Fasting: The foundation of a life of Feasting

“I like food too much to not fast”

David Steindl-Rast, in his “A Listening Heart”, writes about what he calls sensuous asceticism.  He’s trying to find that space between the over-indulgences of our culture, where food, sex, shopping, social networking, music, movies, television, web surfing, clothing, drugs, and alcohol are just some of the many appetites that, at their worst, rise up and become masters in our lives, and the vilifying of appetites that so often occurs among Christans.  The results of heedless indulgence of the appetites are devastating, leaving human trafficking victims, disease, addiction, and brokenness in their wake.  And the lesser affects, though subtle, are bad news too.  Vilifying the senses makes our faith joyless, painful and boring.  The ground between these extremes is found by fasting.

The elevation of appetites creates a world where “on demand” is the norm, where satisfaction comes from listening to the demands of our longings and seeking to quiet them through satiation.  So, as Dave Mathhews says: “I eat too much – I drink too much – I want too much – too much.” Obsession.  Addiction.  A restlessness that won’t be satisfied until we “have it”; there might be technical differences between these terms but however you slice it, life is emptier when the appetites are in the driver’s seat.

But what can displace our appetites and take control of our soul?  Galatians 5:16 “Walk by the spirit, and you will not fulfill the desires of the flesh.” The desires of the flesh don’t refer to appetites per se, but to their unbridled demanding nature when they govern all of life.  “Just one more” say the senses:  “just one more piece of cake; just one more scene of porn; just one more drink; just one more pair of shoes (or in my case, wool sweater), and you’ll be satisfied.”  What we learn from all this is that the appetites are liars, inflating their value like the pork projects of the American congress and, like that same body, leaving us feeling spent, no, overspent, when it’s finished.

God’s solution to this is powerfully liberating.  He’s not anti-food, anti-sex, anti-money.  God is about fortifying our spirit so that we can align our lives with the rhythms of grace He’s created.  In the real world, there’s morning and evening, work and rest, eating and abstaining, making love, and an intensifying of longing`, the joy of wearing a new sweater for the first time, and maturity of learning to love it still, four years later.  There’s the joy of a glass of wine after supper on the deck as the sun sets, a joy that’s intensified if it’s not indulged every single evening.

The rhythm of indulgence and abstinence is the way God has made the world, and our capacity to step into that rhythm is learned by the practice of fasting.  In a world where we have the resources to meet to the demanding voice of our appetites, periodic fasting becomes more important than ever!  How do you learn to fast?

1. Find your most demanding appetite.  That will usually be the place where you turn first for “self-comfort”, whether food, or sex, or alcohol, or sleep, or …?? It’s right there that you should fast so that you can learn to walk through the valleys of challenge that come in our lives by leaning on Christ rather than disengaging from Christ and seeking solace in the fleeting pleasures of your comfort zone.

2. Name your fast. “I will abstain from social media and TV from the end of supper through the rest of the evening, for the next three weeks” (that’s mine).  Then tell someone (I just did).  St. Benedict would tell you that it should be challenging enough to be meaningful, but not overwhelming.

3. Annoint your head.  That means that during the fast, you need to be about the business of stepping more fully into God’s story.  For example, in my case, I really do need to come home from the class I’m presently teaching and converse with my wife during this precious summer nights, rather than watching TV and cruising facebook.  What is it for you?  Maybe it’s reading your Bible, or talking a walk, or having friends over, or working in the garden, or playing games with your kids.  Whatever it is, step into your calling to bless others.  I spoke of this extensively in my sermon yesterday, which I’ll post here soon.

4. Maintain the vision. You’re called, in this life, to be a channel through which God can pour joy, hope, meaning, mercy, generosity, and more into this world.  The appetites of our lives, which are intended to bless us with gifts of grace, need a leader.  Your life in Christ is the leader they’ve been waiting for.

Take a plunge into the world of fasting, a timeless practice of the faith, and you’ll find two things will happen:

You’ll enjoy the gifts of this life more than ever – food and drink taste better, there can be health benefits, and our senses are intensified!

You’ll see your calling to be a blessing with greater clarity – the vision of God’s reign is seen with greater clarity when the senses take a break!

If you’re going to be trying a fast, or you have questions about this process, I’d love to hear about it here, and others would benefit too – please share in the comment section.  Thanks in advance.