Bridget A. Thomas
Every day is a gift!
Fasting
Please don’t skip this. I know the thought of fasting makes many of us groan with discomfort. Food is something our culture puts a lot of buzz around. Food is at the center of every social gathering. We see an abundance of food and drink pictures on social media. When we are eating something particularly tasty, we might take a picture of it and text it to our friends. We plan out our daily schedule around our meals. When we feel like we had a rough day, we treat ourselves with something sweet. Food has a strong presence in our lives and our culture.
I admit that I like to eat. And when we all saw empty shelves during the pandemic, this put a fear in me – a fear of not being able to find food when we need it. And in 2021 when I went through a lot of stress, I found myself eating more food, more frequently. I used food as a crutch. All of this makes the thought of fasting even more uncomfortable to me.
But my husband and I have been participating in fasts each January for the past couple of years. And I have learned so much each time we go through these fasts.
When we take the time to fast, and set aside our anxiety surrounding less food on our plates, the results can be amazing. The point of fasting is to draw closer to God. You might wonder how laying aside food can do that. When we are hungry, we have an opportunity to run to the Lord and seek His presence and comfort. When we do this, we learn that He is truly all we need.
Does fasting have to be only from food? I suppose this is a matter of opinion and you might have to pray about it to see how the Lord convicts you. I have heard one pastor mention before that he felt cutting back on food was the only real fast. Personally, I am a big advocate of fasting from anything that might hinder your relationship with the Lord – social media, television, radio, alcohol, video games, frivolous shopping, etc. There are tons of things in our lives that we might turn to as an idol or a crutch.
Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts. – 1 John 5:21
Some questions you might ask yourself to help discover your idols or crutches:
Do I have to have this item or activity in my life?
What would happen if I had to do without it?
Do I run to this item or activity when I am feeling down?
Do I spend more time thinking about this / doing this than with the Lord?
Does this bring me more joy than the Lord?
Okay, I will be honest. I love coffee. This is something I don’t want to give up. But I have done so at times, just to prove a point to myself. I showed myself that I can live without it, if I had to.
However, I don’t believe God necessarily wants to deprive us of the joys of life. It’s okay to drink a cup of coffee each morning. We just can’t value it more than we value Him. We shouldn’t run to it for comfort, when instead we can run into the arms of Jesus.
But it goes deeper than the obvious things we see at surface level. Sometimes an item or activity might merely be a distraction. In my opinion, this can be even more dangerous than things we know have a hold on us. That is because we might feel this thing in our lives is innocent, and therefore we might not realize how much it keeps us from the things of Jesus. For example, I am convinced that our enemy is laughing over how much time so many of us spend with our heads down as we look at our devices. Social media and smartphones are completely destroying our society.
Perhaps you think I am exaggerating. I cannot blame you. I appreciate having my smartphone and tablet on hand when I need them. But I also know how much of a distraction they are. Many times I will reach for my phone just to do something. I don’t really need to check my email again, when I just checked it within the last hour. Yet I habitually still grab my phone and do so anyway.
Recently my husband and I were at a store. In the parking lot we saw a vehicle pull in and park. Out of the vehicle came the adults and their teenage daughter – all who had a phone in their hands and heads down. It was comical and sad at the same time. This is the kind of generation we are living in. Some people aren’t truly living. Instead they are stuck in a fake world of filtered pictures as they scroll and tap.
It is my opinion that we each might need to fast from different things in our lives periodically, in order to get back to basics. When we lay aside things that tempt us or distract us, we have a chance to run after the Lord and hold tightly to Him. When we do this, we will never regret it. He will fill us and satisfy us.
In the Bible, often times we see full fasts from food as a way of seeking God’s guidance or deliverance from a certain situation. This is something to keep in mind as we fast. You might want to bring a certain prayer request before the Lord. But don’t merely fast as a way of getting something from God. Fasting should draw us closer to Him, even if we don’t get what we want.
With all that being said and since tomorrow is the first day of Lent – I will be fasting from some things over the next several weeks. I will be fasting from social media completely. Also, I will not be posting here on my blog. I also plan to lay aside / cut back on anything that I tend to reach for out of habit.
(Side note – I used the words “cut back” here, but I will be setting specific guidelines for myself. And I suggest you do the same, if you plan to fast from anything. If we say that we are merely “cutting back” then in many cases we might wind up doing that “thing” more than intended and therefore get nowhere. I am just being a little vague because this post is long enough. Haha!)
You might recall that my word for 2022 is Abide. I want to abide in Jesus and His love. I don’t want to abide in food, social media, gadgets, or anything else that won’t truly fill me.
I encourage you to also prayerfully consider anything that you might fast from over the next few weeks. If you do decide to fast, let me know. I would love to hear about it and cheer you on!
Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you. – Anne Lamott
© 2022 Bridget A. Thomas
Bridget A. Thomas 
Great post!
I do believe fasting comes in various forms. There are some folks because of health reasons are not able to skip meals. Fasting can be just a specific time set aside to pray instead of watch TV or do something that fills our time, but doesn’t feed our Spirit.
Social Media truly has somewhat taken over. It’s our way of staying in contact with each other, but is it is necessary as often as we do? I personally know that during my downtimes, I’m more apt to spend time on Facebook than in the Word of God. Your post has put this in my heart to spend more time in the Word as we lead up to Easter. This should be my goal each and every day not just during Lent.
I don’t personally observe Lent, but I’m always impressed with those that give up specific things that they enjoy as a sacrifice. God knows our hearts and will one day judge those works with fire. I pray my sacrifice withstands the 🔥 🙏🏽✝️.
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Renee, that is a good point about those who cannot give up meals because of health. I agree. I too am more apt to check Facebook instead of opening my Bible when I am “bored.” I pray we can learn to lean into Him and soak up His Word more frequently. And yes! I am so thankful that God knows our hearts. So however we choose to follow Him, whether during Lent or any day of the year, He can see our intentions and love for Him! 🙏♥️🙌✝️
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Fasting changed my life…
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Thanks, Dean! I know you used to attend Jentezen Franklin’s church. We try to catch him on TBN when we can. And the fasting he and his church do every January have inspired us!
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A great post Bridget.
I love food. And have used it as crutch many times. I am trying to be more intentional with not reaching for food when I need comfort.
I like the questions you listed out, it helps one decide what specific things draws us away from time with God as each one of us have different things that do.
Our phones are definitely something that I think we all reach for even if we do not have to do anything on it and we end up wasting so much time on it.
You know what I am trying with regards to fasting. Will keep you posted on how it goes.
Fasting is definitely something that helps us reset and strengthen our foundation with God.
Awesome post. Blessings my friend 🤗💙
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I love food too! 😬 I like the way you put that and I need to do the same – “I am trying to be more intentional with not reaching for food when I need comfort.” I agree about the phones. It is really scary how much they pull us in and before we know it so much time has slipped by. And I really love this sentence of yours too – “Fasting is definitely something that helps us reset and strengthen our foundation with God.” Yes! I pray over the next few weeks we can do just that! Amen!! Thanks for sharing, dear friend ♥️🤗
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Great post, Bridget!!
I need to consider seriously fasting, I’m just not sure what. Perhaps fiction like I said earlier today. I’m guilty of turning to it instead of the Word. 😩 It’s so convicting at times!
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I know what you mean. I love reading fiction books. It’s relaxing after a long day at work. But sometimes I too lean on my books more than the Lord. So I am right there with you!
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This is a timely and great post Bridget! I sure reach for my phone more often than I should, including catching up on reading the WordPress blogs I follow… like right now! 😆 But seriously, like you I feel led to concentrate on Lent this year, and I am going to have to leave my phone alone in order to be obedient to that. Bless you, and see you in a month!
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I know what you mean. Our phones are so convenient and can lead to good things. But we tend to abuse them and spend more time on them that necessary. I pray we can learn to find the right balance.
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I fast the first Sunday of every month. With my kidneys, I dare not skip water. It’s humbling to choose to go hungry, to be reminded that God provides everything and having food is a rich blessing.
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Judy, that is such a beautiful idea of fasting the first Sunday of every month. What a great way to seek God and keep Him first place as each month rolls over. And then throughout the year you have twelve opportunities to lean into Him. And I really love what you said here – “It’s humbling to choose to go hungry, to be reminded that God provides everything and having food is a rich blessing.” So much truth in those words!
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Our church is being encouraged to fast in various ways this Lenten season, one week in each of these categories: food, television and movies, social networking and internet, caffeine and sweets, radio and music, shopping (for non-essentials), and sleep. (Not sure about that last one, unless it means foregoing naps, sleeping in on Saturday, etc!) I think sharing the experience will help to keep us accountable and bolster our resolve to honor God in these ways, and draw us closer to Him.
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Wow, I like that idea of doing something different each week! But yeah not sure about the sleep one. Lol. If you wind up participating, I would be interested to hear how it goes. Thanks for sharing that.
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I enjoyed reading your post, Bridget. I’ve never really fasted and don’t know or hear too much about it. But it makes a lot of sense. I love that Anne Lamott quote. It’s so true. We do need to take those times to unplug. I guess I’ve kind of fasted when I’ve taken my blogging breaks. Enjoy your fast! ❤🙏🌺
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Yes you have fasted from blogging at times! You just didn’t use that word. But as you know from personal experience, taking those breaks helps us to find balance, refresh our souls, and ultimately allows time to seek more of the Lord. Thank you for commenting! 💕
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Fasting has enhanced my walk with the Lord. I try to incorporate it into my prayer life weekly. Thank you for sharing this! 🤗
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Thank you for sharing that. I am always interested to hear other people’s spiritual routines. I think a big part of it is just that we are intentional about it. When we bring our open hearts to the Lord, He will fill them. ♥️
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Wow this is a great, motivating post Bridget!!
I love what you said here:
“When we are hungry, we have an opportunity to run to the Lord and seek His presence and comfort. When we do this, we learn that He is truly all we need.”
I can definitely relate in the area of food and like you said, grabbing the phone just for something to do. I haven’t ever fasted from anything before but your post has caught my attention!!! Praying God’s direction in this.
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I am so thankful to know that this post was encouraging! Fasting of any kind can definitely be a soul enriching experience, if we approach it right. It can be difficult. But when we seek God during our fasting, He will satisfy us like nothing else can. I pray that the Lord leads in this area, if there is something He would like for you to fast from. 🙌♥️🙏
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I need to fast from anxious thoughts 😅seriously though …I have noticed though when I start to have those feelings and go straight to Gods word He covers me with peace and satisfies my soul!! 🙌
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That is definitely something worthy of fasting from! The enemy is eager to get into our heads and make us worry and fret. But I love what you said about God covering you with peace and satisfying your soul. So beautiful! And so loving of our Father to reassure us when we need Him! I pray that you are able to see breakthrough in this area over the next few weeks! 🙌♥️🙏
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Oh I hope so also!! It’s exhausting but so real too and hard to overcome. I know Jesus wants me to focus on His deliverance—it’s just easier said than done! My mind has functioned in this way for as long as I can remember; you’re right though, it is the enemy’s efforts.👎🏼
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Thankfully our God is bigger than anything the enemy throws at us! Keep clinging to the Lord and He will help you! 🙌🙏
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