Why Fast?

Note 1: This reflection on fasting is not intended for those struggling with disordered eating. If this is you, please know God loves you deeply, and please seek help. You can start here.

Nobody likes to fast.
Nobody likes fasting. Least of all, me. I really enjoy food – the ceremony and culture of it and the gut-satisfaction part, too. Food must be a source of comfort to me, because I often turn to munching mindlessly when stressed or upset. I have only lived my own experience, so maybe it’s just me, but I fasted often – regularly and earnestly – as a young adult without much hesitation.

But at this stage of life, it’s more of a wrestle. I come up with endless excuses why fasting on this particular day would be difficult: I’ll be impatient with my daughter, I need to be clear-thinking for that presentation, I won’t have the energy to do such-and-such.

Something C.S. Lewis wrote in Screwtape Letters has stuck in my head as a pithy, little self-conviction. If you’re not familiar with this fictional work, the narrators are demons (more interesting than terrifying) observing and tempting Christians:

“[in the past]…her senses were more easily pleased and she had pleasures of other kinds which made her less dependent on those of the table.”

That’s me. When I delight in less and less – especially during the slog of a Michigan winter – I am drawn to food as pleasure, and I am tight-fisted with my one pleasure when I consider the spiritual discipline of fasting.

Lent = A Time To Fast
It doesn’t help that I have typically fasted from coffee for Lent. (It sounds so petty and pampered, but the headaches!) This year, I’m fasting from chocolate and wine. I don’t want to. And I’m not doing it to punish myself or to become more holy. I’m doing it because I believe it will be good for my soul.

Lent is the season leading up to Easter, and it is historically a time of fasting in preparation for celebrating the Resurrection. All throughout the Bible, we see fasting as the precursor to feasting. It appears that fasting is a form of preparation – it forces us to self-reflect and look inward – and it makes us enjoy our coming feast that much more!

My daughter often says, “Hunger is the best chef”

The word Lent comes from the Latin root meaning “to lengthen.” It’s the 40-day period prior to Easter, excluding Sundays, that begins on Ash Wednesday and concludes on Holy Saturday (the Saturday before Easter). While it’s a beautiful tradition in the Church calendar, Lent is open to all of us – you can observe in a multitude of ways, regardless of your church tradition. If fasting isn’t for you, consider adding a Lenten devotional to your day from the YouVersion Bible App.

“Although Lent is not found in the Scriptures, many Jesus followers choose to participate through practices such as reflection, repentance and prayer as a way to prepare their hearts for Easter.” – Andrew Kim, Troy Lead Pastor

Is Fasting For Present-Day Christians?
You may have heard of people experimenting with “intermittent fasting” or others fasting for gut health, but fasting as a spiritual discipline may be new to you. So, why do it? It’s mentioned in the Bible, but often alongside “sack cloth and ashes” and we don’t often see those expressions anymore.

For us, as present-day Christians, we’re very used to comfort and full bellies. I have come to realize that I’m very uncomfortable with being uncomfortable! I’m often not gutsy enough to choose discomfort – even when it’s for a good cause.

Because we have the ability to meet our physical needs – even the tiny, petty ones – we have a sense of control, of self-sustaining power that abates our anxiety. A full cupboard, a meal plan, five granola bars in my purse and a venti latte feels like a pat on the back and a misleading whisper, “You’re not so mortal after all.”

Fasting forces me to realize that most other days I accept without critical thought that the fulfillment of my physical needs will lead to contentment and peace.

The Mysterious & Meaningful
“Why fast?” I texted my tallest and wisest friend, and she texted back:

Short answer: to declutter spiritually.
To step back from my go-to comforts and recalibrate my dependence on Jesus as my comfort, solace, complete fulfillment. To simplify life and name addictions that lead me to worship the gift rather than the Giver…How about you? Why fast?

My short answer: it humbles me…which lifts my eyes

In the Psalms, King David says that fasting humbled his soul (Psalm 69:10).

Fasting is an act of voluntary deprivation in order to seek God and humble self. My discomfort reminds me that I am fragile and mortal and created.

Fasting reminds me that I am a sinner and that I can’t save myself.

Why choose physical discomfort and then this heavy revelation too? It’s still a wrestle for me, but this humbled place is the only position from which I can
fully,
clearly
see
and
embrace
the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus Christ!

Fasting is good for my soul.
(And the feast is coming!)

Note 2: Have questions about fasting and Lent? Contact a staff member from your campus:

• Birmingham: Jenny Warns | [email protected]
• Clarkston: Jerrod Lee | [email protected]
• Clinton Twp: Tracey Henkel | [email protected]
• Orion: Susan Welsh | [email protected]
• Traverse City: Brent Swensen | [email protected]
• Troy: Gabrielle Brinkley | [email protected]