I recently finished a course on spiritual formation through Liberty University in which I had to read the book Celebration of Discipline by Richard J. Foster. It was actually a re-read because I also read it while completing my undergraduate work at Geneva College.
Regarding the spiritual discipline of fasting, Foster says that is a private matter between the individual and God, and that Biblical fasting always centers on spiritual purposes. He also quotes John Wesley who said this of fasting, “Some have exalted religious fasting beyond all Scripture and reason; and others have utterly disregarded it.”
I will admit that I fall into the latter category. I have disregarded it, even in the classes in which I have studied it. But the week after I finished the spiritual formation class, I was flipping through the radio stations in my car, and came upon an interview on Christian radio with Susan Gregory. Gregory who wrote the book The Daniel Fast, and also writes The Daniel Fast Blog at http://danielfast.wordpress.com. What she said intrigued me so I came home and ordered the e-book from Amazon.
I have been working my way through the book and when I finish it I am going to do the twenty-one day partial fast. I feel led by the Holy Spirit to do this for a number of reasons. First, I am looking for answers regarding career and vocation. Second, I feel distracted from the things of the Kingdom lately. I need time alone with God. I need Him to sustain me, not the food that I normally rely on. Third, I am ending a relationship with a long-term friend, and embarking into a brand new friendship with another. I really want God to be at the helm of this.
Finally, I have been once again struggling to lose weight consistently. Let’s just say that my goal for 2011 was to lose another 35 pounds and I haven’t. In fact I have gained 10. I suppose I could say that a 21 day partial fast would be a jump-start to a weightloss plan, but it is much more than that. I know the reasons why I eat too much or in an unhealthy manner. For a long time I have believed that by turning my eating over to God, I could find a way to consistently and permanently lose weight. Maybe this is a better way to say it: My weight issues are also largely spiritual issues. I really think that I need this time, both as a time in which I focus on my relationship with God, and as a time in which I separate myself from certain foods and certain people.
That being said, the Daniel Fast is a 21 day partial fast based on the fasting that we find in the book of Daniel in the Old Testament. So don’t worry, I will eat. I will drink water. I also will be talking more in my next post about the foods that I can actually eat on the fast.
And, yes, I know fasting is a private matter. But I feel compelled to write about it and hare what I learn along the way about this largely forgotten discipline.
My biggest fear, though, has nothing to do with food. I has everything to do with the thought of giving up coffee!
So like I said….more to come as I consider this journey into the discipline of Biblical fasting.
