We’ve officially entered the Easter season. Lent started this past Wednesday and will go on until Holy Week. Lent is a 40 day period of fasting that is dedicated to growing closer to God. Lent 2022 will be March 2- April 10. For those who do not know what fasting is, fasting is the temporary release of dependency on something—or someone— in order to depend on God for whatever you’re fasting from offered. Fasting should be and is expected to be a regular spiritual discipline for all believers in Christ, but in modern churches we don’t preach too much about fasting. The only time we talk about fasting is during Lent and who really holds us accountable? Sometimes we even forget we’re fasting because we don’t spend that extra time with the Lord in Bible study, prayer, singing songs of praise, journaling, or anything else that would truly bring us closer to Him. Fasting is powerful. People think that Jesus performed miracles simply because He was God; Scripture tells us that Jesus actually gave up the benefits of being God when He was on earth (Philippians 2:6-7). What made Jesus’ ministry sources powerful and transformative was that He regularly fasted and prayed.
Fasting plays an important role throughout Scripture. There were times of personal and national fasting required of people who were in desperate need for God’s help. Here are some biblical examples of fasting:
- Times of national and personal mourning and grief (When David mourned for Saul and Jonathan in 2 Samuel 1; when Nehemiah mourned for Jerusalem in Nehemiah 1)
- Repentance of sin before the Lord (1 Samuel 7; Jonah 3)
- Seeking counsel/discernment for decision making ( Ezra 8; Acts 13)
- Protection from personal or national danger /preparation for war (Esther 4; 2 Chronicles 20)
- Desire to draw closer to God/destroy any idols we’ve made for ourselves (1 Samuel 7; Joel 2)
- Intensify our prayers before God (Daniel 9)
- Consecration/preparation for an assignment from God (Jeremiah 36: Jesus in the wilderness; Acts 14)
When we fast there should be some goal that we are trying to attain that we can achieve for God. For example, whenever I preach I fast from food from sundown the day before until after I preach because I want to be filled with the word of God in order to feed His people. I eat after the people eat. And there are times where the Holy Spirit will call us to fasting such as
- Having to make a difficult decision
- Experiencing major life changes
- To seek God’s voice and to know His will for my life
- Repentance of sin
- To destroy strongholds and receive deliverance from something
- Protection from God
During this season of Lent, I pray that whatever you fast from—please take whatever it is you’re fasting from seriously, if chocolate is what you fast from every year, you might need to let chocolate go for good—may God be your refuge. This year I’m doing something a bit different. I’m in need of healing from the Lord and the healing I need can truly only come from Him. Therefore, I am deciding to add something to my life; I’m reading Psalm 91 everyday and confessing Psalm 16 everyday. For the next 40 days I’ll be camping out in the psalms, confessing, praying, and seeking God’s will for my life. It’s not talked about, but in lieu of fasting during Lent. adding a spiritual discipline and remaining faithful over it also relies on the strength of God. Whichever avenue you decide to choose to spend this season in intimacy with the Father, I pray He blesses you, secures you, and continues to sustain you. May His will be revealed to you for what He desires in your life. May you repent, confess, and follow the counsel of the Holy Spirit. and on the other side of Lent may we come out stronger, connected closer to God, and at more peace than when we entered.
Until next time, continue to stay guided by grace,
Tra
Guided by Grace 