Category Archives: Judgment

The Daniel Fast: Fasting for all the wrong reasons

The Daniel Fast: Fasting for all the wrong reasons. How are you doing on your fast? Need help? Be sure and drop me a comment here or email me at ynannette@gmail.com. I would be happy to assist! You can catch up on our 31 Days of Fasting in January here. Be blessed and encouraged in this difficult day. God sees, He hears and He is speaking to His people. Fasting will help us to hear that voice and block out the things of the world that would distract us.

Fasts are not to be used against others. Sounds ridiculous to even say it, but Jezebel tried it!

Ahab, King of Samaria, was not one of the nicest people in the world, back in the day.

As a matter of fact, only one person was known to be WORSE than ‘ole King Ahab and that was his wife, whose name has since become synonymous with a manipulative, controlling, and even wicked individual. Maybe you have heard it said that one has a Jezebel spirit. It is not a compliment!

King Ahab married Jezebel out of the will of God and relinquished his power as king to her. 1 Kings 1

Their roles were reversed from the get-go and it spelled disaster.

Ahab came home one day upset because there was a beautiful vineyard that he wanted to have next to the palace but it was owned by a man named Naboth. He wanted to keep it in his family and did not wish to sell. Ahab offered him a very fair price but still Naboth declined. Ahab became so upset that he would not eat.

Jezebel was furious with Ahab for his weak ways and declared that the vineyard would be his (or better yet, hers). She began to plot her plan.

She wrote letters to the elders and the nobles saying, “Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people: And set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear witness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king. And then carry him out, and stone him, that he may die.” 1 Kings 21:9-10.

Naturally her minions followed her instructions and Naboth was killed. But did you catch what has happened here?

Jezebel has proclaimed a fast!

Obviously religion was the furthest thing from her mind, or Ahab’s either. But in order to make it all look good, she must order the fast, as if to appear that either a threat had been made on Ahab’s life or a calamity was coming upon the kingdom.

She sat Naboth on high among the people, not necessarily as the guilty one, but because of his high honor in the community. Then, when the two men that had been planted to tell lies against him started their stories, Naboth was seated up where the guilty usually sat, where everyone could see him.

It worked; just as she had planned. He was convicted, and stoned to death.

When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he hurried down to take possession of the vineyard. News traveled fast because the Lord also told Elijah…

“Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who is in Samaria; behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone to take possession. ¹⁹And you shall say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Have you killed and also taken possession?”’ And you shall say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: “In the place where dogs licked up the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick your own blood.’” 1 Kings 21:18-19 ESV.

But that wasn’t all. Elijah had much to say to Ahab that day and began to tell him of all his wicked ways and how he was about to come face to face with judgment for the evil life that he had lived. His time was up!

You just don’t play around with the things of God and get by with it forever; there are consequences for sin.

Sometimes it is in this life, sometimes it is not until Judgment, but there are consequences.

Fasting and prayer are effective, life-changing, powerful ways to see things happen in the spirit world.

But…

God does not honor efforts that are used against others for harm & evil influence.

God was letting Ahab know there were to be consequences for the actions of his wife and that Ahab was just as guilty of murder as if he had pulled the trigger.“But there was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of the Lord, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up.” 1 Kings 21:25 KJV .

The New Living Translation says, “No one else so completely sold himself to what was evil in the LORD’s sight as Ahab did under the influence of his wife Jezebel.”

But something must have struck a chord in Ahab for the Bible tells us that he was listening to the prophet Elijah.

“And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly.” 1 Kings 21:27 KJV.

He was fasting again. Not because Jezebel had told him to. Not because he was trying to deceive anyone and not because he was trying to murder anyone.

“And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before me? Because he humbleth himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days: but in his son’s days will I bring the evil upon his house.” 1 Kings 21:28-29 KJV.

He was fasting because he was broken, scared and humbled.

And the Lord said because he HUMBLED himself, he spared Ahab the judgment in HIS days. Jezebel still came to an untimely end as promised. She didn’t humble herself one bit as far as the scriptures tell us. But Ahab had learned his lesson for now.

There are fasts that are NOT pleasing to God.

Fasts that are only to be seen of men.
Fasts that make US look good or holy.
Fasts that are just to make us lose weight; we call those diets! (Of course we know if you lose weight from fasting, that is another matter entirely. We have had testimonies of lives changed permanently through fasting for their health. Our lives SHOULD be changed from fasting!)

Fasts are also not to be used against others. Sounds ridiculous to even say it, but Jezebel tried it.

The fast that works is the kind that is coupled with prayer, humility and brokenness. A fast should keep you on your knees and searching for more time with the Savior. Clean out the old and allow God to fill you up with more and more of His spirit.

Nothing is too hard for God. If he can humble a man like Ahab, there is hope for all of us!

Let our fasting be done with humility of heart and for the right purpose: to draw closer to Him, to reach for others and to seek the perfect will of God for our lives.

In The Daniel Fast Devotional, we talk about a different person in the Bible who sought God by fasting every day of the 21 day fast. Some of them were desperate like Hannah, she just HAD to fast too! Others did it out of selfishness as with Ahab and Jezebel. Each story is true, intriguing, and will teach us the good and the bad motives behind fasting. Also, at the end of each chapter, there are wonderful recipes that are Daniel Fast approved. Get your copy today!

Leaning. When the foundation makes all the difference.

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Leaning. When the foundation makes all the difference.

It is not the beauty of a building you should look at; it’s the construction of the foundation that will stand the test of time. ~David Allan Coe

The Italians were known (and are known) for their magnificent architecture. In the first century the Romans brought us the unmistakable Colosseum in Rome, the Pantheon and countless other treasures. They were constructed so well that many are still standing in some form or another for us to marvel at and enjoy.

It is amazing to think how they were able to build such splendid structures with the primitive equipment that they had at the time (compared to today’s standards). Fast forward to the eleventh century and the Torre Pendente di Pisa, or the Leaning Tower of Pisa, as we know it today. This wonder, a 14,500 ton leaning tower in the Tuscany region, was originally designed to be a bell tower and the first two floors stood upright for five years! Once they had completed the third floor in, 1178, it started to lean. The problem seemed to be the fact that the tower was built on dense clay (some say sand and seashells) which was just not strong enough to hold it up straight.

Over the next several hundred years, it became obvious that it wasn’t just leaning, the tower was falling at a rate of one to two millimeters per year and today is more than five meters off perpendicular. They tried to compensate by making the story’s shorter on the uphill side but that didn’t work either, it leaned all the more.

When it began to sink and lean, they halted the construction project for 100 years hoping that the soil would settle and give the strength to hold the enormous weight of the tower. It was added on to several times over the next several hundred years, they would begin then stop, build a little more, then stop either due to war or the leaning of the tower itself. Finally, in 1964, a leaden counterweight was added to save the tower and in 1990 it was closed again for its final upgrade to safety. It reopened to the public in 2001 as a national treasure and international wonder. (My brother-in-law, Duffe Elkins, was just in Italy and took this great picture of the Leaning Tower!)

“Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock.Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock.But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand.When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.” Matthew 7:24-27 NLT.

Leaning. When the foundation makes all the difference.

We know we can’t build a new home on a foundation of sand. It will sink! But what about our day-to-day lives?

“By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established.” Proverbs 24:3.

The Sermon on the Mount begins in Matthew 5 and the final parable is given in the seventh chapter with the story about two men and two houses. Jesus told the crowd that had gathered that their words meant little but their actions would tell all. He even went so far as to say that some would stand before Him in the Judgment and begin to list all the things that they did “in His name” but He would say that He never knew them.

There was no relationship.

I am not normally a fan of The Message translation of the Bible, I look at it more as a lighthearted story with the language used. But today it is appropriate to read this rendition, it will almost make you chuckle!

“Knowing the correct password—saying ‘Master, Master,’ for instance—isn’t going to get you anywhere with me. What is required is serious obedience—doing what my Father wills. I can see it now—at the Final Judgment thousands strutting up to me and saying, ‘Master, we preached the Message, we bashed the demons, our God-sponsored projects had everyone talking.’ And do you know what I am going to say? ‘You missed the boat. All you did was use me to make yourselves important. You don’t impress me one bit. You’re out of here.’” Matthew 7:24-27 The Message.

Did you see that line? “All you did was USE ME to make yourselves important.” Their foundation would fold and crumble in the end because there was no Rock, nothing to hold on to, no relationship to build upon!

It is about DOING the will of the Father, following His instruction and making everything we do point to Him, not to ourselves. When our foundation is Jesus, when our entire world revolves around pleasing Him, then everything else lines up and is in order, we have built on the Rock, the Solid Rock, Christ Jesus being the Chief Cornerstone.

“Therefore thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion, a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation: ‘Whoever believes will not be in haste.’” Isaiah 28:16 ESV.

Building your life on anything other than Christ Jesus is foolishness.

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You will have nothing to hold on to when the storms come and your life will be shattered. But if He is first, if you KNOW Him, then no matter what comes your way, whether it is persecution, famine, cancer, financial disaster, death of a loved one, it doesn’t matter the WHAT as long as you know in WHOM you have believed and in WHOM you have put your trust.

“For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 3:11.

And one more plug for The Message storybook today. Read the story of two men and two houses one more time: “These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit—but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock.

But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don’t work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards.”

Don’t be like the stupid carpenter in this story. These words aren’t just for home improvement, they are foundational! Words to build a life on!

Don’t use the words of Jesus to make yourself look good, impress others or climb a social ladder.

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Build your life on them and then, no matter the size of the storm, your house will stand.

Tangled in the Forest

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I can’t remember the first time I got on a riding lawn mower but I’m pretty sure it was at the house we built when we were literally newlyweds. The Sweetheart would get on that little red Snapper and away he would go, making perfect stripes in the grass, aligning himself with the rest of perfect Americana. Only thing missing was the white picket fence.

He let me take a few swipes but he wasn’t one to share much when it involved being outside working on his farmers tan. Besides, this was a man’s job.

Fast forward a few years when he was finally too busy with his career, and commuting an hour one way, to keep up with the yard. We now owned seven acres, about 1/3 was wooded, and a stocked pond took up some of the mowing space as well, but it was still quite a bit to manicure every week.

Enter Yours Truly.

My father-in-law had the sweetest John Deere tractor that they all considered too big for me to ride. I begged, I pleaded and probably whined a whole lot until The Sweetheart gave in. I literally felt like Queen of the Mountain on that tractor. I could solve all of life’s problems while I was mowing grass. Aside from one of My Three Sons occasionally flagging me down for something trivial, such as, “Mom! We’re out of Kool-aid!” or for something serious, “Mom!! Come quick! Kristopher is bleeding BAAADDDD!” I had a few glorious hours to myself. It was heaven on earth.

I had opportunity to mow my mother-in-law’s property a few years ago. My husbands brother had a zero turn mower and it took me just a few minutes to learn it and I was on my way to making sure every blade of grass, or weed, appeared as if they had just received an expensive haircut. I love seeing the before and after of a well-cut lawn and just being outside is great for this gal whose Vitamin D level is extremely low. Once again I am Queen, if only for a little while.

A few weeks ago I was dodging tree limbs and buzzing around crabapples, pines and oaks like nobody’s business. It took me only a few minutes to learn a zero-turn mower but I have it down now and can handle it as easily as all the Deere’s I’ve ever maneuvered over the years.

Except for one problem.

I tend to forget about the balance bar on the back sometimes. I duck my head and breeze under a branch and forget that the bar doesn’t duck. It’s dangerous, to say the least. I learned that lesson the hard way by almost flipping it completely over one day. Terrified doesn’t begin to describe my feelings in that instant. So now I watch out for him and he watches out for me.

Except for one problem.

I have this mess on top of my head that resembles a bird’s nest, especially when I am flying up and down the yard at 90 miles per hour. (Okay, I know they don’t go that fast but a girl can pretend, right?) So these pesky branches, especially the crab-apples, love to grab hold of me, as I make a perfect circle, and they do not let go.

So one day, instead of the bar getting stuck in a branch, I was stuck. Not by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin, but my blonde, brunette and gray curly locks piled on top of my head were tangled in the worst way in a tree branch that was determined to win.

I’m sure the neighbors were enjoying the site as I sat there fighting with a tree. I wasn’t about to give up a single strand to this captor!

I read about another story similar to mine this week during morning devotion. I hadn’t thought of Absalom in a long time but his story is worth telling.

Absalom was the son of King David but he was determined to take the throne from his father. David finally had to do something about it and his army was sent out to fight Absalom’s men. David pleads with Joab, the commander of his army, in 2 Samuel 18:5 ESV: “Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom.”

The battle was fought in the forest of Ephraim and the men of Israel were defeated by David’s men that day; the loss was great. The Bible says 20,000 men perished in that first battle! “The battle raged all across the countryside, and more men died because of the forest than were killed by the sword.” 2 Samuel 18: 8 NLT.

More men died because of the forest than were killed by the sword? How could that be?

Spurgeon expounds on what could have happened in the woods that day: “Perishing not only by the sword, but among the thick oaks and tangled briers of the wood, which concealed fearful precipices and great caverns, into which the rebels plunged in their wild fright when the rout set in.”

Adam Clarke’s commentary says, “It is generally supposed that, when the army was broken, they betook themselves to the wood, fell into pits, swamps, and so forth, and being entangled, were hewn down by David’s men; but the Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic, state that they were devoured by wild beasts in the wood.”

God was with David’s men and fought for them in miraculous and mysterious ways to defeat the enemy that wanted to destroy the man of God.

2 Samuel 14:25 gives us a description of Absalom: “In all Israel there was none to be so much praised for his beauty: from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him.”

It seems difficult to understand how Absalom could turn the hearts of the Israelites from David, whom God had anointed king. This passage sheds some light on Absalom’s trickery:

“…And Absalom used to rise early and stand beside the way of the gate. And when any man had a dispute to come before the king for judgment, Absalom would call to him and say, “From what city are you…your claims are good and right, but there is no man designated by the king to hear you.” Then Absalom would say, “Oh that I were judge in the land! Then every man with a dispute or cause might come to me, and I would give him justice.” And whenever a man came near to pay homage to him, he would put out his hand and take hold of him and kiss him…So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.” 2 Samuel 15:1-6.

But Absalom’s reign of terror was about to come to an end in this battle in the forest.

“During the battle, Absalom happened to come upon some of David’s men. He tried to escape on his mule but as he rode beneath the thick branches of a great tree, his hair got caught in the tree. His mule kept going and left him dangling in the air.” 2 Samuel 18:9 NLT.

Absalom, proud of his good looks (and his beautiful hair), didn’t pay attention to the great trees of the forest and they literally reached out and grabbed hold of him. There he hung in the air, unable to free or defend himself.

Remember David’s plea of protection to bring Absalom in alive? Here was Joab’s opportunity to honor God’s anointed by bringing him his son to judge and punish as he saw fit. But Joab had other ideas. He took three daggers and plunged them deep into Absalom’s heart as he dangled, still alive, from the tree! If that wasn’t enough, ten of Joab’s young armor bearers then surrounded Absalom and attacked him, making sure he was dead.

2 Samuel 18:16: “During his lifetime, Absalom had built a monument to himself in the King’s Valley…”

Absalom was all about Absalom and HIS kingdom. His earthly father, David, was a “man after God’s own heart.” Big difference. Absalom’s pride and arrogance cost him his life. He became entangled in the forest by the things that he valued the most. To Absalom, that was himself.

“The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.” Proverbs 8:13.

When you think so much of yourself, you have no room for God!

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“In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.” Psalm 10:4 ESV.

If you continually ignore the nudging of the Holy Ghost, eventually you will no longer recognize His voice; you will be consumed by your own ways, your own ideas and your own solutions to your problems. But a mindset like that always leads to self-destruction that can also harm others. The Bible says that “…pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall.”

“Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.” Proverbs 3:7

“I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless.” Isaiah 13:11.

“Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance, for the LORD is a God who knows, and by him deeds are weighed.” 1 Samuel 2:3.

The same thing that cost Absalom his life caused Satan to be cast out of heaven: Pride. They both wanted to be something that they were not, they both wanted to take authority that wasn’t theirs to have. They both thought they could do a better job. In Satan’s case, he thought he could do better than God!

“Well, I would never do that…” And yet, don’t we all do that in our actions every day? Don’t we plunge head first, so to speak, into situations and problems without even consulting the Lord for His advice and opinion? Are we so busy in the morning that we think checking social media is more important than our devotion and prayer time? These are all prideful attitudes that shout out, “I don’t need God! I can handle this; I’ll come to Him for the bigger things.”

Yes, we DO need Him for everything; the big, the little and the in-between because we are all dependent upon the One who created the Universe. Pride can cause us to be tangled up in ourselves and think we have everything under control.

Jesus has to be everything or He is nothing at all.

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Let’s humble ourselves before Jesus and allow Him to remove prideful thoughts and attitudes from our hearts before they cause our demise. This is no time to become tangled in the forest! There is much work to do, the coming of the Lord is near, and being full of pride will keep us from hearing the voice of the Lord and being available for the Kingdom and could cause our eternal destruction.

Living Proverbs 31

Category Archives: Judgment