Fasting In A Fast World

Fasting is a lost discipline.

I can't say that I have heard it spoken of widely in any of my Christian circles. I can't remember a recent sermon, radio show, news article in a Chrisian Magazine that spoke of fasting. For the average American Church member, I think that fasting has become a truly lost discipline.

I must admit that it was enlightening to read about fasting in Richard Foster's book. Fasting for spiritual purposes has a long history within the church. At one time there was a general church mandate to fast 2 days a week - Wednesday and Friday. As a matter of fact there is evidence from the scripture that fasting twice a week may have been a common practice for Jews living during the time of Jesus. Paul did it, Peter did it, The Church at Antioch did it. Why don't we do it?

My opinion aside on the reasons...I think we should do this. It is a discipline. Disciplines take work but they have benefits when pursued. Fasting draws us closer to God. It provides a door into spiritual health that can be achieved in few other ways. Many shy away from it for fear of getting "weak" from the lack of food. On the other hand, many testify of the spiritual strength which comes from the practice.

So here's my challenge. Start doing it. Slowly but deliberately. And let's see how much God will accomplish in our lives through it. You can use the comments section to post your testimonies about how God is using this discipline in your life.

In my next post I will speak about the "how to's" of fasting

This is Ed's summary of and thoughts on the book: "Celebration of Discipline" by Richard Foster