God gives us a stark picture of the reality of a life malnourished outside the Word of God when he tells the prophet, Jeremiah, in Jeremiah 2:13;
For my people have done two evil things: They have abandoned me— the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all!
Is feasting or fasting our sole source of spiritual nourishment? Is the Living Water and the Bread Of Life our soul connection to that nourishes us?
What do we need to “starve” or fast from so that we can lead spiritually nourished lives?
What should we feast on so that our lives flourish?
What we feed will grow…
Food For Thought.
Often we consider fasting from something we eat, consume, or maybe need to completely abandon as a habit. Over the holidays, I got in a decay-causing behavior. Not until Iw as praying about what to fast and with no appetite for a sweet did I spot it! On the surface, with no weight gain, I searched for a piece of hard candy. What could be the harm, right? Hard candy is small enough; it would only be one piece (at a time). Then it hit me like a convicting “holy brick.” The frequent sugar exposure of one piece of hard candy chased another as the first dissolved among my pearly white teeth. This had slowly crept into behavior. I had produced the prime conditions for decay to erode the very teeth I have always planned to keep for a lifetime! No dentures or implants are for me! But what was I doing?
I felt a little like Paul as I considered what to fast and realized hard candy had become a habit as I reached for it without a single urge or craving. It was the activity of chewing I sought to engage.
I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. Romans 7:15 (NIV)
I hate cavities, yet, there I was contributing to what could lead to decay!
Fasting is a turning point not a means of deprivation for sacrificial penitent sake or weight loss, while that may be a benefit. Fasting is a spiritual discipline we ought to approach with the sole goal of drawing nearer in relationship to our Lord.
3 Things to Starve
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Negativity
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Stagnation
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Selfish preservation
Negativity
What? Do everything without grumbling or arguing,(why?) so that you may become blameless and pure, Philippian 2:14-15
How? “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2 (NIV)
Stagnation
We are created and directed to be life learners ever-growing and transforming.
What? “…make every effort to confirm your calling and election. (Why?) For if you do these things, you will never stumble,(why) and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 2:10-11
How?
8 building blocks
I invite you to dig in and discover these tender nuggets in context. I have chosen to list them sequentially Whatever version or the translation you use, you will find a blueprint in 2 Peter 1:5-8
- The foundation – faith
- Goodness
- Knowledge
- Self-control (Wo? do not miss the fact that this one is a fruit of the Spirit.)
- Perseverance
- Godliness
- Mutual affection
- Love.
“For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Selfish Preservation
What? “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,” 2 Peter 2:3
Why? Proverbs 3:7-8 “Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.
How? Psalm 34:8 “Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.”
What we take in will either nourish or malnourish us; mind, body, and soul. Words have the power of life and death. When we fast, let’s take time to consider behaviors just as much as the hard candy that may be sweet; cumulatively, it leads to decay.
I pray that as you fast this year and many people do teh first of the year, you, like me, will find sweeter fellowship with the Author of each of our life.
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