Podcast Summary: “Fasting for a Fix” | Fast 2026

Podcast: Jentezen Franklin at Free Chapel
Speaker: Javon Ruff
Date: January 19, 2026

Episode Overview

In this dynamic and heartfelt message, Javon Ruff speaks at Free Chapel during the church’s annual 21-day fast, delivering a lesson entitled “Fasting for a Fix.” Drawing from Psalm 57 and David’s experience in the cave, Ruff challenges listeners to anchor their hearts in God, prioritize prayer, remain steadfast under pressure, and worship before the breakthrough—offering practical encouragement for those seeking stability and spiritual renewal amidst life’s adversities.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Biblical Scene: David in the Cave

• Ruff starts by honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (00:40), then reads and unpacks Psalm 57, where David, pursued by Saul, writes not from a throne but a cave—a place of desperation, fear, and uncertainty (00:33–04:00).
• “He was anointed but not yet appointed…promised a kingdom, but he was having to live like a criminal…innocent, yet being hunted.” (04:14)
• The cave symbolizes life's isolating and trying circumstances—not due to sin, but sometimes due to calling and purpose.

2. The Confession: “My Heart is Fixed”

• David, despite dire surroundings, proclaims, “My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed. I will sing and give you praise.” (05:45, 06:22)
• Ruff emphasizes, “Caves will try to get you to change your theology, poison your attitude, rewrite your identity and break your worship. But David didn’t allow the cave to cave him in.” (05:21)
• The message: Don’t let present hardships cancel your calling or define your future.

3. What Does It Mean to Have a Fixed Heart?

• The Hebrew word for “fixed” is “kun,” meaning established, anchored, firm, immovable, and resolute (09:29).
• “If I can just fix my heart, everything else will work itself out.” (10:16)
• Ruff compares the heart to the hub of a wheel: “When the central axis is secure, the whole wheel is right.” (10:12)
• Memorable analogy: “A fixed heart is a thermostat, not a thermometer. Thermometers react to temperature, thermostats set the temperature.” (10:55)

4. A Fixed Heart is:

A. Anchored in God (11:49)

• “Fasting doesn’t change God’s will. It anchors your heart in it.” (11:52)
• David anchored his hope not in the promise, but in the Promiser; not in deliverance, but in the Deliverer (12:41).
• Caution against anchoring in fleeting things (platforms, relationships, money): “When they collapse, you collapse. When they're gone, you feel like you’re gone.” (13:20)
• “If I anchor my heart in God…I'll be able to stand the test of time and endure the storms of life.” (14:24)
• Running to God, not away from Him in times of crisis (15:01):
  • “The best thing you can do is run to God.” (15:39)
  • “We would always be a church that…when I run in there, I won’t find judgment…But I’ll find a God that is gracious and merciful and kind.” (15:43)
• Hebrews 6:19 referenced: hope in God is an anchor “that cannot slip and it cannot break down under whoever steps on it.” (16:43)
• Powerful moment: “Anchors don’t stop storms…But when it’s anchored, there’s only so much shaking, only so much drifting, before that thing snatches you back.” (17:28–18:45)

B. Prioritizes Prayer (19:25)

• David “cries to God, not about God. He prays before he panics.” (19:37)
• Modern temptation: venting online versus praying privately. “We vent online and pray offline. We post before we pray.” (20:08)
• “A fixed heart…takes pain upward and not outward.” (20:54)
• “Your Father who sees your private prayer will reward you openly.” (21:41)
• Practical remedy: “Put the phone down, close the iPad, shut the computer off…get alone with God.” (21:48)
• “Prayer becomes the catalyst that mobilizes the power of God.” (22:34)
• Classic quote (E.M. Bounds): “God hears prayers, God heeds prayers, God answers prayers, and God delivers by prayers.” (23:09)

C. Focused on God’s Faithfulness (23:24)

• “I keep my eyes always on the Lord, with him at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.” (Psalm 16:8) (23:24)
• “The enemy can’t make you fold if he can’t steal your focus.” (23:53)
• Story of David’s life: God’s faithfulness with the lion, the bear, and Goliath. “Even though his problems became greater…his God was even bigger.” (26:35)
• “Don’t you give up on God. He is faithful. If things get greater, God is even greater.” (26:41)

D. Steadfast Under Pressure (27:08)

• “Pressure comes to us all…Pressure to fit in, to compromise, lower your standards. Pressure doesn’t stop just because you love God.” (27:08–27:45)
• “Pressure is proof that quitting would cost you something.” (28:45)
• Analogy with Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who “purposed in their heart” to remain faithful, even when pressured by culture (29:39–31:13).
• “Because they fasted in chapter one, they didn’t fold under the pressure in chapter three and six.” (31:13)
• “Your fast today becomes your testimony tomorrow.” (31:47)
• To young people: “God used disciplined teenagers to disrupt an undisciplined culture…This generation doesn’t need more hype, it needs more holy hunger.” (32:04)
• “He can keep you.” [repeated with emphasis for encouragement] (35:07–35:17)

E. Worships Before the Win (35:24)

• “A fixed heart worships before the win.” (35:24)
• “David knew praise stabilizes the soul. Some of your greatest worship will be written in your darkest places.” (36:23, 36:34)
• “It’ll be from a cave…from that thing you felt almost was about to take you out.” (36:41)
• “David fixed his mouth in praise and not in pity.” (37:05)

5. Prophetic Direction: Don’t Go Back

• Reference to 1 Samuel 22: Prophet Gad tells David, “Don’t go back to the cave. Return to Judah.” (38:06–39:00)
• Interpretation: “Don’t go back to old ways, confusion, unhealthy relationships, or things you’ve left behind. Go to Judah.” (39:00)
• Judah means praise: The call is to move forward into praise, not regress into past ruts (39:31).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Cave:
  • “Caves come to isolate us. Caves come to mute your praise and echo your fears. Caves come to amplify your doubts and trap your thoughts…But David didn’t allow the cave to cave him in.” (05:00–05:21)
• On Anchoring:
  • “He didn’t anchor in the promise. He anchored in the Promiser.” (12:41)
  • “Anchors don’t stop storms ... But when it’s anchored, there’s only so much shaking ... before that thing snatches you back.” (17:28)
• On Prayer:
  • “God is my first response, not my last resort.” (21:02)
  • “Your Father who sees your private prayer will reward you openly.” (21:41)
• On Steadfastness:
  • “Pressure should always push us further into God. Pressure is proof that quitting would cost you something.” (28:45)
  • “Your fast today becomes your testimony tomorrow.” (31:47)
• To Young Believers:
  • “God used disciplined teenagers to disrupt an undisciplined culture. This generation doesn’t need more hype, it needs more holy hunger.” (32:04)
• On Praise:
  • “Some of your greatest worship will be written in your darkest places.” (36:34)
  • “David fixed his mouth in praise and not in pity.” (37:05)
• On Moving Forward:
  • “Don’t go back to the cave. Go to Judah. … Judah means praise.” (39:00–39:31)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Honoring Dr. King & Introduction of Psalm 57: 00:33–04:20
• David’s Cave Experience & Confession: 04:20–07:15
• Explaining a Fixed Heart (“kun”): 09:29–11:05
• Fixed Heart as Thermostat Not Thermometer: 10:55–11:30
• Anchoring in God: 11:49–15:01
• Hebrews 6 – the Anchor of Hope: 16:34–17:28
• Prioritizing Prayer: 19:25–23:09
• Focus on Faithfulness: 23:24–26:41
• Steadfast under Pressure – Daniel & Hebrews: 27:08–33:43
• To the Young Generation: 32:04–34:43
• Worship Before the Win: 35:24–37:05
• Prophecy—“Go to Judah” (Don’t Go Back): 38:06–39:31

Tone & Delivery

Javon Ruff’s style is passionate, urgent, and deeply encouraging. His message combines biblical exegesis, practical application, and prophetic exhortation—speaking particularly to those in difficult seasons and to young believers facing cultural pressure. The tone throughout is hopeful and faith-building, underscoring God’s faithfulness and the believer’s potential to remain fixed and fruitful in every circumstance.