Fixing Our Gaze: Beginning the year with prayer and fasting.

Fixing Our Gaze: Beginning the Year with Prayer and Fasting

Where We Place Our Attention

The start of a new year invites reflection. We think about goals, habits, and the direction we hope our lives will take. Yet beneath all of that lies a simpler, deeper question: Where is our attention going?

Scripture reminds us that what we fix our gaze on shapes us. When our eyes settle on Jesus everything else begins to find its proper place. Faith is not about having everything figured out. It is about choosing, again and again, to orient our lives toward Him.

Making Room for God

Prayer and fasting are not religious performances. They are making room for a relationship with God.

Fasting, at its heart, is choosing to deny ourselves something in order to engage more fully with God. Often that means food, but it can also mean stepping back from screens, noise, or constant activity. Whatever we set aside becomes room for prayer, Scripture, and listening.

This is not about willpower. It is about attention. When we fast, we say with our lives: God, You matter more than what usually fills my time.

Learning to Listen

Prayer does not require perfect words. Sometimes it begins with a simple question:
God, what do You want me to do today? Who do You want me to be?

When we slow down and sit with God, even in silence, we can experience goodness. Our spirits are renewed. Our perspective shifts. We become more aware of His presence in the ordinary moments of our days.

Walking Forward Together

Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 4 that we do not fix our eyes on what is seen, but on what is unseen. This kind of faith is not certainty about every step. It is trust that the One we are following is faithful.

As a church, beginning the year with prayer and fasting is a way of walking this road together. It is a shared posture of dependence and hope. A quiet declaration that Jesus is not one part of our lives. He is the center.

If you have never fasted before, start simply. If you can fast from food, choose that. Otherwise consider fasting from screens, news, or anything else that takes up a significant time in your day. Then take that time and create space to read scripture, pray, and focus on God. You can join our YouVersion study with this link.

When our gaze is fixed on Him, everything else begins to align. Let’s walk into the new year with our eyes fixed on Jesus.