February 2 – 23

21 days of Prayer + Fasting

Welcome to Traders Point’s 21 Days of Prayer + Fasting!

From February 2-23, we invite you to join us in deepening our connection with Jesus. Through prayer and spiritual reflection, we'll cultivate greater dependence on God, enabling us to advance His kingdom with both courage and compassion. We believe revival comes from the prayers of His people and the power of the Holy Spirit.

PRAYER GUIDE

We have put together a Prayer and Fasting guidebook that you should have received at one of our locations. This will be a roadmap during our 21 days as we learn from how Jesus taught us to pray. All the content you need for prayer can be found within the guidebook.

Didn’t get a guidebook?

Digital Guidebook Spanish Version

Here are a few tips as you enter this week:

Set a time and place for you to have daily prayer and devotion time with the guidebook. Locate a quiet place, if possible. Somewhere free from distractions.
Have a Bible (physical copy preferably) with you as you read and pray.
Find someone to hold you accountable – a friend, significant other, your small group, etc.
Listen to worship music as part of this time. If you need suggestions, we’ve put together some playlists:
Prayer music
TPCC Worship

FASTING

What is fasting? Fasting is essentially the practice of giving up food (or another habit) for a period of time to better focus your thoughts and attention on God. We will fast as an act of communion with God, and as part of a declaration. It’s in no way an attempt to manipulate God to answer our prayers. It is us saying, “What we’re praying for is so important that we’re willing to set aside our everyday life to focus on praying for it!”

While fasting is never commanded in the Bible, we see it modeled throughout Scripture (Exodus 34:28, Nehemiah 1:4, Ezra 8:23, Matthew 4:2, Acts 14:23).

EXAMPLE: A fasting option that we’ve considered is giving up one meal during the day (maybe breakfast or lunch) and replacing that time you would normally spend eating with prayer and worship.

New to fasting? Great! Start small. Begin with what you can do. Trust that God will honor that as you seek to honor Him. If a meal is too much, consider a particular sweet or activity that you could fast from that may take a chunk of time during the week – social media or tv. 

We don’t want this to seem legalistic or intimidating. We all have different experiences with fasting, whether done often or never before. That’s ok! This is simply an opportunity to create a rhythm of dependence on God.

DISCLAIMER: There may be a number of reasons why fasting from food may not be safe or wise for some. If there are medical concerns, we encourage anyone to first consult their physician and choose something else to fast from. See the FAQs section for more information!

Worship Night

During the midpoint of our 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting, we are hosting a Worship Night at our Northwest location from 7 – 8:30 PM on Thursday, February 13. Worship Nights are spiritually unifying as we all come together under one roof to celebrate the move of the Holy Spirit. Some of our favorite spiritual markers have taken place at Worship Nights, and we are expectant of what God will do at this one. Don’t miss it!

More info

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do I need to pray every day?

There is no time requirement for prayer. The focus shouldn’t be on time, but on presence with God. Pray during your devotion time with the guidebook and God’s word. Additionally, look for opportunities throughout the day to connect with God through prayer.

Is there a certain time of day I should pray?

No. We recommend planning your time with the Lord. Set a time and place that works for you to meditate on His word, write down reflective thoughts, and pray. For some, this may be first thing in the morning, while others’ schedules provide midday or evening as better times. The aim is consistency and connection.

Can I fast from something besides food?

The short answer is yes. In fasting, we’re surrendering a habit for a period of time to connect and pray with God. For some, this might be social media or other forms of entertainment. However, what we see in Scripture is that the particular habit that followers of God abstained from while fasting is eating. If you’re able to, we recommend fasting from a meal (consider lunch) and replacing that time with prayer. If you’re new to fasting, start small or consider something else. If it’s medically unsafe for you, see the next FAQ.

What if I have a medical condition or disordered relationship with food?

We do not recommend fasting from food if it is medically unsafe or unwise for you to do so. There are a number of reasons why this could be the case. If it is unsafe or unwise for you, please choose something other than food to abstain from.

For those who have recovered from an eating disorder or actively have a disordered relationship with food, we encourage you not to fast from food and to consult your medical provider. The eating disorder part of someone in recovery's brain can take something good—fasting, which is an important spiritual discipline—and distort it into something harmful. Recovery can be slow and relapses can happen, so if that is you, we encourage you to fast from something other than food.

What we've learned is that for individuals who have or who are currently struggling with eating disorders, fasting from food fuels the problem which has its roots in control. The person in recovery or maintaining recovery has to depend on the Lord to eat—the opposite of those who fast. Eating is the choice to trust in God and the way he designed our bodies. When we fuel our bodies, we choose to trust in God as creator, not in ourselves and what we want our bodies to be like.

Here is a very helpful podcast episode on all of this.

Can I drink water during the fast? What about other drinks (tea, coffee, etc.)?

Yes, please drink water! Everyone will have their own convictions regarding other drinks.

21 days of Prayer + Fasting

Welcome to Traders Point’s 21 Days of Prayer + Fasting!

PRAYER GUIDE

RESOURCES

ARTICLES

PARENT RESOURCES

BOOKS + PODCASTS

CHARACTER OF GOD

Here are a few tips as you enter this week:

FASTING

DISCLAIMER: There may be a number of reasons why fasting from food may not be safe or wise for some. If there are medical concerns, we encourage anyone to first consult their physician and choose something else to fast from. See the FAQs section for more information!

Worship Night

Frequently Asked Questions