1 Peter 2:13-17Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right.  For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men.  Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it...  Read More

Comebacks  Have you ever thought of the perfect comeback…about five minutes after you needed it? You’ve pretty much lost your opportunity by then; the moment has passed, and it’s best not to embarrass yourself.Jesus had some pretty good comebacks—the best, in fact. Every time the devil came at Him, He had a ready answer: “It is written.”How did Jesus have these powerful responses ready for each of...  Read More

In SecretDoes everyone know you’re fasting—because you’ve whined to them about it a bunch of times? It reminds me of this joke I heard: How do you know if one of your friends is a vegan?Don't worry—they'll tell you.Seriously, most of my friends who are passionate about diet or lifestyle like being a vegan are really free with telling everyone about it. I’m not sure if they’re bragging, want conver...  Read More

Sun Stand StillShortly before I wrote this reading plan, a rare solar eclipse crossed the United States, with some of the best viewing about six hours’ drive north of me. You normally don’t think about how quickly the moon moves, but if you watched TV footage, it raced across the entire continent in just hours. Total viewing time for the complete blackout? Less than three minutes.But while you wer...  Read More

Ephesians 6:10-18Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.  Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.  For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.  Therefore...  Read More

In His NameHave you ever thought about how we end our prayers? Christians often tack “in Jesus’ name” onto the end of our prayers without a whole lot of thought about what we’re actually saying—or what it means.Say you knew Bill Gates, and he really liked you—trusted you. Say he gave you his foundation’s credit card and said, “Go out there and do good stuff in my name!” You would carry the authori...  Read More

A Call to PrayerIn today’s reading we’ll see Daniel’s enemies couldn’t find anything to use to trip him up—so they cooked up a plan to get him in trouble for praying.Could your enemies do the same? Or would a law about prayer not really cramp your style? Daniel prayed humbly before God three times a day, and it definitely got him in trouble. If we threw Christians in jail for praying publicly thre...  Read More

Power Play  Fasting like Daniel isn’t just a spiritual discipline for me: it’s a whole new paradigm! I call it H.S.P.E. (think “high school P.E.”), and it reminds me how God’s people have prayed powerful prayers throughout the Bible: by being Humble, Specific, Persistent, and Expectant.Put simply, humble prayers are powerful prayers! When we get out of the way and let God pray through us instead o...  Read More

Section I: HumbleHungry For GodI’m glad you picked this reading plan on fasting like Daniel. Honestly, I’m no fasting expert. I don’t even like to fast! But the Daniel Fast has been a revolutionary part of my life for over 10 years and has helped draw me closer to God and experience incredible breakthroughs.You may have never fasted before. That’s OK. I hadn’t really connected with fasting either,...  Read More

Fatherhood Is A Legacy and BlessingBy Danny SaavedraFather, Your Word tells us that if we train up our children in Your ways, diligent to raise them to walk with You, teach them to live according to Your Word, “meditate on it day and night, so you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful” (Joshua 1:8 NIV) and “even when [they are] old [they] will no...  Read More

Fatherhood Is PriesthoodBy Danny SaavedraHeavenly Father, I thank You for the High Priest we have in Your Son Jesus. Thank You we have a High Priest who “understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin” (Hebrews 4:15 NLT) and intercedes for us (Hebrews 7:25). Lord, I pray for dads in the faith, my brothers in Christ, that they would remember their role a...  Read More

Acts 6:3-7Therefore, brethren, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task.  But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.  The statement found approval with the whole congregation; and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parm...  Read More