Essentials | Thrive City Church

WHAT IS ESSENTIALS?

Essentials is designed to help you grow in your faith and build a strong foundation in your walk with Christ. Whether you’ve recently made the decision to follow Jesus or you’re looking to deepen your understanding of the basics, this class will guide you through the essentials of spiritual formation. Our goal is to give you practical tools and biblical truths that will strengthen your faith and set you on the path toward a thriving relationship with God.

Each session will focus on key areas every believer should know—such as prayer, the Word, community, and living out your faith daily. You’ll not only learn what Scripture says but also how to apply it in real life, so you can confidently take steps forward in your journey with Jesus. The Essentials class isn’t just about information—it’s about transformation.

The class will meet on Wednesday nights at 7:30 PM via Zoom, right after our weekly prayer gathering. Mark your calendars for these dates: October 8th & 15th, November 12th & 19th, December 10th & 17th. We invite you to commit to this journey with us—you’ll gain wisdom, community, and encouragement to walk boldly in your new faith.

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5 Steps to a successful fast

1 Set an Objective for Your Fast

Why are you fasting? Is it for spiritual renewal? For guidance? For healing? For the resolution of problems? For special grace to handle a difficult situation? Ask the Holy Spirit to clarify what He wants you to take away from this time. This will enable you to pray more specifically and strategically. Through fasting and prayer, we humble ourselves before God so the Holy Spirit will stir our souls, awaken our churches and heal our land according to 2 Chronicles 7:14. Make this a priority in your fasting.

2 Commit to Your Fast

Pray about the kind of fast you should undertake. Jesus implied that all of His followers should fast (Matthew 6:16-18;9:14-15). For Him, it was a matter of when, not if, believers would fast. Before you fast, decide the following:

The type of fast God wants you to undertake:

PARTIAL FAST

This fast is sometimes called the “Jewish Fast” and involves abstaining from eating any type of food in the morning and afternoon. This can either correlate to specific times of the day, such as 6:00 am to 3:00 pm, or from sunup to sundown.

SELECTIVE FAST

This type of fast involves removing certain elements from your diet. One example of a selective fast is the Daniel Fast, during which you remove meat, sweets, and bread from your diet and consume water and juice for fluids and fruits and vegetables for food.

COMPLETE FAST

In this type of fast, you drink only liquids, typically water with light juices as an option.

SOUL FAST

This fast is a great option if you do not have much experience fasting food, have health issues that prevent you from fasting food, or if you wish to refocus certain areas of your life that are out of balance. For example, you might choose to stop using social media or watching television for the duration of the fast and then carefully bring that element back into your life in healthy doses at the conclusion of the fast. What physical or social activities you will restrict. How much time each day you will devote to prayer and God’s Word. Making these commitments ahead of time, write them down and share them with someone you trust. This helps you sustain your fast when physical temptations and life’s pressures tempt you to abandon it.

3 Prepare Yourself Spiritually

The foundation of fasting and prayer is repentance. Unconfessed sin will hinder your prayers. Here are several things you can do to prepare your heart:

Ask God to help you make a comprehensive list of your sins.
Confess every sin that the Holy Spirit reminds you of and accept God’s forgiveness (1 John 1:9).
Seek forgiveness from anyone you have offended and forgive anyone who has hurt you (Mark 11:25; Luke 11:4; 17:3-4).
Make amends with people as the Holy Spirit leads you.
Ask God to fill you with His Holy Spirit according to His command in Ephesians 5:18 and His promise in 1 John 5:14-15.
Surrender your life fully to Jesus Christ as your Lord and Master and refuse to obey your worldly nature (Romans 12:1-2).
Meditate on the attributes of God — His love, sovereignty, power, wisdom, faithfulness, grace, compassion and other qualities (Psalm 48:9-10; 103:1-8, 11-13).
Begin your time of fasting and prayer with an expectant heart (Hebrews 11:6).
Do not underestimate spiritual opposition. Satan sometimes intensifies the natural battle between body and spirit (Galatians 5:16-17).

4 Prepare Yourself Physically

Fasting requires reasonable precautions. Consult your physician first, especially if you take prescription medication or have a chronic ailment. Some people should never fast without professional supervision. Physical preparation makes the drastic change in your eating routine a little easier so you can turn your full attention to the Lord in prayer. Remember the following:

Do not rush into your fast.
Prepare your body. Eat smaller meals before starting a fast. Avoid high-fat and sugary foods.
Eat raw fruits and vegetables for two days before starting a fast.

5 Put Yourself on a Schedule

Your time of fasting and prayer has come. You are abstaining from all solid foods and have begun to seek the Lord. Here are some helpful suggestions to consider:

Limit your physical activity.
Exercise only moderately. Walk one to three miles each day if convenient and comfortable.
Prepare yourself for temporary mental discomforts, such as impatience, crankiness and anxiety.
Expect some physical discomforts, especially on the second day. You may have fleeting hunger pains or dizziness. Withdrawal from caffeine and sugar may cause headaches. Physical annoyances may also include weakness, tiredness or sleeplessness.
Have a specific time each day that you write in a prayer journal or phone notes that you document what you are hearing during your time of prayer.
The first two or three days are usually the hardest. As you continue fasting, you are likely to experience a sense of well-being both physically and spiritually. However, should you feel hunger pains, increase your liquid intake.

How you begin and conduct your fast will largely determine your success. By following these five basic steps to fasting, you will make your time with the Lord more meaningful and spiritually rewarding.