Discussion Questions | 28 March 2021

The lead up to Easter is a great opportunity for the whole church body to take some time to earnestly seek God’s direction and voice. Prayer and fasting is something we see in the Bible, has been used by some of our great faith leaders through history, and adopted by many churches to help us focus our minds and hearts on God and His design for us.  

So we are spending two weeks to intentionally remove things from our lives that distract us and intentionally add things to our lives to help focus our thoughts on God’s Spirit.  

Prayer is a conversation with God and needs to be nurtured and grown. Prayer without intention and attention becomes very shallow and selfish. Fasting is a device used to bring our bodies and minds along on this journey of hearing from God.  

Please look at joining us for the whole two weeks in prayer and fasting, and you will be able to download the devotional at https://www.claytonchurch.org.au/more_resources/. If you cannot join for the whole time, please try to prioritise this second week.   

DISCUSSION 

In Psalm 34:8-10, David urges God’s people to ‘taste and see that the Lord is good’. He invites us to ‘taste and see’, ‘try and experience’ God’s goodness. In his book, ‘A Hunger for God: Desiring God through Fasting and Prayer*’, John Piper says that, ‘If we don’t feel desires for God, it’s not because we’ve drunk deeply and are satisfied. It’s because we’ve nibbled for so long at the table of the world. Your soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great.’ 

At the end of the day, Christian fasting is more about our hearts than it is about our stomachs. The two purposes of Christian fasting are: 

1. To bring to light idols that we have replaced God with in our hearts, and  
2. To express our deepest longings for Him 

In fasting, we seek to hunger and thirst for Jesus, the Living Water and the Bread of Life – the one who can truly satisfy our souls.  

*You can purchase or download this book for free at https://www.desiringgod.org/books/a-hunger-for-god! 

Discuss one or more of the following questions: 

Read Psalm 34:8-10 and John 6:25-35 

1. Following this week’s service, what was your biggest takeaway and why?  
2. Do you remember your first ‘taste’ of God’s goodness? Share with one another what your experience was when you first came to know Jesus. 
3. How would you describe your hunger and thirst for God recently? (Not ‘things’ of God, gifts, answers or direction from God, but God himself). Why do you think this is so?  
4. Jesus calls himself the Bread of Life and says that whoever comes to Him will never go hungry, and whoever believes in Him will never be thirsty. What do the implications of Jesus’ work on the cross and finding satisfaction in Him look like in one personal area of your life? Be specific.  
5. As you have been fasting and praying through the Easter Devotional this week, what has God been revealing to you about Him, yourself and others?  
6. Who is someone you can share and invite to ‘taste’ God’s goodness? What are you going to practically do about this? (If you don’t have anyone to share with, what will you do about that?) 
7. After this week’s message and discussion, what do you think God is asking you to put into action?