spiritual discipline tuesday: fasting

When Joe Kennedy invited me to participate in this series, I had a feeling he was going to ask me to post about fasting--and he did. So, here we go...

Introduction to fasting

First of all, fasting is one of those disciplines that is very unpopular in USAmerican Evangelical Christianity because, quite frankly, we here in the States for the most part like to eat and we like our comfort. I submit to you that while not the primary reason for abstaining from food, the breaking of habits of over-indulgence and excessive comfort are two of the very reasons why we need to practice the ancient art of fasting. The primary reason as with all other Christian spiritual disciplines is, of course, to enable the disciple of Jesus Christ to cultivate the grace-filled soul and lifestyle. Fasting from food uniquely nourishes the spirit in dependence upon Christ.

What follows are two sections dealing with the scriptural precedent for fasting and a few practical steps to help you practice this discipline in your life. (I am sorry that I do not reference anything here. The material below is an amalgamation of multiple resources. For the serious student of fasting, I suggest Richard J. Foster's A Celebration of Discipline.)

Biblical basis for fasting

What does the Bible say about fasting? The normal means of fasting described in Scripture involves abstaining from all food, solid or liquid, but not from water (c.f. Luke 4:2 – where Satan tempted Jesus with food, not water). There are two additional, less common modes of fasting found in Scripture:

• Partial fasts – Partial fasts involve a restriction from something within a diet, but not a total abstaining of food (c.f. Daniel 10:3 – where Daniel and other fasted from meat and alcohol).
• Absolute fasts – These fasts were rare and involve abstaining from both food and water (c.f. Esther 4:16; Acts 9:9). Moses and Elijah experienced a supernatural absolute fast of 40 days (Deut. 9:9; 1 Kings 19:8). A word of caution: absolute fasts were the rare exception to the rule in the Bible and as such should not be engaged in without very clear direction from God, a medical evaluation and for no more than three days due to the physical danger that it poses.

What did Jesus teach about fasting? In Matthew 6:16-18 Jesus taught on the subject of fasting in the context of his teachings on giving and prayer in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). Here he assumes that his followers--then and now--will fast regularly, and that it will be a personal experience between Jesus and his follower:

“And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” – Matthew 6:16-18

In Luke 5:33-39 Jesus was questioned why his disciples didn’t fast. His response indicates that his followers would resume fasting upon his physical absence: “Can you make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days” (Luke 5:34-35). This is a word for Jesus' disciples then and today, encouraging us to fast in Jesus' physical absence.

Fasting is not a way to spiritually twist God’s arm so that he will do something for you. As a spiritual discipline it can help you practically develop humility, dependence on God and a prayerful spirit as you learn to feed on Christ.

Finally, fasting is a personal matter between the individual and God. When you fast, you should tell only those who need to know. For instance, I generally only let my wife know when I am going to fast so that she can pray for me. She is usually careful not to eat in front of me or to cook anything really savory while I am fasting. I suggest that you ask at least one other believer to be praying for you when you plan to fast because my own experience has taught me that it can be a powerful spiritual battleground.

Group fasts (church-wide, small group, family, etc.) are often powerful ways to experience healing and deliverance as a community. There are many references to group fasting in both Old and New Testaments. Metanoia Covenant Partners are currently engaged in a group fasting for three weeks. We are fasting one meal/week (that is only one meal on one day for only one day/week) and practicing dependence upon Jesus for next year's financial and directional needs.

Practicing the discipline of fasting

• If you are medically unable to abstain from food find something else to fast from, such as media, sweets, speaking, etc.. (In the past I have abstained from media consumption for a seven days.)
• Don’t discourage yourself! Fasting from food can be difficult—the last thing you want to do is fast for a period of time and give up because of the difficulty. Practice fasting in small, incremental steps:
  • Fast from one meal two or three times. Drink juices until you can fast drinking only water. When you are drinking only water try a longer fast period.
  • When ready, fast for 24 hours (skip two meals). Do this two or three times until you are used to the physical sensations. Start with juices again until you are okay only drinking water.
  • When ready, fast for 36 hours (skip three meals). Do this several times before trying to fast for longer periods and use the juice-to-water as an indicator for your preparedness to try a longer period of fasting.
  • Additional suggest timeframes would be: 3-4 days, 1 week and 40 days.
• Preparing for your fast:
  • Do not consume alcohol or caffeine for 24 hours before your fast.
  • Before you begin your fast eat a light meal of fruits and vegetables. Eating a large meal can actually increase the hunger pangs and make, uhm, “elimination” a bit more difficult.
• When fasting:
  • When you fast, read passages that relate to fasting. In particular: Isaiah 58, Matthew 6:16-18 and Luke 5:34-35. If you are fasting with a group pray about whatever the group has been challenged to pray about.
  • Stay hydrated!! Drink copious amounts of water. Drinking water can help remove hunger pangs.
  • If you experience headaches when you are learning how to fast, drink white juices such as white grape juice or apple juice. Stay away from dark colored juices like red grape juice and orange juice.
  • If you accidentally consume food during your fast, don’t worry. Accept it as a gift from God and continue your fast.
  • When experiencing hunger pangs pray, read scripture or meditate to acknowledge your dependence on God.
  • Rest. Depending on how long you fast, you might feel fatigued. Use that time to allow your body to rest and cultivate sabbath time with Jesus.
  • Journal!! Write down everything--from your physical sensations to the spiritual truths God reveals to you.

Spiritual Discipline Tuesday series

The following bloggers have also posted about fasting (click the name to see the post): Paul Littleton, Art Rogers, Paul del Signore.

Archive list of the disciplines (with links) and the bloggers involved in this series available via my series introduction post.

Comments

[Paul]

Most excellent. A little more thorough than I took it. I'll be pointing others here.

[adam feldman]

thanks, paul. since i am only posting on 5 or 6 of the disciplines i could afford more time/space for this one. peace and coffee...

[Ken]

Adam,

Really good post and I agree thorough considering the limitations of a blog. I applaud yours and others efforts to remind us of the disciplines that should be part of the"normal Christian life", that we have made extreme exceptions. Although I have practice fasting in the past, I would say that it is not a natural part of my walk. I need to do better.

I do have one question that I am unable to reconcile from your post. Where do we find either in Scripture that it is appropriate to enter a fast of something other than food, i.e., media? I think this is a good idea, but can we call this biblical fasting or as Paul states in Hebrews 12:1, "1Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,..."

Good job!!

[adam feldman]

thanks for the encouraging word, ken. regarding the "media fast" and other non-food fasting i tend to view these as options when you cannot fast from food for medical reasons. the media fast that i practiced was a result of my feeling trapped, controlled and bombarded by my usage of media. i used that time to "be still" before Jesus. however, the media fast may actually be more closely related to the disciplines of silence and solitude (which i will also be posting on). viewed as one of these disciplines, i think hebrews 12:1 reflects such a desire to abstain from anything that gets in the way of our relationship with Christ.

thanks for getting me thinking!

[Joe Kennedy]

SO glad you did this.

[adam feldman]

joe~ one of the reasons why i'm not blogging on each discipline every week is to spend more time on the ones that i am blogging on. thanks for inviting me to be a part of your brain child!