The Struggle is Real

I'm great at feasting, but fasting on the other hand is a struggle.  

The struggle and battle of fasting, turning our bodies from an 'enemy into an ally' as John Mark Comer says, is a fight against the flesh. We are truly picking a fight against our flesh!  

When we offer our struggle and fasting sacrifice to God, he has a way of bringing up things from below the surface. Things that spiritually need attending to, a bit like a garden that needs some pruning, mowing, watering etc. He also has a way of bringing up things above the surface. 

One of the things he will bring up above the surface (external) is perspective. The lack of food and energy in our body actually helps us better understand what the poor face on a daily basis. Around 10% of the world’s population live in extreme poverty on less than $3 a day. 

This perspective has less to do with us and more to do with others. When you fast, you will find your sense of compassion for the poor grows. The denial of the stomach does something to your heart - seeing the poor no longer as a stranger, but brother or sister.  

This happened to me the other day as I was helping an Afghani refugee family with a Facebook marketplace delivery. I saw their poverty and truly had a sense of standing in solidarity with them, sharing with them and standing against the injustice of poverty. This family helped increase my perspective. 

So, as I conclude, be encouraged to see fasting as a physical obedience that brings a spiritual release. 

 John 4:31-32 – “Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, “Rabbi, eat something.”  But he said to the, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” 

- Dan Zaia

REFLECTION:  Jesus knew that his real nourishment came from doing the Father’s will.   

TOGETHER PRAYER: World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel (World Council of Churches Initiative 16-22 September 2024)