Fasting had always been something I knew about but was a discipline that we rarely participated in or talked much about. To me, that was something the “really dedicated people” did and that was not me. I did not spend a lot of time reading about fasting and did not understand it. Fasting is much more than just not eating for a period of time, starving yourself for no apparent reason.
Fasting is a discipline that goes back to the Old Testament and is practiced across multiple religions. From a health perspective, there are many benefits to fasting. Imagine that. Something that God implemented for us turns out to actually be good for us. It is amazing how much energy our body uses to digest the food we eat. When we fast, it allows our bodies to heal faster and use some of that energy to get our systems back to “normal”.
A few years ago, one of the doctors I work with introduced me to intermittent fasting and some resources around fasting. It has made a huge difference in my life. During the fasting state, your body experiences an increase in blood flow to the brain. When I fast regularly, I have more energy, I am mentally more alert, and I can think more clearly. There are many more physical benefits to fasting, but this is the most important for our purposes. Being more mentally aware, alert, and having a clearer mind puts us in a better physical state to listen to God and have a clearer understanding of his teaching.
Fasting for spiritual growth is much more than just not eating and starving yourself. The not eating is designed to clear our minds and increase our mental “sharpness.” Spiritual fasting calls us to spend an extended time in prayer and study. It is a time of personal growth and drawing closer to God. Spiritual fasting is an important discipline to grow closer to God and listen to what the Spirit is telling us. It is much more than simply going without food.
I know some say that during a time of spiritual fasting, take the time you would spend eating and spend that time in prayer. I don’t know about you, but I am a busy father going to baseball games, working long hours, and simply trying to keep up with everything I have on my calendar. Meals are often less than 15 minutes and are more likely eaten in the car, at a baseball game, or in between something else. At work, when I do get to eat, it is almost always at my desk while I am working or in the middle of a meeting. Dedicating my “mealtime” to prayer would not be very much time.
In “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry”, John Comer makes the observation that the biggest thief of joy today is distraction. What is it that is distracting you from God? For many of us, it is our phone. The constant notifications of that new text, Facebook message, e-mail, or notice from any number of apps we have set to notify us of things we just can’t live without. All of that information at our fingertips. We can’t stand to have a question that we don’t know the answer to. I didn’t even know I needed to know the answer to that question, but now it is suddenly urgent that I interrupt my face-to-face interaction and stare at my phone until I find the answer to the question that nobody cares about. We are constantly being distracted. When you wake up in the morning, do you grab your Bible and start reading, or do you grab your phone to see what you missed last night or turn on the TV to watch the morning news? Our world is full of distractions and the business of distracting us is a multi-billion-dollar industry. Most people call it “marketing”, but it is really professional distracting. Everybody wants our attention.
I practice fasting regularly, but primarily because I physically feel much better when I do. Spiritual fasting is a different story. I rarely take the time for a spiritual fast. A time to put aside the distractions and focus on God. It is interesting that in Matthew 6 Jesus follows the teaching about prayer with the teaching about fasting. These two are tied closely together. They are both centered around building a relationship with God, slowing down. and listening. “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).
“When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”
Matthew 6: 16-18
Fasting should be a normal part of our lives. Not just because it is good for our physical bodies, but because we need to learn to slow down. It is designed to help us seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. In his teaching for both prayer and fasting, Jesus uses the phrase “your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” Prayer and fasting are designed to bring us closer to God. They are not a show of our strength and great spiritual discipline.
Everybody wants my attention, but the one that deserves my attention the most is often the one that gets relegated to whatever time I have left over. I get too busy building my own kingdom to dedicate time to seeking the kingdom of God. Slow down this week. Put away the distractions and spend some time in prayer and fasting. Listen to what God is speaking to you as you continue to strengthen the foundation of your life and seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.
