Amidst all of our planning and our good intentions for the coming year, we can easily overlook our greatest need—God himself. We need his grace and power if we are to glorify him and carry out his will for our lives. That’s one of the main reasons why prayer and fasting are so critical for us as individuals and as churches. In this message, David Platt looks at the role of prayer and fasting in the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther, and he urges us to put these spiritual disciplines into practice. We’ll consider nine reasons to pray and fast.
- Pray and fast for God’s protection.
- Pray and fast for God’s provision.
- Pray and fast in confession of sin.
- Pray and fast for the spread of salvation.
- Pray and fast for people in urgent need.
- Pray and fast for success in mission.
- Pray and fast for strength in opposition.
- Pray and fast for faithfulness no matter what comes your way.
- Pray and fast to enjoy and exalt God.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
