21 Days.

21 days to learn. 21 days to read. 21 days to pray. 21 days to build relationships. 21 days to grow. 21 days to CHANGE.

I don't know how many of you have ever done a fast, but our church is coming together and uniting by doing a 21 day fast. Not everyone is fasting in the same way, but all members are making a promise to take 21 days to fast and pray in some way. Some will be fasting from food altogether, some will be fasting from meats and sweets, and some will be doing a gradual fast. All that matters is that we come to a place of getting closer to God and uniting as one body of Christ so that we can hear how he would use us to carry out His work.

Because I am still breastfeeding our daughter, I will be doing a different type of fast. For me, something that is difficult to give up is soda. I would even go so far as to call it an addiction. I drink several cans of soda per day and think about it all day long. So I have decided to go without soda for 21 days so that my thoughts and effort will be focused on God instead. That may sound easy for most, but for me, it will be a battle for sure.

Aside from fasting, I want to take this time to pay special attention to the areas in my life that I want to change this year. If you've ever heard of the movie "Fireproof", the main couple are having trouble in their marriage, so the husband reads a book called The Love Dare, which gives him 40 days worth of tasks to do in order to get closer to his wife and save their marriage. I want to use this concept to create 21 tasks, one for each day of the fast. These tasks will help me to make CHANGES in the areas of my life that need change the most:

- Faith (reading the Bible and praying, specifically)
- My Marriage
- Children (relationship with)
- Finances
- Work (attitude)

Each day, I will set a task for myself in one of these areas so that I can allow God to do a work in me and my thinking. God can do anything, but we have to put action into the areas that He reveals to us. He wants us to do His work through our lives, but it requires just that...work!

During this time, I will also be fasting from Facebook completely and checking email once a day in case of emergencies only. I will continue to post on my blog so that I can share my experiences with you as I carry out these 21 days and 21 tasks. I am hoping that my journey through this fast will bless someone out there to increase their faith as well! God bless!