Fasting for Lent
- Matthew 4:1 (MSG)
- Matthew 4:2 (MSG)
- Matthew 4:3 (MSG)
- Matthew 4:4 (MSG)
- Matthew 4:5 (MSG)
- Matthew 4:6 (MSG)
- Matthew 4:7 (MSG)
- Matthew 4:8 (MSG)
- Matthew 4:9 (MSG)
- Matthew 4:10 (MSG)
- Matthew 4:11 (MSG)
- Luke 5:1 (MSG)
- Luke 5:2 (MSG)
- Luke 5:3 (MSG)
- Luke 5:4 (MSG)
- Luke 5:5 (MSG)
- Luke 5:6 (MSG)
- Luke 5:7 (MSG)
- Luke 5:8 (MSG)
- Luke 5:9 (MSG)
- Luke 5:10 (MSG)
- Luke 5:11 (MSG)
With the start of Lent on Wednesday I was ready to begin my fast in remembrance of this passage of scripture. I thought all day about what it would be that I would give up; alcohol, chocolate, soda, cheese, pork, etc. The more I thought about this throughout the day and the spiritual significance of the events that Lent commemorates I was stumped. We went to church for the Ash Wednesday service and sang a few songs and then heard a message about the time Jesus preached at Lake Gennesaret and then set out to fish with Simon and the sons of Zebedee. The main point that our associate pastor made was “what happened to the fish after they came to shore?” Why didn’t they cash in on the gift that Jesus gave them? This got me thinking about the point of Jesus’ fast before being tempted by Satan. He didn’t give anything up, he left those things behind which would distract him from communion with his father, God almighty, maker of Heaven and Earth, the source of all life. That hit me like a brick being thrown from the top of the temple. If I look at fasting as giving something up then I am still looking at it from a selfish perspective. It was clear to me that this time of fasting is meant to bring us out of the drudgery of our daily lives and up to a higher calling by drawing us closer to God. We should gladly and freely give up the things that are keeping us from God. We should follow Jesus footsteps into the wild where we are dependent on the grace of God and don’t have the worldly comforts and pleasures that distract us from bringing glory to God thru service and sacrifice toward his people. For these forty days I will try to look at this time of fasting as a time to draw closer to God so that I might survive the temptations that Satan throws my way.
Created over 2 years ago
