Tag: fasting

  • Fast Tuesday update

    Two weeks into lent, fasting is going great.

    The first week was great. I felt fantastic. It was a time to slow down and walk with God through Scripture and stuff. Plus, I didn’t feel like ending the fast after 24 hours so I kept it going until late afternoon. It was awesome!

    Week two was almost the opposite. I never felt good. My mind was very cloudy all day. The day felt like it spun out of control. And I was hungry all day long. I’m not a “fasting expert,” but I’ve done plenty of one-day fasts and yesterday was my most bizarre. Yesterday was pure discipline. No joy in it at all.

    Two weeks and two different experiences. I suppose that is to be expected. Thinking of Jesus’ 40 days of fasting in the desert… I’m sure there were days that were good and bad as well.

    I’m looking forward to next weeks fast.

  • Fast Tuesday, Temptation

    fast_tuesdayA full week into Lent, today marks my first Fast Tuesday. Not sure if “pumped” is the right word to use for entering a period of fasting, but I am prepared to enter this season of preparation.

    I woke up thinking about this passage:

    Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.

    The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”

    Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone.”

    The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. So if you worship me, it will all be yours.”

    Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.”

    The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. For it is written:
    ” ‘He will command his angels concerning you
    to guard you carefully;
    they will lift you up in their hands,
    so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.”

    Jesus answered, “It says: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”

    When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time. Luke 4

    Lent is deeply rooted in the 40 days fast Jesus observed in the desert as he prepared for his earthly ministry. I think it’s amazing how many times I’ve come into Lent and missed the meta-narrative of what Lent was preparing me for. Lent is a 40 day fast of preparation of the observance of Easter… duh, right? Wrong! There was a two-fold point to Jesus’ 40 days of preparation, wasn’t there?

    Point one: Pay the penalty of sin with death, making a way for man-kind to have a relationship with God. (Bringing the Gospel message to us individually)

    Point two: Open the door for all believers to act as agents of God’s mercy, regardless of earthly decension. Previously, this belonged only to the tribe of Aaron. (Bringing the Gospel message to the whole earth.)

    Lent isn’t meant to just prepare me for Easter. It’s also to remind me to continually prepare for my lifelong ministry as a believer. Conversely, my role as someone called to “professional ministry” is to not only call people to the cross, but to prepare and encourage God’s people to act as agents of the Cross wherever they go.

    So Jesus went to the desert to fast and prepare for his ministry. And while fasting the devil tempted him along three lines a Messiah would be tempted. I’m a pretty self-reflective guy… and I don’t think the temptations I face are anything like those. But let me share some of the tempatations I wrestle with as a ministry leader.

    The temptation to attack. Part of that giftedness is a strong sense of what ought to happen in just about any organization I’m exposed to. (Schools, libraries, sports teams, churches, work, families, game shows, and even organizations I’m not tied to, just curious about.) The temptation is stop trying to gently reform and just nail 95 Theses to the wall and walk away. There is a big difference between pushing something to get better and being rude. And while being a jerk is often times more effective at fixing things it hardly reflects a Gospel-driven approach. So I feel constantly tempted to say things in ways that aren’t helpful, blog about things in an attacking manner, etc.

    The temptation to invest in the wrong things. Anyone who knows me knows that I struggle deeply with balance. I tend to fall in love with something to the point where things get out-of-whack… thus messing up the thing because of a lack of balance. For example. There were about 2 years in Romeo where things were very balanced. Home life was great, work life was great, and working with the golf team helped me keep both in check while somehow making both better at the same time. Then, I allowed a pressure from work to push me out of helping with the golf team. That was my centering activity and from that point on life spun further and further out of control. Had I just stood up to that pressure and resisted the temptation to allow myself out of balance, who knows what would have happened? I need to resist that temptation continually as it comes.

    The temptation to lead instead of serve. I don’t know if I’m the only one who notices this, but a lot of church leaders have a jacked up view of leadership. They lead with ego, talent, and brute force. Unfortunately for them, Jesus called us to lead by serving others. (see John 13) I have to admit, it’s a huge temptation to try to lead things in the way I see church leaders being successful! I want to ram-rod my will on others all the time. But as we see in the Gospels and the early church in Acts… Jesus’ ministry came to conquer the hearts of mankind. You can’t conquer a persons heart by force… in case you didn’t know, that doesn’t work.

  • Is it OK to talk about fasting?

    Is it OK to talk about fasting?

    A former student of mine posed a question on the Fast Tuesday groups discussion board that I thought was pretty interesting. I think there are differing opinions about Jesus’ instructions. She said, “Aren’t you supposed to fast in private?”

    (more…)

  • Fast Tuesday

    fast_tuesdayToday is Mardis Gras. Good old Fat Tuesday. It’s an annual tradition where people feast before Lent begins on Wednesday morning. Well, very few people I know feast before Lent begins. But most of us are aware of Mardis Gras in New Orleans or Carnival in Rio de Janeiro.

    I’m one of those people who looks at traditions and likes to find the Jesus element and wonder how I can make that tradition relevant to my walk. (Running around drunk and throwing beads at women just seems irrelevant to my walk with the Lord, you know? Plus, I think the whole thing is just gross.) The past few year’s I’ve chosen one day, Tuesday, during Lent each week to observe a fast. I don’t say that to make myself seem more spiritually cool than anyone else, it’s just something I’ve been doing. A tiny sacrifice to remember and prepare myself for Holy Week and Easter.

    Since I’m into puns… I always referred to it as Fast Tuesday. (Get it? Mardis Gras is Fat Tuesday. Fast Tuesday? Yeah, I’m corny.)

    Last year I started wondering… How could I invite other people into this same observance without making it a big show of “Look what we’re doing!” In fact, Jesus said in Matthew 6, “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”

    Long story short, this is my invitation. If you’re interested in fasting alongside me Tuesday’s during Lent…

    1. Chose your fast. I’ll be doing a water and juice fast. That means I won’t eat any food at all, but I will drink water and some juices. I’ll be posting some resources for those who want to do their own research. Trust me, you won’t die.

    2. Join the group. Rather than talk a lot about the fast here on my blog [which makes me feel like I’m violating that Matthew 6 teaching] I’ve created a Facebook group for those who are looking for resources, talking about fasting experiences, etc.

    3. Participate in the group. I recognize that most of my friends don’t come from a fasting tradition. Evangelicals, by and large, only scratch the surface at any spiritual discipline. So I would encourage those participating to not just join the group, but participate.

    4. Invite others to join. Feel free to include whomever you’d like in Fast Tuesday. If you don’t know how to do that, just forward this link to a friend and tell them you’re participating in this and would like them to consider it as well.

    5. Observe the fast. Fast Tuesday begins March 2nd.

    That’s it. No strings attached. No fundraiser. No hidden cult agenda. (Though I could use the money!) Nothing other than what’s posted here. I’m very excited about the fast beginning next Tuesday. Experiencing something physical during Lent has opened up a whole world of meaning for Lent that I had always missed. I’m hoping you’ll consider it and join in as well.