I recently participated in a fast with my church. For one week I only ate fruits and vegetables; one week only juice, water and soup broth; and for this last week fruits and vegetables again. I have had many conversations with others participating in the fast in one form or another (some only fast meat, some fast sweets, etc), and I have found that many people miss the meaning of a fast! As we can find in the Bible, there are many reasons for fasting, but there should be only one focus: the will of God in our lives. Now, if the fast has to do with a specific issue, it would follow that the fast is to focus on God's provision and will in that issue. No matter what it is that we are fasting about, it is obvious that we are to take time to spend in direct community with God.

I personally focused on a few different things during this fast. At first, I wasn't sure what I wanted to fast about. Then it dawned on me: it's not about what I want, it's about God's calling on my life. I therefore began this fast as a fast of obedience, trusting God to show himself to me. That is exactly what He did. As the fast continued, I turned my eyes on prayer. While I spend time in prayer and in the word every day, I realized that my prayer life could use a jump. I therefore committed to spending time in prayer every day, using the AWCIPA model. This model, spelled out at the end of the blog, has really changed the way I pray in general. Since petition is last, I've found my prayer life moving away from focusing on myself and focusing on praise and intercession. I pray for others so much more, and I find that I could take hours every day praying for others. If I were to spend that much time only on myself, I would run out of things to ask for and develop selfishness in my heart. It's amazing that the closer I get to God and rely on him for my provision, the more energy I can spend on others.

When journaling and reflecting on this fast, I found a close parallel to life in the flesh. I am a very disciplined person, always seeking out ways to make my life more disciplined and seeking to improve myself. Being a disciplined person, when I chose to do this fast it was not hard to stay true and not break the fast. Throughout the week, I was able to stick to fluids only. Now, that's not to say I wasn't tempted to eat solid food many times, but I had made a commitment and I was going to stick to it. In retrospect, why don't I treat my life as a reborn Christian as a commitment to fast from sin? I mean, that's what we are called to do, is it not? When put in this light, I am somewhat ashamed of myself for not cutting sin out sooner. Now, I fully understand that I am not and never will be perfect. I realize that sin will always be a real part of my life. But, I'm talking about cyclical sin. You know what I'm talking about? Those one or two sins in my life that I repeat over and over, be it weekly or even daily. How can this cycle be broken? Not without the grace of the Spirit in my life.

Knowing that I have received this grace, it is my duty to live under it. Rather than allowing sin to control me and repent every time it reenters my life, I can break the chains free through the freedom that is brought under Christ. I have made a life commitment to follow Christ, whatever that may come to mean. Part of this commitment is to abstain from sin no matter how many times it tempts me and to remember the grace brought upon me by the mercy of Jesus Christ himself. "Go and sin no more." Hard, even impossible to do, but I must strive for perfection that I might achieve excellence.

Adore and praise God for all He's done and all He is
Wait quietly upon the Lord
Confess your sin
Intercede for others
Petition for yourself (hopefully, by the time you get here, all you'll ask for is that you could serve God better)
Adore and praise God for all He's done and all He is