Those that Hunger....Shall be Fed!

Our church is on a 3 day fast. Today is day 2. We break the fast tomorrow after church with a soup supper. I'm hungry physically, but I'm getting fed spiritually.

I've never been a huge fan of fasting. I'm not a glutton, but I like food. But I've never really met anyone who says, "Man I love to fast. It's my favorite thing." However, I'm finding some things out about fasting, and I'm finding that my spiritual man (woman, I guess) is really enjoying it.

Here are some reasons why fasting is beneficial for me:

  • I don't consciously think about food too often. If I'm hungry I eat, and even when I'm not hungry I eat. It's more of a habit. Eating is almost like breathing. I do it all the time, I just don't consciously think about it. However, when I don't eat I am so conscious of food. I wake up thinking about eating, I go to bed thinking about food. As I drive and pass every single restaurant, I think of my favorite food and how I wish I could stop by and order it. The good thing about thinking about food so much is that every time I think about food, I think about God and the fast. I normally wouldn't think of God at all those times during the day, but fasting makes me more aware of God. And now that I'm more aware of God, I can hear His voice a lot more clearly.
  • Fasting is worship. Fasting is a form of self sacrifice. Fasting is killing the flesh. I don't have to do a lot of killing of my flesh often. I was raised in church, and therefore I'm not tempted with a ton of fleshly things. I mean there is the temptation to gossip or tell a little lie, but I'm not dealing with addictions or sex or murder. So by fasting, I am truly giving my all to God. Fasting for me is more a mind than a stomach thing. There have been very few times that my stomach was growling or hurting from lack of food. There have been many times where my brain just said, "I want food!" Again by saying no to food, my brain is having to be told no, and God is yet again thought of.
  • I find that I don't really benefit much from fasting a meal or even just one day. For me, it takes the whole first day to break my will. But every time I've fasted for multiple days, I find by the second day I am more sensitive to God. Now I'm not saying this is the same for everyone, and I'm not saying that God doesn't except our sacrifice even if it is small, but for me I think a multiple day fast is much more beneficial. God knows that I'm serious about drawing closer to him.
Now, none of this means that it's not hard to fast. I realize that 3 days is nothing compared to Jesus's 40 days, but God knows my heart and sees my faith. For those more spiritual than me, I'm sure that my measly 3 days is nothing, but it's something to God. And don't you even think I won't be chowing down on some soup tomorrow night :)

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