Prayer, Fasting, and Giving: The 3-Fold Power of Lent

We are un the middle of the last week of this sacred season of Lent.

It's a time when we are called to remember the path that Jesus walked that was as significant then as it is today. It was a journey, for Jesus, marked by surrender, discipline, and intimacy with the Father. For us, that means everything - the opportunity to accept forgiveness for our sins and benefit from eternal life with our Creator.

Hebrews 5:8-9 (NIV) “Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him.”

As Jesus went on this journey for us, Family, three spiritual practices can be our guiding posts: prayer, fasting, and giving. 

And we must see these, not as something we do because our church dictates that we must. These are not just religious obligations, but divine invitations. 

This is the focus of our discussion today, because together, prayer, fasting and giving, form a three-fold cord of spiritual power that prepares our hearts for resurrection life.

Firstly, prayer draws us into communion with God. It is the breath of the soul. Prayer is what we hold on to when we are in a wilderness season giving us hope that one day we will enter the promised land where there will be no more heartache, sickness, disappointment, fighting, bad mind people, confusion of any kind, or death. 

In the book of Psalm 55:16–17 (NIV), David captured this so well when he wrote: “But I call to God, and the LORD saves me. Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice.” 

Morning, noon, and night David prayed, especially as he was distressed he prayed, confident that God would hear him. 

During this season of Lent, we’re reminded Family that prayer isn’t a formality. It's not something we do more of during these times. Prayer has to be a regular, it is our lifeline.

The prophet Hosea echoes this intimate invitation: “Take words with you and return to the LORD. Say to him: ‘Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips.’” Hosea 14:2 (NIV).

What is prayer? Prayer isn’t just coming to God and asking for this and asking for that. Because after all, what else can God give us that he hasn't already given us? In 6 days God created the heaven and the earth. Everything.

Nehemiah 9:6 (NIV) “You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.”

And Colossians 1:16 (NIV) “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him.”

Jesus, in speaking about prayer in Matthew 6:6 (NIV) says:“But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."

This kind of prayer isn't performative—it’s personal. The secret place is where the real work happens. Where tears are shed. Where direction is received. Where intimacy is deepened. In Lent, we are called back to that place.

So prayer is about our worship to God. It is an offering of thanksgiving, offering our repentance for going astray. Prayer is coming to our Maker and our King in  honesty, confessing our sins and receiving this newness of life He has offered us through His Son Jesus Christ. 

In Lent, we return with our words and importantly, with our hearts.

But Jesus, in Matthew 6, takes us even deeper—correcting the motives behind these disciplines. Prayer, fasting and giving, Family, are not rituals and must not be done for us to look good or righteous and holy as Christians. 

Jesus doesn’t just command us to pray, fast, and give—He teaches us how to do it from the heart, not for public approval.

Matthew 6:1 (NIV) “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.”

I wondered about this - why did Jesus emphasize what seems like secrecy in Matthew 6. I understand that the motive of these actions must solely be to purify ourselves. It is not about hiding our faith. Rather, these spiritual acts — prayer, fasting, and giving — must not be done to gain attention, but in honour of our God and that's it. 

This sort of secrecy protects us from pride and helps us seek God’s approval over human applause. When no one else sees but we still obey, it shows that our devotion is genuine. 

In Lent, the hidden place becomes the holy place—where true transformation begins. This is the thread that ties all three together—secrecy and sincerity. 

On to giving now: Jesus says in Matthew 6:3–4 (NIV): “But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”

So when you give to someone in need, it is not to make yourself feel good, it is not so you can boast to someone oh look what I did. Giving is a quiet act of worship. If you tell someone what you did in secret, let it be a teaching moment and not a bragging moment.

When we give to others—especially those in need—we’re not just helping people; we are ministering directly to God. In giving, we reflect the heart of God, who gave His Son for us. 

The book of Proverbs confirms this: Proverbs 19:17 (NIV) “Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward them for what they have done.

Jesus continues with fasting: “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do… But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face… so that it will not be obvious to others… but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” Matthew 6:16–18 (NIV).

Again, the focus is secrecy—not for secrecy’s sake, but to make sure that our intentions are good and right and proper and appropriate and not selfish and done for the wrong reasons like to big up ourselves. Amen?!

Fasting is about spiritual hunger. Are we hungry and thirsty for God here at ZJoyVI? Do we see a need to come together to fast and pray and give? Let us ponder on that and you can share what the Spirit of the Lord is saying to you on this as you call.

Any season of fasting that we do as Christians, Family, once we are earnest, would lead us to saying “no” to the flesh so we can say “yes” to the Spirit. 

So whatever we do in our daily routines that we think we cannot do without, or that which gives us pleasure merely to satisfy our emotions, this is what we give up during a period of fasting. Many use food, but it also can be social media in this day and age.

The prophet Zechariah reminds us that fasting must be more than a religious ceremony: “When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months for the past seventy years, was it really for me that you fasted?” Zechariah 7:5 (NIV).

This question is profound, it is deep, it is like a collision, it causes you to brake up and jolts us back to reality. 

Are we fasting to impress, or to be transformed? 

Reality check: Lent is not about losing weight—it’s about losing self so we can be filled with Christ.

Joel calls for a national return through fasting: “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 (NIV).

This reminds us that fasting can shift not just individuals, but entire families, communities, nations and the world. There is power when the people of God humble themselves, together.

And when all three disciplines—prayer, fasting, and giving—are practiced together, in sincerity, in faith, God responds in power. 

Isaiah gives us a picture of the results in chapter 58 verses 9 and 10 (NIV): “If you do away with the yoke of oppression… and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry… then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.”

That is the fruit of true devotion. Light in the dark. Healing in brokenness. Strength in weakness. Lent isn’t about being somber and sad and moaning and hopeless. It's about being real. Being honest. Being open to God’s refining fire so that resurrection life can rise in us.

We even see this spiritual synergy in the story of Cornelius in Acts 10. He wasn’t Jewish, yet he practiced these same principles: Acts 10:2 (NIV) “He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly.” 

His giving and praying opened the door to a divine encounter. An angel visited Cornelius. Salvation came to Cornelius. The Holy Spirit was poured out on Cornelius. 

These aren’t small things. This is what happens when prayer, fasting, and giving are activated together with faith.

So during this Lenten season, let us not neglect the power of the three-fold cord.

Let us pray—honestly and privately.
Let us fast—wholeheartedly and humbly.
Let us give—generously and joyfully.

Not for attention. Not for ritual. But because we long to know God more deeply and reflect His love more brightly.

When we do this, Lent becomes more than a season—it becomes a launching point into resurrection life. 

aub - 16Apr25 

www.zjoyvi.com 

https://www.youtube.com/live/OgXTNoImCPQ?si=5bmG_nXsQGw3Kgnr