What Do We Fast For?
March 10, 2023 | Yoska Guta TD ‘25
image description: several open hands reaching out
During Lent, many Christians commit to times of solitude, fasts, or abstaining from certain foods, drinks, or even practices in an effort to refocus their attention on the Lord. Fasting or abstaining is often associated with discovering deeper intimacy with God—by starving one’s earthly flesh, but building their heavenly dependence in order to grow closer to the Lord. Beyond the physical aspect, it is important to reflect on the grounding principles of our partaking in this millennials-old practice. Faith, trust, and humility can shape both how we approach and journey through this Lent season, while centering our minds on Christ in preparation for celebrating Easter. In a world where we easily fall into the habit of turning everything into a task to be accomplished, meditating on these principles throughout this Lent season can help us keep our eyes and hearts fixed on Christ
When an individual fasts, it is an act of faith. That person is choosing to seek the Lord and subject their flesh to discomfort with the expectation that when they draw near to Him, He too will draw near to them (James 4:8). Hebrews 11:6 in saying “And without faith it is impossible to please him [God], for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him,” speaks to this idea well (ESV). We are aiming beyond just trying to learn how to physically depend on the Lord for our needs. In fasting or abstinence, we are also aiming to remove those desires from our line of vision so that we can clearly look to Jesus and experience the fullness of His Spirit and presence.
Choosing to forgo certain needs and comforts, especially things such as food, also brings us to a valuable place of dependency on God—one that is often missed in our self-sufficiency-driven world. Denying these “fleshly desires” positions us to put our confidence in Christ as our sole provider. Although faith and trust do have some overlap in this discipline of fasting, the primary difference between them is the object of their use. In the case of faith, the aim is to remove every momentary distraction so that our spirits may encounter His spirit. But, in the process of seeking His face, we are also driven to a place of trust because the burden of our physical bodies still weigh us down. Therefore, when we acknowledge the reality of our physical needs and yet still choose to make these sacrifices, we are exercising trust because we know He possesses everything that we could ever need. He can sustain us physically through His means, even as we choose to resist our fleshly needs.
As we progress through this season, we will sometimes find ourselves desperately craving whatever we have given up. In that we are confronted with our vain grasping to and control over the things of this world. It is then that we are given the choice: ignore the conviction to loosen our grip or press forward in this arduous process. But in all of this, the hope is that we would see how even the smallest, most simple things, when built up to be more than what they are, can become distractions that make us lose sight of Christ. And ultimately, we will choose to humble ourselves, clear off the throne of hearts and relinquish control to the one who actually deserves it.
Faith, trust, and humility are just as important to our overall walk with the Lord as they are during this Lent season. When I think about the reasons why I first came to believe in Christ I am reminded that it was because of these three things: choosing to believe in Christ required that I firstly have faith that He would see my decision to believe and make Himself known to me (Jeremiah 29:12-13). Secondly, that I trust that in His generosity and goodness He would meet my every need, giving me life and life abundantly (John 10:10). And thirdly, that I humbly surrender myself to Him, giving Him lordship over my life and laying down all of my efforts to be worthy of salvation by my own works (Ephesians 2:8-9).
As we all continue to walk with the Lord we will see Him renewing and refining us with each season that passes. But, I’m sure many of us will also reach a point during this Lent season where our commitments will feel hard to maintain and when we’ll question why we made them in the first place. In those moments, I pray that we would be reminded of these principles, and more importantly, that they would remind us of our first love—of why we said yes, picked up our cross, and chose to follow Him in the first place.
This piece is a part of a series for Lent 2023. Read more at https://www.yalelogos.com/lent2023