about it. Generosity sparks joy at the very core of our being because we were created by an abundantly generous heavenly Father. He delights in giving good gifts to His children, and when we see undeserved generosity, it reflects the very heart of God.

While it would be incredible to be one of the few who have been given $10,000 or a new car, God has something so much better planned for us! God desires to give us a gift that would not only change a part of our lives but transform the very core of who we are. Jesus said, “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will he give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” (Luke 11:11-13).

God delights in giving amazing gifts to His children, and the best gift any of us could ever be given is the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. It is in His presence we find joy, peace, wisdom, and access to His endless power! It is through the Holy Spirit that God not only answers our prayers but changes us to become more like Him. As we seek Him, the Holy Spirit transforms our hearts so that God not only changes our situation, but He changes us.

The amazing part is that this promise isn’t for the lucky few who happen to be in the right place at the right time but for all who would ask. His presence is not something we can earn or that we deserve, but a gift our wonderfully gracious God desires to give us!

As we approach the end of this fast, rest in the fact that God is good, and He desires to give good gifts to His children. He is changing you and working in every situation because He is a generous God who gives over-the-top blessings to all.

Scriptures

Luke 11:11-13 (NIV)
“Which of you fathers, if your son asks for[a] a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Yesterday we looked at how the empowerment of the Holy Spirit is essential for every believer if we are going to be the most effective in what God has called us to accomplish. Today, we look at the prophet Isaiah who records a captivating vision in Isaiah 6 where he sees angels surrounding the Lord on His throne, continually crying out, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of His glory.”

As he’s standing in the presence of the Lord, Isaiah immediately recognizes his own guilt and sin. One of the angels brings a hot coal from the altar and places it on Isaiah’s lips declaring his sin atoned for. With his sin forgiven, Isaiah would be asked a question that the Lord continues to ask us today: “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us? “And I said, ‘Here am I. Send me!’ He said, ‘Go and tell this people…’”

Isaiah has an incredible encounter with the Almighty God, but that experience was never intended to stay only with him. God asks Isaiah a question that He still asks His people today, “Who will go for us?” Who will go and tell people about the forgiveness God offers? Who will go and tell people there is freedom in Jesus? Who will go and tell people that there is a God who loves them and wants to transform their lives?

Isaiah passionately responds – “Send me!” Through this time of prayer and fasting, God is doing a deeper work in us. But the truth is what God does in us through this fast is not meant to stay only with us; He wants us to go! As we fast and pray, God is empowering and increasing our boldness to share with people His love and power that can completely change their lives.

Let’s look and pray for opportunities to “Go and tell this people…” about a God who has done a powerful work in our lives and wants to do that for so many more as we pray and believe for a Great Awakening in our land!

Scriptures

Isaiah 6:8 (NIV)
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

At this point of the fast, you understand just how significant and powerful it is when you fast and pray. This fast has not only served as a means to draw closer to God and seek His guidance, but it has also created the space for us to be more sensitive and open to the leading of the Holy Spirit.

In the beginning of the book of Acts, Jesus promised His disciples that they would receive power when the Holy Spirit came upon them. So, today we will look at the spiritual discipline of fasting in relation to Acts 1:8 and how it can strengthen our spiritual journey as Christians.

Jesus tells His followers in Acts 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” This verse emphasizes the transformative nature of the Holy Spirit, empowering believers to share the message of Christ’s love and salvation with the world.

But the question is: How does fasting relate to this promise of power?

Fasting involves abstaining from food and certain activities for a specific period, dedicating that time to prayer, meditation, and seeking God’s presence. It is a spiritual discipline that allows us to detach from worldly distractions and focus on deepening our relationship with God. In doing so, we position ourselves to become more aware of the promptings of the Holy Spirit, leading us to a greater understanding of God’s will and empowering us to be effective witnesses for Christ. It helps us tune our hearts to God’s voice, heightening our sensitivity to His leading and guidance, and it opens our lives to the reality of His power at work through us.

The power promised in Acts 1:8 becomes more tangible in our lives as we yield to the Spirit’s leading, and fasting positions us to receive that power through a fresh infilling of the Holy Spirit – empowering us to live out our faith boldly, to overcome spiritual obstacles, and to impact our world for Christ. And the exciting thing about this power from the Holy Spirit is that it isn’t temporary or confined just to this time of fasting. This power is to be available and can be at work throughout your life each and every day as you continue to be open and sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Recognize the significance of where this fast has positioned you and the power that is available to you. By denying your physical cravings and dedicating time to prayer and reflection, you are continually positioning yourself to receive divine wisdom, discernment, and power to do what you never could on your own. So, let this fast become so much more than just a physical discipline. Allow it to be the catalyst that facilitates a continual spiritual posture where you are open and hungry to be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit to reach as many people as possible for the Kingdom.

Scriptures

Acts 1:8 (NIV)
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

We are living in an unprecedented time in history. Because of technology, within seconds, we can be on a video call and see the face of a friend or loved one, even though they may be halfway around the world. We have the ability to know what is going on in the lives of friends and family we have not personally seen in years through social media, and there are countless other wonderful benefits of living in the technological revolution.

However, despite all of this technology, we are becoming more socially disconnected and dissatisfied than ever before. In a report published this year titled, Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation, the U.S. Surgeon General said, “Across many measures, Americans appear to be becoming less socially connected over time… A fraying of the social fabric can also be seen more broadly in society. Trust in each other and major institutions is at near historic lows.”

Our need for community is not something new. We were designed for relationships from the very beginning. The first thing in all of creation which God said was “not good” was that man was alone (Gen. 2:18). This is a foundational statement about the way we were created. God made us to be social beings in community with one another.

That is why the writer of Hebrews wrote, “Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of His return is drawing near” (Hebrews 10:24-25).

There is an inherent power in being a part of the church, and not just in attendance, but engaged in meaningful relationships with one another. It’s hard to “motivate one another to acts of love and good works” when you aren’t connected to a life-giving body of believers.

This is why being in a life group or small group and volunteering on serve teams at church are so critical for us not only individually but also for the Church corporately. The Church is strong, but it is always stronger when we are all involved!

God has established that there is spiritual blessing when we live in community. The Psalmist wrote, “How wonderful and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony…And there the Lord has pronounced His blessing, even life everlasting” (Psalm 133:1,3).

We were made to be in relationship with one another, and there is blessing and power in the community of believers!

Scriptures

Hebrews 10:24-25 (NIV)
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Proverbs 27:17 (NIV)
“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.”