21 Days & A Family Saved

Dearest Friends,

Have you ever felt the need to fast? Like a calling to fast, a deep down can't get rid of niggling need that is persistent in your thoughts. You don't understand why as you've never fasted before nor have you any knowledge on the why's or how to's of fasting. 

I felt that need. An inexplicable need to fast. No rhyme or reason as to why. 

Did you know there's 109 verses in the Bible on fasting? In all the times I've read my Bible I've never really taken note of all the times people fasted nor did I make the connection on how we should still be fasting today. Honestly, I thought fasting wasn't really relevant today unless you were fasting to lose weight. Little did I know that fasting is a spiritual discipline that is not only taught in the Bible but is still relevant and very much needed today.

Why did I need to fast? Why this inexplicable need to fast all of a sudden? A lady of faith that I follow on Instagram Camille McIntyre of Because She Chose had written about fasting a few months ago and had even offered an invitation to her private fasting group of like minded women of faith. At the time I was interested in learning more about fasting, the why's, the how to's and put it on my list of things I eventually wanted to study. I never joined her fasting group as I felt like I needed to know more. Needless to say I never really took the time to look into it as something was always coming up. Basically, I just didn't make the time. I'm always waiting for the "right time", the time when I have time for me,myself and I. I've come to realize there is NEVER the "right time." It's something you just have to make a priority and carve out that time otherwise it'll never happen. 

Towards the end of May I begin feeling this unexplainable need to fast. I couldn't shake this thought of needing to fast all of a sudden. I figured I would start looking into it and studying about it when an email came through from Camille on a 21 Day Daniel Fast she was starting in June. I opened it up and knew this was all the Lord. I knew then HE'D been leading me all along and although I didn't understand why, I jumped in with both feet. 

Camille provided us all a 21 Day Journal and an explanation of how we were to fast. I was quite surprised as I was under the impression fasting meant not eating at all but she had listed where we could eat fruit, veggies and beans but we were to stay away from sugar, caffeine and all meats. After reading her email on how to start and what to eat I felt a bit overwhelmed. Fruit was expensive and didn't last long in our house so we had to cut back on the amount of fruit we were buying. With my diet changes, I can no longer have gluten, soy, eggs, turkey, beef, almonds, peanuts, cows milk,rice,pineapple,oranges, apricots and cherries to name a few things. 🤪 I wasn't relishing the fact that I would be eating beans and spinach for the next 21 days but thankful I had something to eat. The timing of this fast was inconvenient, it wasn't going to be easy nor was I prepared for it. 

My husband wasn't back to work yet and our savings had substantially dwindled so much so that we couldn't afford to hit the road to his next job. We stayed to long working on camper renovations and the jobs dried up here in Florida. Our projects took a lot longer then we anticipated. Our $400 weekly grocery bill for a family of 6 soon turned into calculating how to get the most food with $20 and my specialty items just weren't on that list. You see on one hand it was the perfect time to fast since groceries were tight anyway, on the other hand I wasn't set up for it and wasn't looking forward to being inconvienced or the hardship. Perhaps I was hoping for easy but honestly nothing worth having or establishing should ever be easy to obtain otherwise we wouldn't grow,learn,rely on the Lord nor would we cherish and care for it as much. There is growth in hardship, refining that must be done so we grow stronger in our faith. For me it wasn't a good time to start. Funny thing was though this wasn't about me. 

My husband's job was completed the end of March and we decided to stay in Florida to finish up rennovations that we wouldn't be able to do on the road. We replaced the clutch and bearings in my husband's truck, built a bed lift for our queen size bed in our camper to give us more storage, built bunkbeds into the slide out for our kids, replaced our camper stove with a real stove, installed a reverse osmosis system for water, finished up painting jobs on cabinets, fixed our camper heater that went out a couple years ago, built a kitchen bench, and a lot more. Did we get all we wanted done, no but I'm so very glad and blessed for the things we did get done even though we are now faced with figuring out how to feed a family of 6 with no money coming in. 

We had every intention of being on the road before we hit a certain amount in our savings, but alas life happened. Quite a few E.R visits, unexpected expenses, projects taking longer then expected, cost of food, gas prices rising and BAM we find out all the jobs have dried up in Florida. Savings had dwindled and we realized we took on too many projects to hit the road. Honestly though, in hindsight the Lord had provided for us, HE provided the way and perhaps we should have just hit the road without doing the renovations and scheduled them for some other time. Then again perhaps we were meant to be here to grow through this hardship, to allow the Lord's light to shine in the midst of our troubles as HIS plans are never our own. All I know is that HE has always provided and continues to do so. No matter what we go through and have gone through HE has always been there and continues to be. 

Quite honestly I had no intention of sharing this part of our story but through the request and urging of others and after much prayer I realized I would be doing the Lord a disservice if I didn't. It didn't take long for me to understand that this was NEVER about me or my family but about the Lord and HIS never ending love and grace. God is so so so good even when things go south. God is good on the no good horrible bad days. God is good even in the midst of hardship, still good even when we struggle, always good even when man/women betray us and still good throughout all life's ups,downs,ebbs and flows. God is good ALL the time!

Monday's are our busiest days and not quite in the way you think. Come Monday morning you'll find me waiting outside in line with the Florida heat and humidity at 9am with my kids. We're waiting for our turn for milk and a bag of food at a church food pantry that doesn't open until 10am. It's best to get there early otherwise the line of people grow and it takes awhile to get through the line.  It's better to be early then it is on time as you'll sweat less. 😁 By 10:30am we'll be standing in line at another church food pantry for two boxes of food (one box of canned goods and stuff from the deli section of Walmart or Publix and the other box filled with breads and snacks). At 2:15pm you'll find us at our last food pantry of the day standing in line outside in the Florida heat, humidity and a lot of after noon down pours waiting for them to open at 3:30pm so we can get fruit, veggies and meat. Thursday morning you'll find us waiting in a drive-thru line at 7:30am for another two boxes of food which include meat and fruit. It took a lot of trial, error and verifying correct times to get our food pantry days and times right. When we first started all our times were wrong and we'd waste our time and gas money in seeking them out. Highly recommend calling before the food pantry day to verify times. A lesson we learned the hard way.🙄

I remember visiting the first food pantry and the feelings it evoked in me. I was quite emotional, trying to hold back tears of shame. My stress levels were high that I was doing my best to hold it all together, to hold my emotions in. I was so embarrassed and wanted to be anywhere else but where I was. Let me tell you, that was some hard humble pie to swallow. 

Swallowed it I did though and I just dived into the fasting thinking I'd try it for a week. Day 1 I was fighting a headache but had been two days prior as well. I didn't get up early enough to spend time with the Lord that first day so at 6pm I chose not to eat dinner and spent the next couple hours praying and reading my Bible in my room while my husband and kids ate dinner. Afterwards I felt refreshed, I felt good even though my head still hurt I had come away from that time feeling like I had so much energy. My kids came in and asked me to play soccer. Normally I would have said no because it's been so incredibly hot here in Florida but I felt energized and said sure, let's do it.😁 We had such a fun and fantastic time playing together. The rest of the week went just like this. I didn't quite stick to the food that was given and the ones we couldn't eat. There were a few days I had a half n half tea, chicken and a root beer float one day. Most was clean eating but honestly I didn't feel pressed about the food. Each day but 2 days out of the 21 I didn't eat after 6pm, I read my Bible, prayed, listened...just listened waiting to hear, practicing quieting my thoughts which is truly hard to do. I just felt the need to draw closer to HIM. I didn't know why I was fasting, didn't know if I was doing all I should be, was I doing enough to experience a breakthrough, would a breakthrough come, what was the breakthrough I was looking for...I just didn't know.

I was seeking something but what? 

I fasted 21 days and have never felt better! 

Blessings were flowing...

During this 21 day fast...

I. I started a prayer box. I pray over something, write it down with the date and put it in my prayer box and then quit worrying over it. It's about handing over my thinking I have control of things to the Lord, leaving them to HIM to handle, trusting that HE will and quit worrying over them.

2. I happened upon some amazing food pantries where double blessings came. A church that had Vacation Bible School and a church bus that would come to pick is up (save on gas). Sunday school and information on how may kids could join the private Christian school for free on scholarship if we stayed in Florida and chose to go that route.

3. My Color Street business grew in June and July! I had quite a few parties, met some amazing women and hit goals I never expected. 

4. Nightly soccer in June and part of July became a thing with our family, even Dad joined in. Downpours have driven us inside for family games.

5. I was able to give my two kids a family birthday party with cake,cupcakes and was able to buy them the shoes they desperately needed and a small pool for them. It wasn't big or elaborate and not much in the way of gifts but they both told me it was the best birthday ever! They say this every birthday but the day they stop is the day I'll worry. 😁 God is so good even in the midst of hardship.

6. I gave up coffee for 21 days and some days that was so hard not to give into! 

7. My mind has been clearer and at peace then it has in a very long time! (More on this another time)

8. My bestie has finally gotten answers to health issues.

9. My husband found work the month of June helping out one of his Dad's friends who had a stroke and who couldn't handle the heat very well paint a house. They both came down with COVID again from the owner of the house they were painting and both healed. 

10. My husband found work with a Tree Company here in Florida. We learned from his co-worker that instead of butter for a grilled cheese sandwich mayo works well with cheese on outside as well as inside. Sooo good! 😋 

11. I lost 8lbs during the 21 days and have continued to lose so down 21lbs total since then.

12. I've met some amazing people who have become friends through the food pantry lines. Others, talking about the Lord and HIS goodness and sometimes just giving a listening ear. People from all walks a life stand in line from families to senior citizens. Not the crowd I was quite expecting and it's been a blessing. Sadly, I'll soon miss this, the people, the conversations and the connections. God placed me here for a reason and my trust is in HIM. I don't understand but I have faith that HIS will is being done.

13. Most importantly I've been smelling this propane smell for awhile now in our kitchen, it's subtle but it's there and no one else has smelled it but me. It's been driving me crazy these past few weeks. My husband's smell still isn't what it used to be since he had COVID the first time. One night I was quite adamant about the smell to my husband asking him to check things out as I felt such need to figure it out. He went outside to turn the gas off and 15 minutes later the smell was gone! 😱 Turns out we had a small gas leak this whole time!! 😱😭 We installed a new gas stove and one of the fittings was bent at an odd angle and my husband tested it when he installed it and it showed no leaks. He pulled out the stove and tested it again for leaks and it showed nothing. He replaced it anyway and guess what?! No more propane smell! Our stove was leaking propane the whole time!😱😭 The headaches I kept having, kids not feeling well at times was all due to a propane leak! 😭 We bought a smoke alarm/propane dectector but hadn't installed it yet due to renovations. 

God's hand, HIS protection was over us this whole time!😭💖🙏😭🙌💖🙏🙌😭

The need to fast, the need to constantly be outside, soccer with the kids, the need to keep hounding about the smell, the adamant feeling that it needed to be looked at. I'm humbled, soooo thankful, so grateful, so in awe of HIM and HIS love! 💖🙏 

This 21 day fast has deepened my relationship with the Lord. It has brought blessings and peace to my mind. My mind was troubled with thoughts of this world and worries abounding. I'm thankful for the Lord, thankful for HIM placing Camille and her fasting group in my life at just the right time. 

Fasting draws us closer to God, it allows us to humble ourselves before HIM and most importantly it allows us to be silent so we can hear HIM more clearly. We do a lot of talking and asking but we surely don't do a lot of listening. Just as my kids are learning how important it is to listen and obey so am I.

"And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst." John 6:35 

Affectionately Yours,

Erica Lamberton