A Slow Start to Fasting

Yesterday in our worship celebration a bunch of people indicated that they would commit to fast and pray this week for our church and ministry.

Because we may be unaccustomed fasting, I thought that a few tips might help.  I fast occasionally, often without a whole lot of preparation, but not usually more than 24 hours. 

So, with my amateur experience, here's what I have found.  It is important to keep the purpose of the fast in mind.  Fasting is a way of "praying with your body."  The growling stomach is a quick reminder that you are seeking the face of God.  Depriving yourself of food is a way of denying yourself, as in, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me."  (Luke 9:23)  Fasting is only one form of self denial.

Sometimes I will fast as I seek wisdom about a particular issue, like parenting, or specific direction for our church.  Sometimes I will fast just as a way of turning my heart more to God and listening to him.

The 24 hour fast is fairly easy to schedule.  If you miss two consecutive meals, assuming that you eat at regular times daily, you can get a 23 hour fast in a snap.  Adjust your fast-breaking meal by an hour and you have your 24 hours.

I find that it helps to prepare for the fast by praying for God to reveal himself.  Then on your last meal before fasting, it is best to eat a lighter meal.  Ironically, eating a feast before your fast only makes the discipline more uncomfortable.  Now, if discomfort is the way God gets your attention, then maybe you should load up on your last meal.

I also like to get away from distractions.  Most folks have work and family responsibilities, and can't shut themselves off from the world.  But if you can get away from the phone and email, that can really help your focus.

Some people will drink some fruit juice.  Some will flavor their water with a little lemon juice.  I usually just drink water.  Caffeine should be avoided, and it may help to eliminate it a day before your fast begins.  If you don't even drink water, that is called an absolute fast, and should not be done for more than a day or two.

Richard Foster's book, The Celebration of Discipline has excellent tips on fasting.  A lot of my ideas come from him.  I also did a quick Google search and found a helpful blog by David Peach on fasting.

The spiritual disciplines are not a way to coerce God into speaking or helping us.  They are a way of putting our souls in the right posture to hear him and enjoy him.

Prepare for a feast!

Consumer Spirituality

I like finding a deal.  When I buy something, I want to get it on sale, with a coupon or with a discount.  Somehow it feels rewarding to get exactly what I want and pay less than other people.

Maybe I'm a typical American consumer.

Some apply the consumer mentality to spiritual decisions.  We shop for a church to find exactly what we want--the right programs, the right location, the right schedule.  It might be good to consult God in the process, even seek his leadership.

But getting the right product is only part of the shopping process.  You also want to get a good deal.  You don't want to pay any more for the product than you have to.

We want low cost.  Maybe we want low cost discipleship.  We want spiritual growth, but don't want it to cost too much.  Imagine growing in Christ without spending much time, giving much effort, expending much energy.  As consumers, we want discipleship with minimal cost or inconvenience.

The only problem is that Jesus said it doesn't work that way.  Following Christ costs everything.  Maybe he's not looking for smart consumers.

Sad Legacy

As news comes out about the Penn State football scandal, it just gets sadder.  The perpetrator has been convicted and is behind bars, but that is no consolation to the people whose lives may have been ruined.

I am especially saddened about head coach Joe Paterno.  He led a football dynasty at Penn State, serving on the coaching staff for 61 years.  He was revered, almost worshipped, by the Penn State faithful.

But his legacy fell apart in 2011.  It turns out that he helped keep the secret that destroyed lives.  The NCAA penalized the University severely for the scandal by, among other penalties, vacating all the team's victories from 1998 to 2011 under Coach Paterno.

The coach apparently served the school's football culture at all costs, hiding anything that might interfere.  I don't believe that Paterno condoned Sandusky's crimes, but he helped to cover them up.

So, Paterno will not be remembered as college football's most winning coach.  He won't be remembered for his football dynasty.  He will be remembered for keeping heinous secrets, for maintaining a football program at the cost of dozens of harmed children.

We build a legacy one day at a time.  But the best legacy is built with integrity.

R-Rated World

In his video, Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl, philosopher and poet N. D. Wilson reminds us that we live in an R-rated world.  As much as we would like to protect ourselves and our children from the cruelties of human existence, our world is violent and unfair.

The world is also full of beauty, joy, pleasure, and happiness.  All around us we see the wonders of creation.  We like to celebrate the good stuff.  And we should.

We don't need to celebrate the bad stuff.  Sometimes evil happens because someone wants attention--any kind of attention.  (At sporting events, the "streakers" used to get a moment of fame, until the TV directors learned to turn the cameras away, minimizing whatever attention the perpetrator might get.)

But without celebrating evil and suffering, we have to acknowledge that it exists.  The shootings in Colorado last Friday were a chilling reminder that evil people are in our midst.  Massacres have happened ever since Abel's brother committed the first murder.  Accounts in ancient history--even in the Bible--are gruesome.  In times of war and times of peace, there have been sickos who delight in violence.

Today we hear about them from all over the world, almost in real time.

There is a spiritual enemy who uses people to destroy lives.  He comes only to steal, kill and destroy.  His weapons are lies and hate.  He whispers lies into the minds of his prey, distorting their thoughts, turning them against God and people.  Whenever I hear about these horrible crimes, I know the devil has been at work.

Jesus came to give life.  This world may be R-rated, but Jesus is the ultimate Director, and this story ultimately shows that he loves this world.

Give it a rest

I recently finished a book called, The Rest of God, by Mark Buchanan.  This is the book I have been looking for since I became a Christian.  It really explains the concept of Sabbath.

Because observing the Sabbath is clearly commanded by God, I believe it is clearly a good idea.  In fact, not observing the Sabbath could be called sin.  Well, it must be called sin, if we believe that God meant what he said.

I remember friends at a Bible college who were prohibited from studying on Sunday.  They could stay up past midnight on Sunday, and study in the wee hours of Monday morning, but they had to wait for the clock to strike 12.  Never mind that the real Sabbath is Saturday.  Never mind that the real sabbath is reckoned from sundown to sundown.  At that college, Sabbath went from midnight to midnight. 

On what authority did they make that rule?  Is that what Jesus has in mind?

And how does Sabbath-keeping avoid the pitfalls of the uptight Pharisees, whom Jesus condemned?  How do we keep the fourth commandment without being legalistic?  If Sabbath is really made for man, then why is it such a burden?

Buchanan makes the case that real Sabbath begins with a change of attitude.  We can be still outwardly, while we are churning inwardly.  What kind of rest is that? 

We need to think about Sabbath like God thinks about Sabbath.  It is not something we have to do.  It is something we get to do.  It is a weekly reminder that our work is never done...and that it's OK. 

I have been more intentional about taking time off, both mentally and physically, but I've got a long ways to go to live out Sabbath as God intends.  At least now I'm making progress.

Imagine...

Author Sidney Sheldon said, "A blank piece of paper is God's way of telling us how hard it is to be God." 

That blank piece of paper, like a brand new document in Microsoft Word, is full of possibilities and potential.  It can be a love letter, a grocery list, a novel, a term paper, a lost puppy flyer, a poem, artwork for the refrigerator, a bill, or a bookmark.

The blank page can take you to the limits of your imagination.  Nothing is impossible in a story.  The author gets to make up all the rules.  Gravity can repel.  Animals can talk.  A planet can have two suns.  A spider bite can convey superhuman powers.

But the student staring at the empty exam page, straining to answer the essay question, knows how daunting it can be to create. 

Creating engages the imagination.  It releases ideas, dreams.  It harnesses an indescribable power. 

God uses imagination as he creates.  He has created us in his image.  He invites to imagine and create as well.

More to it

One thing I have learned is that there is more to it.  It doesn't matter what "it" is.  Maybe it's the story of a broken marriage or a successful career.  What we see on the outside is only part of it.  There is more to it.

During high school I worked at a drug warehouse in Greensboro.  It was hot, dirty, not very lucrative, and you could never predict exactly when the day would end.  Usually around 5:30, sometimes 6:00. 

During college, I looked for a better summer job.  The perfect job would be a bank teller.  Yes.  Sit in the air conditioning, count money, predictable hours.  What could be better?

I worked hard to get a job, working for Wachovia Bank.  I had it made!

But there's more to it, I found out.  Turns out that tellers have to deal with people -- different people every day.  Happy people, busy people, unreasonable people, angry people, deaf people, broke people, rich people.  And after dealing with all these people, I had to balance my cash drawer.  I had to account for every penny every day.  Turns out, that's a big responsibility.  Turns out, I didn't really like that work after all.

So, I have learned to be patient with people as they do their jobs.  It may look easy, but I know there is more to it.