Partnering with God: Fasting

In my last entries, I wrote about intercessory prayer being an invitation to knowing God better and joining with Him on what He is wanting to do. I talked about revivals and how God is wanting to move mightily to invite everyone to Himself as He moves. This is so exciting as God is on the move and we are invited to join with Him in all that He is doing!

Another discipline often done in praying for God to move mightily and in seeking His face is fasting. Fasting and prayer often go hand-in-hand, they both express our desire for Him and trust in Him above our physical needs. It is a practice that is regularly done when someone is trying to seek God. Even Jesus, when He was on earth fasted for forty days before starting His ministry (Matthew 4). It is also something characteristic of people who have been a part of great revivals. Like intercessory prayer, fasting is a time to seek God’s face and partner with Him as we deny ourselves. It is not meant to be a way of harming our bodies but reminding ourselves that God is God, and we are not.

Fasting has been a very difficult practice in my life. I used to hate it. This is partly because I love food so going without it is very hard, but I also struggle with being religious in how I follow God so fasting has often been a dry and stressful experience! It also feels like a lot of work and effort for something I have not always been convinced was beneficial. Thankfully God has been redeeming the practice of fasting for me and keeps showing me His goodness and grace in my struggles. He has also been helping me see that there is so much more for me in my walk with Him that I have barely tasted. He wants to draw me ever so near and close to His heart. So, I want to say yes to Him and His invitation, even if it means giving up what I love and sacrificing my appetite and stress-eating habits to draw near. Going forward, I am going to start fasting one meal a week to keep it a consistent practice. I have just started, and it has not been the easiest. But thankfully God is faithful, and He loves me and my steps of faithfulness towards Him even when they are messy and not perfect. I’ll be honest, I have felt shame in writing this as I know I am pathetic, I have let my appetites rule me for so long. So this is something I will have to keep working on and asking God to shape my heart in. And, just like my practice in drawing faces, it takes time and discipline to be better, but once I know where to improve the journey becomes much more exciting and wonderful! Maybe I can become someone who draws better than I thought possible, and maybe I can become the faith-filled person I thought was so out of reach.

Any discipline God invites us into takes time and practice to grow in, but it is always worth it. I can tend to try to rush to the end goal while missing the beautiful work God is doing in and around me. The truth is that God is at work even when we do not feel it. God is doing mighty things and His invitation to partner with Him is not a casual “sure, I guess you could do this” kind of way. God wants to partner with us and move with us! And so, my answer must be yes, even when it is hard, even when it is fasting, and even when I do not understand what He is doing. My answer will be yes, for He is good, and I am so glad that He is God, and I am not!