Are You Fasting?
I proclaimed a fast, Â… so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey. Ezra 8:21 (part) (NIV)
In the Post-Modern world in which we live there has been a de-emphasizing of the importance of certain religious practices. One such practice which has been ‘placed on the back burner’ of our religious lives is that of fasting. Fasting seems to be spoken of now more by health experts, who emphasize the cleansing effect of fasting, than by religious persons who should be emphasizing the spiritual benefits of doing something Jesus commanded by word and deed.
Fasting is much more than abstaining from food, and its benefits go way beyond cleansing the body of impurities. The religious reason for abstaining from food, or anything else that we may choose, is firstly, to bring into focus our total dependence on God, and secondly, after being totally reliant on God, to do what God requires of us. Fasting then is not about torturing ourselves or to test the limits of our self-control. Fasting is not about the lack of food but the provision of God. It is not about what we are capable of accomplishing but what God is able to accomplish through us.
In the Post-Modern world in which we live there has been a de-emphasizing of the importance of certain religious practices. One such practice which has been ‘placed on the back burner’ of our religious lives is that of fasting. Fasting seems to be spoken of now more by health experts, who emphasize the cleansing effect of fasting, than by religious persons who should be emphasizing the spiritual benefits of doing something Jesus commanded by word and deed.
Fasting is much more than abstaining from food, and its benefits go way beyond cleansing the body of impurities. The religious reason for abstaining from food, or anything else that we may choose, is firstly, to bring into focus our total dependence on God, and secondly, after being totally reliant on God, to do what God requires of us. Fasting then is not about torturing ourselves or to test the limits of our self-control. Fasting is not about the lack of food but the provision of God. It is not about what we are capable of accomplishing but what God is able to accomplish through us.
The proclamation of a fast by Ezra (8:21) was to accomplish these two goals, to bring into focus their total dependence on God (so that we might humble ourselves before our God) and to do what God required of them (to undertake the journey without fear of their enemies).
The verse from Luke 22:35 (Jesus said to the disciples:‘When I sent you out without a purse, bag, or sandals, did you lack anything?’ They said, ‘No, not a thing.’) speaks to a fast which was not just about abstinence from food, but accomplished the same goals – the disciples learnt to be totally dependent on God and this allowed God to use them to accomplish his will.
Fasting from anything (food, sex, TV, BB, etc.) should show us that we can do without any of these things for awhile. We do not live by bread alone. The only thing we should not fast from is the presence of God, which, unfortunately, sometimes we do. Paul’s entreaty to pray without ceasing is another way to say ‘do not take a fast from the presence of God.’
Prayer – Eternal God, we confess that at times we act as though we can not do without the temporal things with which you bless us. Help us to take a break from some of these things to focus our attention on our total dependence on you, and even as we do that reveal to us your will for our lives as we totally commit ourselves to you. Amen.
Rev. Gary Gardiner
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