344 Days of Blessing and Gladness

You know we do a good job of cramming ourselves full all year, and then we top it off with a blowout called the holidays. Do you think amid all the adding of presents and pounds we could squeeze God out? This isn't one of those "remember the reason for the season" lectures. Instead I say enjoy the holiday and its offerings. If there's one attribute of God that I think highlights the entire redemption plan its His enjoyment of celebration. God created the earth for celebration with us, and is working throughout eternity to reconcile us, just to throw a party at the end of time. God loves celebrating.

But I think God also promotes cleansing. Part of the ritual of Jewish celebrations involves fasting and feasting. I think this year has been a smörgåsbord of the blessings of God, and I think that next year bodes even better, but how to make room for it? I think that we can most enjoy 344 Days of Blessing and Gladness, by taking 21 days of Prayer and Fasting. We don't chalk up points for how spiritual we are when we fast. Severn River Church doesn't believe that we're more spiritual because we call a fast. We just want to cleanse ourselves at the beginning of the year to make room for what God wants to unleash in the new year.

I'm inviting you to join in for 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting together with me and your church. You'll see more information on fasting and ways you can participate in the next two weeks.

--Ben