I've been learning a lot about fasting lately - recently, a friend of mine was hospitalized after a terrible accident. I spent the day fasting ... it was only a partial fast, I had a long, busy day ahead of me and I knew that if I didn't eat anything at all, I would get grumpy and ridiculous and depressed all at once.
But what is the point of fasting? A friend of mine asked me that once about a year ago. I pondered it again yesterday as the deep anxiety and sadness weighed on my heart; I was fasting to help me focus, to express myself, and to sacrifice something to God ... all at once.
After a long time mulling over exactly what it means to fast and what the point of it might be, I thought I'd write about what I've learned; here are seven things that are important to keep in mind during a spiritual fast!
.1 Keep your motivation in focus at all times.
Don't let other purposes creep into the fast; there have been times I've halfheartedly done a fast that I kept up to help me lose weight at least as much as I did it as an act of worship. After a while, I realized there was something very wrong about this.
First of all, you have to fully understand your own passion that first drove you to sacrifice your time and food-energy for God. If your sacrifice begins to twist into something focused on yourself, it starts to seem purposeless; don't get me wrong though! Occasionally, a liquid fast is fantastic for your physical health, but don't start something for God, then get lost along the path for any reason.
.2 Baby steps are more effective than leaps.
I would suggest that you always set small time limits on a fast, regardless of whether you're experienced in spiritual fasting or not. Taking the fast one meal - or even one hour - at a time makes every decision to keep going more personal; every milestone you hit will remind you once again to pray ... even if all you say is, 'God, this next hour I'm fasting again for you to show my passion/dedication ..." and so on.
This method also eliminates guilt when you crack for that chocolate chip cookie after only five hours without eating; what we often forget is that a small but heartfelt sacrifice is better than none at all. I even believe something like eating plain rice for breakfast (in stead of your usual coffee, cereal, and fruit) in remembrance of the poor in third world countries counts as a beautiful and effective fast in the Lord's eyes.
.3 Make prayer the central part of your fast.
Want to set food aside for a while without spending any of your day in prayer? I personally believe that that's nothing but starving yourself. Even busy people find the time for what's most important to them - pray as you work, study, or clean, if only for a few minutes at a time! If prayer is made the most central part of your sacrifice, then the more difficult parts of the fast will be easier to overcome.
.4 Pay attention to body cues.
If you feel sick, take a break. It's simple. The problem is, sometimes that's easier said than done; most of the hardship of a fast is a battle of the mind. Sometimes, it's harder than you expect to resist when faced with a sugary craving ... but to force yourself to eat something healthy when you can feel yourself going downhill.
Anyone facing extreme dizziness, trembling, or a racing heart should stop or pause their fast to take care of their bodies; God may ask for sacrifice or self-control, but the point of a fast is never to make yourself ill.
Don't be upset if you have to stop! If you're still determined to continue the fast later, pick yourself up again, keep yours eyes on the goal, and restart when you feel prepared.
.5 Fasting is not for everyone.
If fasting begins to do the opposite of its purpose - it begins to distract you from your prayer time or passionate focus on God - discontinue the fast. There's little point in it if it doesn't better you spiritually. And don't forget - it's also just fine to start again another time.
.6 Don't forget less common forms of fasting.
As in ... every other fasts that do not involve good.
God honors sacrifices of other forms too, of course! If you like, you can sacrifice time on your phone, laptop or TV, create isolation or rest time for the sole purpose of prayer, or anything else you might pick. Just find things that really mean something to you or will symbolize your serious commitment to seeking out wisdom or blessing from God.
As long as you keep in mind that fasting is a form of worship, you really can't go wrong! Personally, I tend to stick with liquids that I believe will give me enough energy to keep going without any serious calories (e.g., apple juice, green tea, carrot juice, non-fat milk). Otherwise, if I'm particularly committed, I'll only drink water - I do this in small steps to bring to the surface of my heart the emptiness or ache I feel over a particular tragedy. The physical reminder gives me the strength to keep praying. One night, in stead of doing a food fast, I stayed awake several hours later than I was used to being awake (at the time) and prayed non-stop. I kept awake until I felt a spiritual 'break through' and was able to go to sleep in peace ... not just because I was tired, but because I felt like my prayers had been powerful and effective. I saw answers and tangible evidence of that breakthrough within days.
.7 Pay attention to words from God or breakthroughs in prayer.
Last but not least. This one is particularly important, of course! More often than not, fasting brings us closer to God and opens our hearts to the spiritual world. I don't exactly understand the chemistry behind this, but I've heard it from others and I've felt it myself; for those of you who haven't experienced anything while fasting, I personally feel as though I make a breakthrough in prayer immediately after I break my fast, more often than not. Again, I can only imagine why this is, but God speaks to people in a variety of different ways and during different times.
If you're working or busy while you fast, make certain you have windows of time to soak in the presence of God.
In fact, for many of us, just setting some time aside for prayer and fasting becomes a basic lesson on just how to savor the presence of God; an invaluable lesson you'll never forget.
But what is the point of fasting? A friend of mine asked me that once about a year ago. I pondered it again yesterday as the deep anxiety and sadness weighed on my heart; I was fasting to help me focus, to express myself, and to sacrifice something to God ... all at once.
After a long time mulling over exactly what it means to fast and what the point of it might be, I thought I'd write about what I've learned; here are seven things that are important to keep in mind during a spiritual fast!
.1 Keep your motivation in focus at all times.
Don't let other purposes creep into the fast; there have been times I've halfheartedly done a fast that I kept up to help me lose weight at least as much as I did it as an act of worship. After a while, I realized there was something very wrong about this.
First of all, you have to fully understand your own passion that first drove you to sacrifice your time and food-energy for God. If your sacrifice begins to twist into something focused on yourself, it starts to seem purposeless; don't get me wrong though! Occasionally, a liquid fast is fantastic for your physical health, but don't start something for God, then get lost along the path for any reason.
.2 Baby steps are more effective than leaps.
I would suggest that you always set small time limits on a fast, regardless of whether you're experienced in spiritual fasting or not. Taking the fast one meal - or even one hour - at a time makes every decision to keep going more personal; every milestone you hit will remind you once again to pray ... even if all you say is, 'God, this next hour I'm fasting again for you to show my passion/dedication ..." and so on.
This method also eliminates guilt when you crack for that chocolate chip cookie after only five hours without eating; what we often forget is that a small but heartfelt sacrifice is better than none at all. I even believe something like eating plain rice for breakfast (in stead of your usual coffee, cereal, and fruit) in remembrance of the poor in third world countries counts as a beautiful and effective fast in the Lord's eyes.
.3 Make prayer the central part of your fast.
Want to set food aside for a while without spending any of your day in prayer? I personally believe that that's nothing but starving yourself. Even busy people find the time for what's most important to them - pray as you work, study, or clean, if only for a few minutes at a time! If prayer is made the most central part of your sacrifice, then the more difficult parts of the fast will be easier to overcome.
.4 Pay attention to body cues.
If you feel sick, take a break. It's simple. The problem is, sometimes that's easier said than done; most of the hardship of a fast is a battle of the mind. Sometimes, it's harder than you expect to resist when faced with a sugary craving ... but to force yourself to eat something healthy when you can feel yourself going downhill.
Anyone facing extreme dizziness, trembling, or a racing heart should stop or pause their fast to take care of their bodies; God may ask for sacrifice or self-control, but the point of a fast is never to make yourself ill.
Don't be upset if you have to stop! If you're still determined to continue the fast later, pick yourself up again, keep yours eyes on the goal, and restart when you feel prepared.
.5 Fasting is not for everyone.
If fasting begins to do the opposite of its purpose - it begins to distract you from your prayer time or passionate focus on God - discontinue the fast. There's little point in it if it doesn't better you spiritually. And don't forget - it's also just fine to start again another time.
.6 Don't forget less common forms of fasting.
As in ... every other fasts that do not involve good.
God honors sacrifices of other forms too, of course! If you like, you can sacrifice time on your phone, laptop or TV, create isolation or rest time for the sole purpose of prayer, or anything else you might pick. Just find things that really mean something to you or will symbolize your serious commitment to seeking out wisdom or blessing from God.
As long as you keep in mind that fasting is a form of worship, you really can't go wrong! Personally, I tend to stick with liquids that I believe will give me enough energy to keep going without any serious calories (e.g., apple juice, green tea, carrot juice, non-fat milk). Otherwise, if I'm particularly committed, I'll only drink water - I do this in small steps to bring to the surface of my heart the emptiness or ache I feel over a particular tragedy. The physical reminder gives me the strength to keep praying. One night, in stead of doing a food fast, I stayed awake several hours later than I was used to being awake (at the time) and prayed non-stop. I kept awake until I felt a spiritual 'break through' and was able to go to sleep in peace ... not just because I was tired, but because I felt like my prayers had been powerful and effective. I saw answers and tangible evidence of that breakthrough within days.
.7 Pay attention to words from God or breakthroughs in prayer.
Last but not least. This one is particularly important, of course! More often than not, fasting brings us closer to God and opens our hearts to the spiritual world. I don't exactly understand the chemistry behind this, but I've heard it from others and I've felt it myself; for those of you who haven't experienced anything while fasting, I personally feel as though I make a breakthrough in prayer immediately after I break my fast, more often than not. Again, I can only imagine why this is, but God speaks to people in a variety of different ways and during different times.
If you're working or busy while you fast, make certain you have windows of time to soak in the presence of God.
In fact, for many of us, just setting some time aside for prayer and fasting becomes a basic lesson on just how to savor the presence of God; an invaluable lesson you'll never forget.
