Discover the Purpose and Power of Fasting Do you desire to feel His presence, hear His voice, sense His pleasure? Since ancient times, fasting has been considered an essential means of drawing near to God. But this spiritual discipline involves much more than abstaining from food; it goes right to the heart of genuine faith. Through this invigorating study, you’ll gain a clear understanding of the principles behind this practice and be equipped to make fasting a key part of your relationship with God.

This book is a systematic study going through the Bible with its references of fasting and abstinence. Fasting is found throughout scriptures and in many of the Church Fathers such as: St. Augustine, St. John Chrysostom, Saint Clement of Rome, and others connected fasting with penance or purification. The biblical references throughout this work help define the nature and purpose of fasting, the categories and types of fasting in the past and today.

Fasting An Exceptional Human Experience Since prehistory, fasting has been used in various ways as a means of transformation. As a spiritual practice, it is the oldest and most common form of asceticism and is found in virtually every religion and spiritual tradition. In psychology, studies have suggested that fasting can alleviate the symptoms of some psychiatric conditions, including depression and schizophrenia. In medicine, fasting is one of the most promising therapies, with research suggesting that fasting can cause certain drugs, such as chemotherapy, to work better while reducing drug side-effects. Hunger striking, sometimes called political fasting, may be the most powerful application of fasting. Proof of this occurred in 1948 when Gandhis hunger strike caused millions of Hindus and Muslims in India to cease their fighting. As a practical guide, Randi Fredricks, Ph.D. provides detailed information on the different types of fasting, where people fast, the physiological process of fasting, and the contraindications and criticisms of fasting. Using existing literature and original research, Dr. Fredricks focuses on the transformative characteristics of fasting in the contexts of psychology, medicine, and spirituality. The relationship between fasting and transpersonal psychology is examined, with a focus on peak experiences, self-realization, and other exceptional human experiences. Dr. Fredricks demonstrates how fasting can be profoundly therapeutic, create global paradigm shifts, and provide personal mystical phenomena.

Fasting has been called the forgotten spiritual discipline. Although it is found throughout Scripture, it is often neglected by modern Christians. Is there power in fasting? Does it really make a difference? How does fasting relate to prayer? In this study, Ashlee Alley considers the biblical basis for fasting and explores ways modern Christians can make this ancient discipline part of their faith walk. Converge Bible Studies is a series of topical Bible studies based on the Common English Bible. Each title in the series consists of four studies on a common topic or theme. Converge can be used by small groups, classes, or individuals. Primary Scripture passages are included for ease of study, as are questions designed to encourage both personal reflection and group conversation. The topics and Scriptures in Converge come together to transform readers’ relationships with others, themselves, and God.

This spiritually-empowered book reveals the importance and power of fasting and prayer backed with faith in God. It is based on the authors spiritual experiences and observations within Christ-centered environment, and written under the influence of the Holy Ghost and with the wisdom, knowledge and understanding received from the Almighty God. Jesus said to his disciples: Howbeit, this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting (Matt 17:21). There is an increasing need for believers to have a closer relationship with God, given the ever increasing level of abominations and immoralities in this world. This book is meant to spiritually encourage believers to continue to intercede for the sick and the weak, the lost and the hopeless, and the unbelieving souls. Throughout the Scriptures, and indeed the history of humanity, true servants of God have fasted and prayed as they faced circumstances that were above and beyond human comprehension and capability, and as they were over-whelmed with trials and tribulations of this secular world. It is imperative that we find time for a quiet moment within our hearts to commune with God, and to have a dialogue with Him in our individual war rooms. This book will immensely help and encourage you in positioning yourself for a place in the Kingdom of God.

This book is laid out to be a biblical Ballad on Mary the Mother of Jesus. This work has been years in the collection of scriptures, and with 53 Marian themes it is one of the largest collections of scripture on Mary ever compiled in one book. The scriptures are strung together according to a Biblical theme. Stringing pearls in this book is basically a combination of two approaches to Scripture: the scholarly historical critical method (The Way of Truth) and the artistic historical intuitive method (The Way of Beauty). It is a theological exegesis and a poetic meditation; a scriptural science and a biblical art taken from scripture, the Church Fathers, Marian books and articles and talks. Most during his Marian studies at the International Marian Research Institute, Univ. Dayton, Ohio.

At a time of renewed interest in Empire, this stimulating volume explores the complex relationship between the Bible and the colonial enterprise, and examines some overlooked aspects of this relationship. These include unconventional retellings of the gospel story of Jesus by Thomas Jefferson and Raja Rammohun Roy; the fate of biblical texts when marshalled by Victorian preachers to strengthen British imperial intentions after the India uprising of 1857; the cultural-political use of the Christian Old Testament, first by the invaders to attack temple practices and rituals, then by the invaded to endorse the temple heritage scorned by missionaries; the dissident hermeneutics of James Long and William Colenso confronting and compromising with colonial ambitions; and finally the subtly seditious deployment of biblical citations in two colonial novels. This innovative book offers both practical and theoretical insights and provides compelling evidence of the continuing importance of postcolonial discourse for biblical studies.