chapter 13
"We are creatures of the senses: our mind is helped by what comes to us embodied in concrete form; fasting helps to express, to deepen, and to confirm the resolution that we are ready to sacrifice anything, to sacrifice ourselves, to attain what we seek for the Kingdom of God."
I chose this quote because it focuses on what fasting does/is to us instead of what it does to God. Too often the trap we find ourselves in is thinking that fasting manipulates God. Sometimes people think that fasting is the magic key that will open every door to God's heart; other times people think that it makes God feel so sorry for us that He has pity and answers our prayers. I personally think that fasting has a lot more to do with us than it does God.
Several things occur in us and to us when we fast: Our fraility and weakness, our intense desire to see what is unseen instead of partaking in what is already seen, how scattered are thoughts and intentions are, etc. Just as fasting (all or most food for a time) acts as a cleansing agent for the body, it also is used in that way for our hearts and minds by the Holy Spirit. The cravings of our body (sugar, caffeine, salt, etc) are brought to the surface, purified, and subdued in fasting, and that is also what the Lord wants to do in us in regards to the cravings of our flesh.
I believe that fasting is a time when God comes to work in us, instead of it being a time when we go to work on God. What do yall think?
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"Faith can only live by feeding on what is Divine, on God Himself."
ReplyDeleteI think for a long time I believed that if I fasted, the Lord would reward me for being super spiritual. I confess, I often find my mind still following that path more times than I'd like. But I am reminded with this quote that when I fast I am not doing it to impress God, but I am doing it to remind my flesh that every need, want, and desire is satisfied by the Divine.
"Let them give thanks to the Lord for His unfailing love and His wonderful deeds for men, for He satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things." (Psalm 107:8-9)
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ReplyDeleteBefore I had any substantial relationship with God, I believed that fasting was an "unpleasant observance" that most religious people practiced at one point or another (C.S. Lewis "God in the Dock"). I did not fast because I had no desire to fast, and I really cannot say that my sentiments have materially changed. I still resist fasting, but my deepening relationship with God demands more than just my prayers and my possessions - my Father desires joyful obedience in every way.
ReplyDeleteWith this in mind, when I do jump over the hurdle that is my flesh, with the help of the Holy Spirit, I see myself more clearly than I ever could apart from this period of discipline. I feel acutely with Murray in his observance that man is in nothing "more closely connected with the world of sense than in his need for food, and his enjoyment of it." Yes, I acknowledge that I revere food and the pleasures and comforts of the world more than I should. The real question is, what will I do about it? Discovery should lead to action, and yet so often I find myself content with second-rate discernment and skip acting on it.
Fasting, then, is an act (mostly for my own purposes, to grow closer to a God who is already close to me) and a doorway to encounter. We do not fast when the bridegroom is with us, but we fast to prepare for the bridegroom. For this reason, I believe that fasting is more for the individual and his or her spirit than for God, who waits to give to us if we will only ask and seek.
Sorry, I think I just wrote an uppity English paper.
I like how this addresses the cycle of faith i've been wondering about alot. That being faith -> prayer -> more faith -> more prayer etc.
ReplyDeleteI've been asking for the transformation of my mind to the extent that faith itself would be the evidence that what i asked for will happen. When i naturally want to analyze, then ask for proof of what is unseen, somehow faith itself is to become the evidence of that which is unseen.
Fasting always brings up this battle in my mind. Now I'm just trying to let him win and let faith be enough of an explanation.
"'According to your faith be it unto you,’ He announced the law of the kingdom, which tells us that all have not equal degrees of faith, that the same person has not always the same degree, and that the measure of faith must always determine the measure of power and of blessing. " (pg.97)
ReplyDeleteI often, in an attempt relate to the Lord in a religious or routine way, I avoid any sort of consistency whatsoever in the way I approach Him. However, in doing so I forget His unchanging ways. I forget that His nature is always the same and the way He receives a prayer of faith is constant. Hebrews 11:6 communicates the essence of the posture we must take when we approach the Father in prayer: faith-ful. It is not for the sake of a religious routine that I desire to approach God in the same manner each time I pray, but instead, with the purpose of bring Him delight through a life that is constantly full of faith. It is a posture that allows there to be mystery in the Lords acts, while knowing the unchanging nature of His ways: love.
This is huge:
ReplyDelete"That there had been nothing in the will of God or in the nature of the case to render deliverance impossible, had been proved: at Christ’s bidding the evil spirit had gone out."
Jessica - keep writing....but if you could record yourself saying it, that would be even better!
ReplyDeleteas soon as I saw Jessica's post, I was like, man, I wish she would read this to me.
ReplyDelete"Faith can only live by feeding on what is Divine, God Himself"
"Prayer is to grasp the invisible, while fasting is to let loose and cast away the invisible" (paraphrased)
My experience with fasting is that it has been an integral part of my faith. We stressed it a lot more last year, and I think that was perfect for me. It shaped the way I think of fasting from the get-go and for that I am thankful. Elliott I have been wondering about that same cycle. I have a problem with a hive-mentality, perhaps in a different way, believing something just because someone in authority told you to, but oddly as I have let go and let God I am believing more simply because I believe more. Sort of like, the fastest way to becoming prophetic is simply to believe that you are. Christian or not, it's proven.
Aaron, that verse haunts me sometimes. I think that I will ask you about it.