day five of the 21 day fast

Day five of the 21 day fast

Declare a holy fast; call a sacred assembly. Summon the elders and all who live in the land to the house of the LORD your God, and cry out to the LORD. (Joel 1:14)

Today is day 5 of our corporate fast in the Foursquare Church. Today is the day that we concentrate on praying for healthy leaders (that the Lord will strengthen our leaders across the globe spiritually, physically and emotionally).

Today I feel a bit tenuous. I feel like there may be hunger pangs starting or they may just be general bodily complaints.

I almost messed up yesterday. I took Hydrocodone like I always do and it almost knocked me for a loop. I didn’t think about the effect that rather strong drug would have on an empty stomach. It usually doesn’t affect me that much. I took two before going to bed like I always do and when I got up in the middle of the night, I almost fell down feeling woozy and almost drunk. Need to be careful.

I pray today that God gives strength to those in leadership. Leadership is not easy, especially when a church doesn’t want to be led in a certain direction. Of course, sometimes they have a point and the leader has some hare-brained idea. But sometimes that is the direction God wants us to go and somebody has to point the way.

That is what a leader is: one who points the way and takes the people to a certain place.

Moses was a perfect example of a leader with a group of reluctant followers behind him. On the one hand they wanted to leave Egypt because it was bad. On the other, they wanted it their way and if they didn’t get it, they would try everything, from outright insurrection to constant whining and complaining.

And many times, all they could think about was what they had left, even though what they had left was slavery. They romanticized the past until the past was far more desirable than the glorious future.

Father God, I praise  you for your grace and your love, for your mercy and your protection. Give strength to those of us who lead, who try to bring your people into a better place – grace and mercy in you. Bless us and give us strength, especially those who are in hard places. Amen.