Prominent Christian leaders, ministries, and young influencers throughout the country are urging and supporting a call for one million people to fast and pray at the beginning of 2023.
The “Roaring Twenties” fast and prayer movement began in 2020 and will continue through the decade.
The theme of this year’s fast is “Worthy of the Pursuit”, based on Psalms 9:10 which reads, “Those who know your name trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.”
“When God moves, prayer and fasting have often been the catalyst,” said Shane Idleman, pastor of Westside Christian Fellowship in California.
Leaders are urging young people to join the movement and trust God even in “economic uncertainty, political polarization, and fear.”
“As we stand before a generation with an appetite for the presence of God, may we be mindful of this: fasting is what prepares our spirit for the fresh filling from God that we need,” said Pastor Jon Groves.
As CBN News reported, the mental health of America’s youth has recently deteriorated to never before seen levels of concern that escalated during the pandemic.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention researchers found emergency hospital visits for suspected suicide attempts increased by nearly 51% among girls 12-17 years old in early 2021.
“Anxiety and depression were at epidemic levels before the pandemic,” Christian psychiatrist Daniel Amen told CBN News. “Then if you add on top of that fear, loss, social isolation. What we saw was anxiety and depression double over the last 20 months.”
This is just one reason why many churches, ministries, and young leaders are encouraging the 2023 fast.
“The call for one million young people to fast and pray is historic but must not be about any one church, leader, organization or denomination but rather a collective of believers young and old who sense that God is about to do something historic in the roaring twenties,” wrote Dr. Malachi O’Brien.
You can watch fasting devotionals daily in January on the Pray.com app.
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