February 8, 2024 • 22 mins
Beginning 2024 with fasting and prayer can cause you to examine yourself bringing you closer to God. This is, Lyvita Brooks' journey, and she hopes it inspires you to seek God's face.
Resources Mentioned on the Episode and suggested reading & social media handles:
- Lyvitabrooks.com/contact
Calls to Action:
· Sign up for The Me Project Academy Newsletter for resources on decluttering your mind in order to grow in Christ, academy news and new releases of the podcast.
· Website: www.hangingoutwithjesuspodcast.com
· @themeprojectacademy (Pinterest)
· support@themeprojectacademy.com (for comments)
Thanks for listening. I pray this episode was a blessing to you. Leave a comment or rate this episode . Then pass it on. Share this link: https://lyvitabrooks.com/
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
Welcome to Hanging Out With Jesus podcast, where we
build up the broken heart, thecaptives of anxieties, prisoners
of fear and the faint of heartto help you declutter your mind
by bringing you inspiration,interviews and information on
how to break free.
(00:27):
Hi, I'm LaVita Brooks, author,bible teacher, founder of the Me
Project Academy and your host.
Thanks for supporting thisministry and rating and
commenting on the blog orwhatever podcast platform you
are listening, because it makesthis feel more like a
(00:49):
conversation.
If this is your first timelistening, in welcome.
This is episode 94.
Six more episode, saints, tillwe make 100.
Woo, oh, that's a big sign Ihave a lot to share.
So let's get started talkingabout fasting and prayer and
(01:11):
choices.
Remember to put these dates onyour calendar Now.
February 7th was World ReadAllow Day.
That's where you read aloud ashort story or your favorite
children's story to someonespecial.
Well, if you didn't do it,that's okay, but if you can do
(01:33):
it sometime during February,that will be a memorable
experience for you.
And don't forget February 12th.
Uploaded pic to hashtag libraryshelf day.
That's library shelfS-H-E-L-F-A-D A picture of you
(01:57):
know, like your favorite books,or a book of the lie, or a bunch
of books in the library, butjust a unique picture of books
on the shelf.
You know, as believers inChrist, let's show off our books
.
You know what I'm saying.
Let's show off our Christianbooks.
That's February 12th.
(02:17):
Now don't forget to register onmy website or through the
newsletter for Facing theUnknown Bible Class, which
begins March 1st from 6.30 to 8.
And it will be every Fridayuntil the end of March.
We're going to go from March1st to I think it's March 29th
(02:40):
it will be the last Friday.
So sign up for that on mywebsite or the newsletter.
So if you don't get thenewsletter, this will be a
perfect time for you to do so.
Now.
Come walk with me where weintentionally and daily hang out
(03:03):
with Jesus.
Let's pray Amen, lord, fatherand I.
God, help us to commit not onlyour work but our words and our
time to you with the rightvoters.
(03:24):
In Jesus' name, I pray Amen,amen, saints, I feel so rushed,
like I have to get this episodedone, and and it's all because I
didn't do what I was supposedto do.
I was so wrapped up in myfasting and prayer and trying to
(03:47):
get gas on the podcast until Imissed that my first February
podcast is me talking with you.
This is insane.
The thing I want to share isabout fasting and prayer, and
(04:08):
it's not so much to force you,to get you to do it, but it's to
let you know what I'veexperienced and in hopes that my
experience can inspire you tohave your experience with God.
(04:33):
You see, god has made each andevery one of us unique.
We have a unique conversationwith the Lord.
We have a unique relationshipwith the Lord.
Mine isn't the same as yours,yours isn't the same as mine or
his or hers, but our God is thesame.
(04:57):
He wants to talk with us.
We want to talk to Him, but hewants to talk with us, and he's
always talking, but we're notalways listening.
I'm hoping that what I'msharing today will inspire you
(05:19):
to begin to listen, take sometime to fast and pray.
So, saints, fasting and prayeris not just for when you're
having bad times or you're notin control of what's going on in
your life.
It's also for the good times.
(05:40):
Yeah, we serve a good God wetoo, no matter what problems or
situations we're in.
Guess who's hanging in therewith us?
Guess who's giving us ways ofescape.
Let me just share what I did for2024.
First of all, I started fastingon January 7th to January 27th
(06:07):
because I always do it withPastor Jensen Franklin in his
church.
So I started with that and inthe process of doing that, I
learned about Aphor StreetBaptist Church in Virginia.
Pastor John no, I'm sorry, hisname is Pastor Howard John
(06:32):
Wesley he was doing one also,but it was for the 22nd to the
11th, so I'm still, you know,still doing it.
Anyway, I was fasting fromsugar and not complaining, two
things that have seemed to bedetrimental to me for the last
(06:57):
10, 10, 10 months.
I needed to stop complainingand y'all, I'm a sugar hauler
and my purpose is I'm lookingfor restoration in my body, I'm
looking for a deeperrelationship with God and I want
to be more sensitive to theleading of the Holy Spirit.
(07:18):
So that's why my purpose, whyI'm fasting and also what I'm
fasting from.
There's some things that I'velearned and there's some things
that I'm working on doing.
That is fasting and prayingtime.
One of the things that well,there's three things that I've
(07:43):
learned.
That is really more than three,but there's three that I'm
going to talk about that I'velearned, and one is the
importance of my tongue and thewords that I say.
And the second thing is I needto focus on the here and now.
(08:03):
You see, it's not about thefuture right now.
The future's gonna come, it'sgonna come, it's gonna have its
own time and it'll be here whenit's supposed to be.
But right now I'm podcastingand I'm enjoying this moment.
(08:25):
But if I sit here and thinkabout what I have to do
afterwards or how soon I can getit to my own place and have my
podcast room just the way I wantit, y'all I miss the enjoyment
(08:45):
that I'm having right now.
Sit here talking with you, thisis fun, this is enjoyment.
This is you and I, in Christ,talking and just enjoying the
(09:06):
moment.
This is the here and now.
And I've also learned duringthis time the power of gratitude
through healing.
Yup, like I said, I keptcomplaining.
So if all you do is complain,that brings you down.
(09:30):
Gratitude builds you up.
I mean, there were moments whenI couldn't figure out what I
was thankful for.
I couldn't even figure out,well, what did God do for me
today?
Because I've been complainingso much.
It wasn't until I sat there andI said you're not getting up
(09:56):
until God done, blessed you dosomething.
He done, blessed, got something.
And that's when I startedsaying well, I'm breathing, I
can walk from the front of theroom to the back, go to the room
with without a cane or a stick.
(10:17):
I can laugh if I wanted.
I mean, I just started justcoming up with stuff and then it
dawned on me and this is funny,I know it's funny, but it
dawned on me that the Lord hadblessed me with finances to pay
(10:40):
for the repairs on my car.
Y'all, my car is a 2005.
I call her Grayson and we'restill here.
I pray for her restoration too,you hear me.
(11:00):
But the Lord blessed that I hadthe money to get the repairs.
I didn't tell y'all how I wason 95.
Car was just, there was numberof smoke in the back window and
on the side window.
I pulled that car, oh what?
(11:22):
And car was with me, and that'sa big thing, yeah.
But the little thing wassomebody had sent me money and
it was enough to take care ofthe car, and I've forgotten
about that.
I've forgotten about it, I'veforgotten about it.
(11:42):
I put the money on somethingelse, which meant I had enough
money left over to pay for thecar.
Yeah, you said.
You said, ah, do you?
But I was complaining that Ihad any money until the money
was there.
Y'all the power of gratitudewhile you're healing or while
(12:06):
you're going through.
I'm learning to be thankful forjust everything the food that I
eat.
My aunt can cook, y'all, shecan cook.
I'm just being thankful for itall and it is lifting me up.
It's lifting me up Now.
(12:30):
What I'm working on isrebuilding this temple, this
body.
I'm learning to surrender toGod.
I'm learning to do things scarewhen God's confirmed things to
me.
I'm learning to listen and notcomplain.
(12:51):
You see, I want to be able tohear the Holy Spirit and move,
but sometimes what I hear isscary.
Well, sometimes what my heartis saying go, go, go, and my gut
(13:14):
is saying do, do, do.
It's scary, it is scary, Idon't want to do it.
So I do the avoidance thing.
You know, I put something elsein this place.
I pretend like I didn't hear it.
I'll push it aside.
I'm tired of doing that.
(13:35):
I just want to do what the Lordhas called me to do.
Do you feel me?
Are you at that point in yourlife?
What you just want to do whatGod called you to do, and you
just want to be who God hascalled you to be.
(13:56):
Are you there?
That's a place of rest, that'sa place of comfort.
I find you that the moregrateful I am, the easier it is
(14:19):
for me to let things go, becauseI realize that on the other
side of that complaining, on theother side of that
ungratefulness, god's got thisawesome blessing, just sitting
there waiting for him, and Iwant it, I want it, I want it, I
(14:43):
want it, I want it, I want it,I want it, I want it, I want it,
I want it, I want it for me,don't you?
I mean, think about it.
We're each been sent to thisearth for a mission.
(15:04):
When I hear for all theenjoyment, complete a task, and
I'm telling you, when youcomplete the task, the enjoyment
is in there, it is in there.
You just gotta ask the Lordwhat it is you want me to tell.
(15:28):
And I keep telling myself this,and it seems like it's foreign.
But, saints, it's true, I'veseen it, I have.
I have left church, thinking I'mgoing to back to the house and
(15:51):
at the light I hear turn left.
So I just turned left, we'rejust going back to house.
But you know, turn left.
And before you know it, I gotto start a just go to Denny's.
So I went to Denny's and guesswhat?
(16:13):
I got to meet an old friend.
I'm telling you it's like andand and.
That old friend, I focused onthe here and now.
I needed to hear what she hadto share and she needed to share
.
What I needed to hear.
It was like go Jesus, go Jesus,go Jesus.
(16:38):
You know, god was again lettingme know he's got my back.
God does the same thing for you.
You, just like me, have tosurrender to and to do things
(17:00):
scared.
Saints, I hope my experiencesare helping you to to grow, to
grow in Christ, and to help youlet go of things that we have
told ourselves for so long weneeded or we got a hold on to or
(17:27):
we have to control.
When your heart is broken, whenyou feel like you're imprisoned
by fear, you don't think thatthere is a way out.
All you do is feel the hurt andthe pain.
All you do is see what.
(17:49):
You see.
God has got a plan for you.
Take some time to fast and pray, take some time to truly be in
His presence, hear what he hasto say and then do it.
(18:14):
Do it scared.
Do it with all the you that isleft in you.
Sometimes, when you have ananxiety and you just feel like
(18:37):
everything is blocked, there'snothing.
There's always this littlelight in you.
Always it's flickering becauseyou had Holy Spirit Flickering.
You got to take that littlelight and move forward, because
(18:59):
the moment you take it, say thatlight gets bigger, it gets
bigger and then next you know,it gets bigger and bigger.
As you start moving, god iswith us every step of the way.
We got to remember that wedon't journey alone.
That's why you and I are hereright now.
(19:22):
That's why I say comment on mywebsite, comment on the
platforms that you listen to,come on so that we can have a
conversation.
You already know how to get meat support at
themeprojectacademycom.
(19:42):
Thank you, lord.
Thank you for this moment intime, thank you for the joy of
hanging out with the saints andfor being in your presence.
Help us to let go of thosethings that hinder us from
spending time with you and helpus to let go of the control that
(20:08):
we seek and we really need tojust rest in you.
Teach us, father, teach us,father, god, to not just be who
(20:30):
you call us to be and do whatyou call us to do, but also to
enjoy hanging out with you.
This is our prayer.
Jesus name you Amen, amen, well, thanks, I pray that you are
(20:58):
encouraged and can make one ofthe Christ Jesus smile on your
face Papping your step.
So thanks for listening.
If you enjoyed this episode,then please consider subscribing
to the podcast rating andreviewing it.
This helps in moving it forwardto being heard by more than you
(21:22):
.
Also, if you haven't done so,get your free twice a month
newsletter to keep up with newLisa's podcast.
I'm going to start a booksection in there for the book
lovers and it will continue tohave monthly activities on how
to live intentionally and beinga Christ and more.
(21:43):
All those and more can be found, including my contact info on
hanging out with Jesuspodcastcom or the show notes.
So I will see you next time.
Welcome to Hanging Out With Jesus podcast, where we
build up the broken heart, thecaptives of anxieties, prisoners
of fear and the faint of heartto help you declutter your mind
by bringing you inspiration,interviews and information on
how to break free.
(00:27):
Hi, I'm LaVita Brooks, author,bible teacher, founder of the Me
Project Academy and your host.
Thanks for supporting thisministry and rating and
commenting on the blog orwhatever podcast platform you
are listening, because it makesthis feel more like a
(00:49):
conversation.
If this is your first timelistening, in welcome.
This is episode 94.
Six more episode, saints, tillwe make 100.
Woo, oh, that's a big sign Ihave a lot to share.
So let's get started talkingabout fasting and prayer and
(01:11):
choices.
Remember to put these dates onyour calendar Now.
February 7th was World ReadAllow Day.
That's where you read aloud ashort story or your favorite
children's story to someonespecial.
Well, if you didn't do it,that's okay, but if you can do
(01:33):
it sometime during February,that will be a memorable
experience for you.
And don't forget February 12th.
Uploaded pic to hashtag libraryshelf day.
That's library shelfS-H-E-L-F-A-D A picture of you
(01:57):
know, like your favorite books,or a book of the lie, or a bunch
of books in the library, butjust a unique picture of books
on the shelf.
You know, as believers inChrist, let's show off our books
.
You know what I'm saying.
Let's show off our Christianbooks.
That's February 12th.
(02:17):
Now don't forget to register onmy website or through the
newsletter for Facing theUnknown Bible Class, which
begins March 1st from 6.30 to 8.
And it will be every Fridayuntil the end of March.
We're going to go from March1st to I think it's March 29th
(02:40):
it will be the last Friday.
So sign up for that on mywebsite or the newsletter.
So if you don't get thenewsletter, this will be a
perfect time for you to do so.
Now.
Come walk with me where weintentionally and daily hang out
(03:03):
with Jesus.
Let's pray Amen, lord, fatherand I.
God, help us to commit not onlyour work but our words and our
time to you with the rightvoters.
(03:24):
In Jesus' name, I pray Amen,amen, saints, I feel so rushed,
like I have to get this episodedone, and and it's all because I
didn't do what I was supposedto do.
I was so wrapped up in myfasting and prayer and trying to
(03:47):
get gas on the podcast until Imissed that my first February
podcast is me talking with you.
This is insane.
The thing I want to share isabout fasting and prayer, and
(04:08):
it's not so much to force you,to get you to do it, but it's to
let you know what I'veexperienced and in hopes that my
experience can inspire you tohave your experience with God.
(04:33):
You see, god has made each andevery one of us unique.
We have a unique conversationwith the Lord.
We have a unique relationshipwith the Lord.
Mine isn't the same as yours,yours isn't the same as mine or
his or hers, but our God is thesame.
(04:57):
He wants to talk with us.
We want to talk to Him, but hewants to talk with us, and he's
always talking, but we're notalways listening.
I'm hoping that what I'msharing today will inspire you
(05:19):
to begin to listen, take sometime to fast and pray.
So, saints, fasting and prayeris not just for when you're
having bad times or you're notin control of what's going on in
your life.
It's also for the good times.
(05:40):
Yeah, we serve a good God wetoo, no matter what problems or
situations we're in.
Guess who's hanging in therewith us?
Guess who's giving us ways ofescape.
Let me just share what I did for2024.
First of all, I started fastingon January 7th to January 27th
(06:07):
because I always do it withPastor Jensen Franklin in his
church.
So I started with that and inthe process of doing that, I
learned about Aphor StreetBaptist Church in Virginia.
Pastor John no, I'm sorry, hisname is Pastor Howard John
(06:32):
Wesley he was doing one also,but it was for the 22nd to the
11th, so I'm still, you know,still doing it.
Anyway, I was fasting fromsugar and not complaining, two
things that have seemed to bedetrimental to me for the last
(06:57):
10, 10, 10 months.
I needed to stop complainingand y'all, I'm a sugar hauler
and my purpose is I'm lookingfor restoration in my body, I'm
looking for a deeperrelationship with God and I want
to be more sensitive to theleading of the Holy Spirit.
(07:18):
So that's why my purpose, whyI'm fasting and also what I'm
fasting from.
There's some things that I'velearned and there's some things
that I'm working on doing.
That is fasting and prayingtime.
One of the things that well,there's three things that I've
(07:43):
learned.
That is really more than three,but there's three that I'm
going to talk about that I'velearned, and one is the
importance of my tongue and thewords that I say.
And the second thing is I needto focus on the here and now.
(08:03):
You see, it's not about thefuture right now.
The future's gonna come, it'sgonna come, it's gonna have its
own time and it'll be here whenit's supposed to be.
But right now I'm podcastingand I'm enjoying this moment.
(08:25):
But if I sit here and thinkabout what I have to do
afterwards or how soon I can getit to my own place and have my
podcast room just the way I wantit, y'all I miss the enjoyment
(08:45):
that I'm having right now.
Sit here talking with you, thisis fun, this is enjoyment.
This is you and I, in Christ,talking and just enjoying the
(09:06):
moment.
This is the here and now.
And I've also learned duringthis time the power of gratitude
through healing.
Yup, like I said, I keptcomplaining.
So if all you do is complain,that brings you down.
(09:30):
Gratitude builds you up.
I mean, there were moments whenI couldn't figure out what I
was thankful for.
I couldn't even figure out,well, what did God do for me
today?
Because I've been complainingso much.
It wasn't until I sat there andI said you're not getting up
(09:56):
until God done, blessed you dosomething.
He done, blessed, got something.
And that's when I startedsaying well, I'm breathing, I
can walk from the front of theroom to the back, go to the room
with without a cane or a stick.
(10:17):
I can laugh if I wanted.
I mean, I just started justcoming up with stuff and then it
dawned on me and this is funny,I know it's funny, but it
dawned on me that the Lord hadblessed me with finances to pay
(10:40):
for the repairs on my car.
Y'all, my car is a 2005.
I call her Grayson and we'restill here.
I pray for her restoration too,you hear me.
(11:00):
But the Lord blessed that I hadthe money to get the repairs.
I didn't tell y'all how I wason 95.
Car was just, there was numberof smoke in the back window and
on the side window.
I pulled that car, oh what?
(11:22):
And car was with me, and that'sa big thing, yeah.
But the little thing wassomebody had sent me money and
it was enough to take care ofthe car, and I've forgotten
about that.
I've forgotten about it, I'veforgotten about it.
(11:42):
I put the money on somethingelse, which meant I had enough
money left over to pay for thecar.
Yeah, you said.
You said, ah, do you?
But I was complaining that Ihad any money until the money
was there.
Y'all the power of gratitudewhile you're healing or while
(12:06):
you're going through.
I'm learning to be thankful forjust everything the food that I
eat.
My aunt can cook, y'all, shecan cook.
I'm just being thankful for itall and it is lifting me up.
It's lifting me up Now.
(12:30):
What I'm working on isrebuilding this temple, this
body.
I'm learning to surrender toGod.
I'm learning to do things scarewhen God's confirmed things to
me.
I'm learning to listen and notcomplain.
(12:51):
You see, I want to be able tohear the Holy Spirit and move,
but sometimes what I hear isscary.
Well, sometimes what my heartis saying go, go, go, and my gut
(13:14):
is saying do, do, do.
It's scary, it is scary, Idon't want to do it.
So I do the avoidance thing.
You know, I put something elsein this place.
I pretend like I didn't hear it.
I'll push it aside.
I'm tired of doing that.
(13:35):
I just want to do what the Lordhas called me to do.
Do you feel me?
Are you at that point in yourlife?
What you just want to do whatGod called you to do, and you
just want to be who God hascalled you to be.
(13:56):
Are you there?
That's a place of rest, that'sa place of comfort.
I find you that the moregrateful I am, the easier it is
(14:19):
for me to let things go, becauseI realize that on the other
side of that complaining, on theother side of that
ungratefulness, god's got thisawesome blessing, just sitting
there waiting for him, and Iwant it, I want it, I want it, I
(14:43):
want it, I want it, I want it,I want it, I want it, I want it,
I want it, I want it for me,don't you?
I mean, think about it.
We're each been sent to thisearth for a mission.
(15:04):
When I hear for all theenjoyment, complete a task, and
I'm telling you, when youcomplete the task, the enjoyment
is in there, it is in there.
You just gotta ask the Lordwhat it is you want me to tell.
(15:28):
And I keep telling myself this,and it seems like it's foreign.
But, saints, it's true, I'veseen it, I have.
I have left church, thinking I'mgoing to back to the house and
(15:51):
at the light I hear turn left.
So I just turned left, we'rejust going back to house.
But you know, turn left.
And before you know it, I gotto start a just go to Denny's.
So I went to Denny's and guesswhat?
(16:13):
I got to meet an old friend.
I'm telling you it's like andand and.
That old friend, I focused onthe here and now.
I needed to hear what she hadto share and she needed to share
.
What I needed to hear.
It was like go Jesus, go Jesus,go Jesus.
(16:38):
You know, god was again lettingme know he's got my back.
God does the same thing for you.
You, just like me, have tosurrender to and to do things
(17:00):
scared.
Saints, I hope my experiencesare helping you to to grow, to
grow in Christ, and to help youlet go of things that we have
told ourselves for so long weneeded or we got a hold on to or
(17:27):
we have to control.
When your heart is broken, whenyou feel like you're imprisoned
by fear, you don't think thatthere is a way out.
All you do is feel the hurt andthe pain.
All you do is see what.
(17:49):
You see.
God has got a plan for you.
Take some time to fast and pray, take some time to truly be in
His presence, hear what he hasto say and then do it.
(18:14):
Do it scared.
Do it with all the you that isleft in you.
Sometimes, when you have ananxiety and you just feel like
(18:37):
everything is blocked, there'snothing.
There's always this littlelight in you.
Always it's flickering becauseyou had Holy Spirit Flickering.
You got to take that littlelight and move forward, because
(18:59):
the moment you take it, say thatlight gets bigger, it gets
bigger and then next you know,it gets bigger and bigger.
As you start moving, god iswith us every step of the way.
We got to remember that wedon't journey alone.
That's why you and I are hereright now.
(19:22):
That's why I say comment on mywebsite, comment on the
platforms that you listen to,come on so that we can have a
conversation.
You already know how to get meat support at
themeprojectacademycom.
(19:42):
Thank you, lord.
Thank you for this moment intime, thank you for the joy of
hanging out with the saints andfor being in your presence.
Help us to let go of thosethings that hinder us from
spending time with you and helpus to let go of the control that
(20:08):
we seek and we really need tojust rest in you.
Teach us, father, teach us,father, god, to not just be who
(20:30):
you call us to be and do whatyou call us to do, but also to
enjoy hanging out with you.
This is our prayer.
Jesus name you Amen, amen, well, thanks, I pray that you are
(20:58):
encouraged and can make one ofthe Christ Jesus smile on your
face Papping your step.
So thanks for listening.
If you enjoyed this episode,then please consider subscribing
to the podcast rating andreviewing it.
This helps in moving it forwardto being heard by more than you
(21:22):
.
Also, if you haven't done so,get your free twice a month
newsletter to keep up with newLisa's podcast.
I'm going to start a booksection in there for the book
lovers and it will continue tohave monthly activities on how
to live intentionally and beinga Christ and more.
(21:43):
All those and more can be found, including my contact info on
hanging out with Jesuspodcastcom or the show notes.
So I will see you next time.
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