I have to say that the biggest impact for me is a fresh look at the scriptures. I can honestly say I have fallen more in love with God’s Word to kick off this year. Scriptures that I have read over hundreds of times have just jumped off the page in a new way.

Some fasts I have felt myself changing during the fast from the inside out and it has been an incredible experience and time of breakthrough in my life. Other times, like this fast, I have not felt anything change.

I love to fast, really I do. I have been practicing this discipline in my life for as far back as I can remember. When I was a child, every Friday, in anticipation of the weekly service Lifecentre hosted, my parents would fast.

One day I was reading through Matthew and I came across a verse that struck me in a way it never had before. I was appalled at the demands they put on Jesus. The teachers of the law and the elders told Jesus what He had to do in order for them to believe.

he impact of reading the Bible over the duration of our fast has brought me face to face with an idea I heard a speaker mention years ago. He said, “Ask God to guide you through His Word as though you have never read it before.” How novel!

ince January 1st I have been using my iPhone to do my daily bible reading. There is a great free application, also available online, called YouVersion.com. With the click of my finger, I am taken to my daily Bible reading. During that time we were reading through the book of Matthew.

It happens to almost everyone. You start strong – full of excitement and passion. You even make a resolution. Then it happens. You can’t explain why. You can’t avoid it. Life gets tough. Habits hard to break. Routine takes over. You hit The Dip.

This past week, we focused on the Biblical characters Peter, Paul and Jesus and their experiences with The Dip. Today, we’ll rewind and take another look at the scriptures, questions and steps of the week.

Picking up on yesterday’s theme of running a race, Hebrews 12:2 adds an essential element saying “Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, a who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”

In today’s Scripture reading, stop and count the number of times that the Apostle Paul wrote “I”. I use the ESV translation, and in it, within those three verses, he speaks of himself four times.