The Spiritual Practice of Fasting
If you are thinking about fasting on Ash Wednesday (and I hope you are), I’d like to offer a few pointers about preparing to do so. Typically Ash Wednesday (this Wednesday) is a day of fasting to prepare us to rely on God and focus our energy on Him If you’ve never fasted before for spiritual reasons, here are a few pointers…
- Fasting should not be done for show. You don’t need to post about it on Social Media. Or tell everyone you see. Jesus got a bit wordy about people who did that.
- Fasting for health reasons is different that fasting for spiritual reasons. THIS IS NOT A WEIGHT LOSS PLAN. Maybe you can lose weight. But you can’t be focused on God and something else at the same time. This time lets focus on God.
- You may need to work your way up to it. You don’t start the spiritual practice of fasting by giving up food for 24 hours. Its not smart. Its not healthy. But you can start by giving up something. Perhaps coffee or chocolate (I never said it’d be easy people). Then work up to giving up one meal or pushing a meal out a few hours. Maybe you have a smoothie or drink juices or broth. After a few times of trying this, you could work up to a 12+ hour fast. Make sure that you are clear about your intentions. This is a spiritual discipline and a means of grace so expect to rely on God during the fast as well as experience God through it.
- Don’t crack out on carbs the day before. If you plan to fast on Ash Wednesday (or any day), plan ahead. Its okay to eat extra amounts on the day before but be sure to have some protein and veggies. And plan your meal before the start of your fast and the first meal afterwards. You can do this!
Fasting isn’t easy but it’s worth it.
Until Everyone Hears,