HIGHER GROUND BY FASTING AND PRAYER II EZRA 8:21 – 23

Fasting is a powerful spiritual discipline among all the Christian discipline, through which God can transform your life.
Fasting and prayer is a spiritual atomic bomb that God has given us as a Christian to destroy the kingdom of darkness and strongholds of the devil, it also usher us into great revival and harvest.
But it is very important to know how to fast and pray to get result. Many people go on hunger strike and call it fasting because they are not fasting accordingly. Therefore there is need for you to understand how to fast effectively to get result.
HOW TO FAST EFFECTIVELY TO HAVE RESULTS
EXAMINE YOURSELF TO MAKE SURE YOU ARE FIT TO SEEK GOD IN FASTING AND PRAYER.
There is need for self examination of your life before you begin to fast and pray so that you will be well positioned for result.
You must examine your life, if there is any unconfessed sin (s) in your life. If there is any, you must repent and confess it. Also examine your life for secret sins, if you know of any repent and confess it. The prayer of a sinner is an abomination before God. Don’t fast with sin in your life, if not you are just punishing yourself and there is no result for that kind of fasting. Examine your life of bitterness, anger, malice. Make sure you get rid of them before you embark of any form of fasting and prayer for your prayer not to be hindered.
Unforgiveness is another little fox that will not allow your fasting and prayer to yield result. You can’t seek God and find Him when you imprison someone in your heart. Free your heart of people who has hurt or offend you before going into fasting and prayer. All these I’ve mentioned, if they are in your life and you don’t examine your life to deal with them you will just go on hunger strike and not fasting at all.
Thus says the Lord to this people:
"Thus they have loved to wander;
They have not restrained their feet.
Therefore the Lord does not accept them;
He will remember their iniquity now,
And punish their sins."
Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray for this people, for their good. When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence." (Jer 14:10-12)NKJV
YOU MUST HAVE PURPOSE FOR YOUR FASTING.
You don’t just wake up and said you are fasting today, there must be reason for your fasting. If someone asks you why you are fasting, you should be able to answer well. It the purpose of your fasting that will help you to be focus and pray accordingly. If there is no purpose for fasting, there will be nothing to pray for.
2Samuel 12:16, 21: King David fasted and prayed here so that his son whom Bathsheba the wife of Uriah gave birth to him out of adultery will not die
Esther 4:16: Esther and his people fasted and pray for favour before the king, so that she could see the king.
Ezra 8:21- 23: The children of Israel fasted for divine direction, protection and for their little children.
1Kings 21:27: King Ahab fasted as a sign of repentance.
CHOSE THE LENGTH OF YOUR FASTING
You need to choose the length of your fasting, how long or short it will be, it could be one meal, one day, three days or one week or one month. Your fasting must have duration and determined to complete the number of the days you have chosen. Esther 4:16, Matthew 4:1 – 2.

CHOSE THE TYPE OF FASTING YOU WANT.
You must determine the type of fasting you want to embark upon, you may want to be without solid food, it could be taking juice and water alone, it could be absolute fasting – without food at all for some days. Whichever type of fasting you have chosen to embark upon, once it is more than three days you need to take water to avoid dehydration.
HAVE A REGULAR TIME OF PRAYER
Fasting without prayer is hunger strike; therefore you must have regular time of prayer to make your fasting effective. If you are fasting for 3hours there must be at least one hour prayer, if you are fasting for 6hours there must be at least 2hours prayer. You worship God and lay your request before Him.
MINIMIZE YOUR TALKING AND CONCENTRATE MORE ON GOD.
During fasting, you must reduce your talking, joking and have more time with God. This time is when you need to stay close to God by studying and meditating on the word of God. When you are crowded with noise and you are canal in your activities, it is very difficult to hear God even when He speaks or trying to instruct you.
BE A GIVER.
To make your fasting effective and more acceptable before God, you need to give to the needy, the poor and anyone around you, you are led to give to. Don’t just do your fasting without giving no matter how small it may be.
LAY DEMAND ON HIGHER ANOINTING
The lesser is blessed by the greater; Hannah’s case was settled by the decree of Eli the man of God. You can ask your pastor to pray for you after your fasting each day. It is a seal over all the prayer you have prayed. But note this that the anointing you don’t respect, celebrate, nurture cannot work for you.
ALWAYS WORSHIP AND PRAISE GOD
Fill your fasting and prayer with praises and worship of God. Don’t ask alone praise God also. He deserves your praise and worship.
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (. Phil 4:6-7) NKJV