Fasting

(Fasting) is a way of denying ourselves and making a special space in our lifestyle for listening to God. It can be a way in which God shows us things that control our way of life, potentially restricting our communication with Him.

Jonathan Markham

Our church has just come out of a week of prayer and fasting as we began our first week of participation in the worldwide One Prayer series.  What I have found to be helpful is that the “fast” does not have to be about the “traditional” fast – it is really about taking something of value, of meaning, in our lives and going without for a prescribed period of time.

This past week it was a fast from meat, poultry and pork for me (I allowed myself fish, eggs, and dairy, however).  It’s the second time that I have done that, and I was surprised at how much I had to “think” as I chose my food.  At the sandwich shop in my building downtown, I went with the vegetarian sandwich.  At home, it was a PBJ, or toast and eggs, fruit and various vegetables.  Going out to breakfast with the kids on Saturday I ordered vegetarian omelette.  I really needed to think about my choices, because so often I would choose an option with meat, whether at home or at work.

The upshot to this?

My devotionals were clearer.  The Scriptures I read last week seemed to make more sense to me, seemed to have greater relevance for my life.  Passages that I might have previously glossed over jumped out at me.  There was a speaker I saw not long ago encouraging us to read the Bible, because it is a book that reads YOU.

I think it read me this week.