As I gear up to start my first big 21 day Daniel fast, I find myself focusing more on what foods I can't eat, then the purpose of my fast, I am creating a place of intimacy with my heavenly father to give a clear sense of direction and purpose for
Zac and I for 2011.
I am desperate for a clear sense of direction, to hear God's voice more clearly as his daughter and for my family. I am hoping for a total change of lifestyle, that I will have so many sweet encounters with Jesus that going back to my everyday routine won't be appetizing to me.
I couldn't go back to sleep after Aly was up for a feeding so, I was thinking about my fast and I was reminded of this book I read my freshman year of college in my Christian Spirituality class, Celebration of the Disciplines, Richard Foster. He begins the section of fasting
“In a culture where the landscape is dotted with shrines to the Golden Arches and an assortment of Pizza Temples, fasting seems out of place, out of step with the times. In fact, fasting has been in general disrepute both in and outside the Church for many years. What would account for this almost total disregard of a subject so frequently mentioned in Scripture and so ardently practiced by Christians through the centuries?"Two things: First, fasting has developed a bad reputation as a result of the excessive ascetic practices of the Middle Ages. ... Second, the constant propaganda fed us today convinces us that if we do not have three large meals each day, with several snacks in between, we are on the verge of starvation. This coupled with the popular belief that it is a positive virtue to satisfy every human appetite, has made fasting seem obsolete."
He goes onto say
"Throughout Scripture fasting refers to abstaining from food for spiritual purposes. It stands in distinction to the hunger strike, the purpose of which is to gain political power or attract attention to a good cause. It is also distinct from health dieting which stresses abstinence from food for physical, not spiritual, purposes. .. That is not to say that these forms of ‘fasting’ are wrong...but their objective is different from the fasting described in Scripture. Biblical fasting always centers on spiritual purposes."
This has has helped remind me to get my focus off of the food aspect, and more on being spiritually focused, because I know that if I don't acknowledge my struggle of being food focused now when I begin my fast tomorrow the enemy will gladly use my own weakness against me. Any thought that comes in my mind that takes my focus off my spiritual purpose to fast, I will know it's not from God. I know through this fast, breakthroughs are going to take place!
This articulates my heart and excitement for fasting,
"It is sobering to realize that the very first statement Jesus made about fasting dealt with the question of motive (Matt. 6:16-18). ... Fasting must forever center on God. Once the primary purpose of fasting is firmly fixed in our hearts, we are at liberty to understand that there are also secondary purposes in fasting. More than any other discipline, fasting reveals the things that control us. ... We cover up what is inside us with food and other good things, but in fasting these things surface. ... Fasting reminds us that we are sustained ‘by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God’. Food does not sustain us, God sustains us. Therefore, in experiences of fasting we are not so much abstaining from food as we are feasting on the word of God."
This is the purpose of my fast, to reveal what hinders or covers up anything that separates me from God.
My Prayer for myself and everyone that is encouraged to fast, is that the primary purpose of fasting is firmly fixed in our hearts. God is the center.
Fasting is a personal short-term sacrifice for long term spiritual benefit. The little we do through our sacfrice, God surpasses by one encounter with him. He makes it all worth it. We serve a good God, who always goes the extra mile to be in relationship with us.
Working with young people, one of the questions I am asked the most frequently is "How do you hear and know God's voice, followed by how do you know its real?"
My answer is always begins with, once you make an effort to go after God through prayer, worship, and fasting, God always speaks and always answers. To have any relationship it takes work, same with God! Go after him, when you seek, you will find, and when you find, you will love. With seeking God there is always a reward for your heart, mind, and spirit! Unlike any other relationship, seeking out peoples affections could lead to broken hearts and frustration, if not reciprocated, but with God that is never the case. Why would the God of creation, teach us how to have relationships in his word and not follow through. His desire for us is to be close to him, have pure relationship with him, and take what we have learned and live it out unto the world.
I hope my scattered thoughts make sense and my heart for true fellowship with my Father is at the core of this blog. I am so excited for all the breakthroughs and spiritual growth, that is going to take place in my life and my relationship with God, through fasting.
