Fasting: What is it?
The idea of fasting is not new to me. However, over the past couple of weeks, a lot of my quiet times and discussions, as well as different things I have read elsewhere, have all revolved around fasting. So, I decided to pay closer attention to this prompting, and take the time to look into what fasting is all about and how I can incorporate it into my life.
It all started a couple of weeks ago when Brad brought up the idea of participating in a fast. I had often thought I would like to give it a try, but really didn’t know much about it. And, in order for me to really get into anything, I first need to understand as much as I can about it.
Unfortunately, learning the basics of fasting wasn’t in the cards for me that day. It turned out we were in the ER by 9 a.m. and by the time Brad was released, the McDonald’s drive-thru was calling our names. (Check out the lesson I learned on that day…)
After the events of that day, I didn’t really give fasting another thought. Until it came up while reading Resisting Happiness, during my quiet time last week. And, then again, the next day. And, then again while reading Margin, the next. So – you get why you’re reading this, right?
But, even though the topic kept coming up over and over, I really didn’t have a handle on what exactly fasting entailed – let alone why and how exactly I should do it. So, that’s where I started. I figured if I could get past at least one of the details that kept tripping me up – the what – then I was making progress.
Fasting in the Bible
First of all, I needed to learn more about what exactly fasting means. I had a general idea, and I have known people who have fasted. But, that definitely didn’t mean I understood. So, I wanted to study out what the Bible said on the topic. I remembered Jesus fasting in the desert, Moses fasting on Mount Sinai with God during the writing of the Ten Commandments, and Elijah fasting on his way to Mount Horeb.
When Moses fasted on Mount Sinai,
Moses was up on the mountain with the Lord for forty days and forty nights, and in all that time he neither ate nor drank. At that time God wrote out the Covenant – the Ten Commandments – on the stone tablets. Exodus 34:28 LAB
No food or drink. For forty days.
As the fasts of Jesus, Moses, and Elijah were really the only ones that stuck out to me in the Bible, this was the concept of fasting I had in my brain.
Maybe that’s why I had always put off learning about this topic. I just had 40 days and 40 nights in my head. That’s a big number. There was no way I could accomplish what those men of the Bible did. It always seemed like such an impossible feat. One that perhaps wasn’t meant for me.
However, after studying it out a bit more, I was surprised to see how many other people participated in fasts throughout the Bible.
Ironically, I had read through a lot of the books in which fasts are mentioned. Yet, not many of them seemed familiar. It was as if they didn’t register with me when I read it through the first time. It truly never ceases to amaze me how God makes different things clear at different times.
Regardless, I must have been prompted to prepare myself for this time during my trip to the closing Christian bookstore last spring. There, I came across The Essential Guide to Fasting, by Elmer L. Towns.
At the time, it seemed like a good resource to have for such a reasonable price, even though I had no immediate plans for reading it. But, now, as I pulled it off my shelf, I read the subtitle: What it is, How to do it, and Why it matters. The answers to my three major questions about fasting. Coincidence? Just ask God.
Just the suggestion of answers was like a balm to my racing mind. Those words, What, How and Why, seemed to calm my questions that automatically arose when I began thinking about fasting.
So, this guide, by Mr. Towns, seemed to be an excellent place to start.
What Exactly is Fasting?
In his book, Mr. Towns defined fasting as the following:
“Fasting is a non-required discipline where you alter your diet for a spiritual reason and accompany the experience with prayer.”
He further explained that there are many kinds of fasts for many different reasons. As I reread the passages in the Bible regarding others who fasted, I noticed that they mostly involved abstaining from eating – whether meat or bread or any food and drinking – either wine or water. The fasts were also of varying lengths. Some lasted one day, while others went three, and some lasted as long as seven days.
Matthew Kelly, in his book, Resisting Happiness, talked about giving up little things each day and accompanying those sacrifices with a prayer. He defined fasting in this way:
“Tiny sacrifices are offered to God as a prayer for specific intentions.”
Along those same lines, Dr. Swenson in his book,Margin, suggested that fasts could involve so much more than food. When talking about financial margin,Dr. Swenson stated:
“It is healthy to periodically separate from the things of the world and do without…in the context of financial margin, it is good to fast from shopping for periods of time.”
The idea that fasting didn’t need to involve food? That was a little different, and something I had never considered. But, it makes sense.
What I learned and am still learning
While others I have known have abstained from food in the past, I wasn’t ever sure if they were actually fasting or just not eating… Seeing as how I have failed at pretty much every diet I have ever attempted, my original understanding of just not eating was a bit daunting. However, when studying out others’ fasts in the Bible, I noticed that prayer is mentioned alongside fasting more often than not.
It’s not just about a lack of food or some other desire – those sacrifices are accompanied by prayer.
If it’s not just about not eating, I’m hoping I can be more successful than I had originally thought. If nothing else, now that I have studied out the What, I feel a bit more knowledgeable about the idea of fasting. As for right now, I need to keep studying out the exact Why and How.
So, were those people actually fasting? I’ll never know. But, now I know the difference between fasting and not eating. And, hopefully, as I continue to learn more than just the mechanics of it, I will be able to incorporate this act of sacrifice in my life.
Your thoughts?
What do you think? What have you learned about fasting and what exactly it is? I would love to hear what verses and other resources you have found that have helped you understand more about this topic. I can’t wait to hear from all of you!
