Pray Continually Day 9: Fasting

We are looking at praying continually and discovering ways to do that. Below you can find the other posts in this series:

Because I Don’t Want to Sleep Anymore

Praying to a Jealous God

Pray Continually Day 3

10 Things to Pray While Praying Continually

Praying Scripture

Yikes…I put the “F” word in the title. Did that scare some of you off? I mean isn’t fasting a bit archaic and Old Testament-y. Don’t we live in the era of grace and shouldn’t we just not fast? I am slightly hypoglycemic and well I really like food. So really fasting?

OK, are we done with the crying? I agree fasting has been a struggle for me. I essentially didn’t understand the concept well. I “tried” it off and on during my Christian walk. In high school I fasted a few times with my youth group and then a few scattered times the rest of my life. Currently I am listening to John Piper’s book A Hunger for God. Through this book the concept of fasting is becoming less foreign. Fasting helps me remember I need to hunger for God above food or anything else.

Also while reading about some well know Christian leaders of the past (like John Wesley) I found out they fasted. It wasn’t a super human 30 day Daniel fast. Instead they set apart two days a week and fasted from 8AM to 3PM. They went about their daily routines, but when their tummies complained they were reminded of their need for God.

So once a week on Wednesday, I fast. Everyone fasts differently, the logistics are between you and God. For me, I don’t eat when I wake up until about 2 PM. This fasting from food reminds me of my desperate dependence on God. I long to hunger for God like I hunger for food on those days.

Do I think everyone needs to fast from food to grow closer to God? No. Sometimes God calls us to fast from TV or social media or some other activity. These times of fasting need to draw us to prayer and intimacy with God. While fasting when we hunger to eat or watch TV or check Facebook then we should be turning our thoughts to God. Praying.

Fasting is one way that helps me draw closer to God and pray continually. How about you? Have you ever fasted? Is God calling you to fast? What helps or hinders your fasting? I can’t wait to hear from you.