Discovering Life Restoring Limits During Lent
By Phil Rushton, Lead Pastor
On February 18 we started our Lenten journey. Historically, Lent is a time where many people fast. In fact, this 40 day season is sometimes referred to as the Lenten fast. You often hear of people abstaining from certain foods, or incorporating fast days into their weekly schedule.
However, many of us do not know much about fasting. It is one of those disciplines of the faith that seems obsolete. One of the reasons why fasting is not talked about very much is because we live in a culture that legitimizes excess. Gluttony has become one of those respectable sins that seem harmless. Richard Foster writes, “in a culture where the landscape is dotted with shrines to the Golden Arches and an assortment of Pizza Temples, fasting seems out of step with the times.”
Fasting, however, is a biblical idea. Almost all of the major characters in scripture fast, including Paul and Jesus. Even though Paul rejected the legalism of the Pharisees, he continued to “fast regularly” (2 Cor 6:5). In Matthew 6:16 Jesus says, “when you fast, don’t make it obvious . . .” Notice Jesus does not say, “if you fast,” but “when you fast,” thereby implying that he expects his disciples to incorporate this practice into their lives.
One of the major reasons why fasting is a beneficial spiritual discipline is that it helps to reveal the things that are controlling us. Marjorie Thompson writes, “fasting reveals our excessive attachments and the assumptions that lie behind them. Food is necessary to life, but we have made it more necessary than God.” When you take certain things away, our attachments and addictions are exposed. That is why fasting is a helpful discernment tool. It helps us discover the things that have too much control over our lives.
Fasting also helps restore balance in our life. Richard Foster writes, “Our human cravings and desires are like a river that tends to overflow its banks: fasting helps keep them in their proper channel. ‘I pommel my body and subdue it,’ says the Apostle Paul (1 Cor 9:27).” Fasting teaches us self-control, which in turn helps us find balance. We probably have all experienced how overindulgence leads to frustration. Not only does it make us physically sick and tired, but it can also make us feel emotionally and spiritually frustrated. When our desires overflow the banks we get caught up in a flood of frustration.
In her book Dopamine Nation, psychiatrist Anna Lempke points out that at a biochemical level too much pleasure leads to pain, while some pain (within moderation) ironically leads to pleasure. Exercise is probably the best example of this. While the strain of exercise is uncomfortable at first, it actually leads to the release of endorphins and a better sense of mental and physical well-being over time.
I love how Majorie Thompson explains this dynamic in her book Soul Feast. She writes:
Perhaps we can see, then, that the discipline of fasting has to do with the critical dynamic of accepting those limits which are life-restoring. Our culture would seduce us into believing that we can have it all, do it all, and (even more preposterous!) that we deserve it all. Yet in refusing to accept limits on our consumption or activity, we perpetuate a death-dealing dynamic in the world. That is why the discipline of fasting is so profoundly important today.
I love this idea of “life-restoring limits.” When we are intentional about limiting indulgence we experience restoration and growth. We tend to define freedom as the absence of all constraints. However, the opposite is often the case. Embracing certain limits can lead to renewed freedom and restoration.
Lastly, and most importantly, fasting is a means of communing with God. First and foremost fasting is not done for the benefits, but as an act of worship to God. In Zechariah the God says, "When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months for the past seventy years, was it really for me that you fasted?” (Zech. 7:5). This implies we can fast for selfish reasons and miss the point. John Wesley says, “first, let fasting be done unto the Lord with our eye singly fixed on Him. Let our intention herein be this, and this alone, to glorify our Father which is in heaven.” What this means practically is that our fasting will be done in the context of prayer. We replace food with prayer.
I would encourage you to consider trying out the discipline of fasting during Lent. There are many ways to practice fasting. Sometimes it is simply going with less food on a regular basis. Abba Poemen says, “For my part, I think it is better that one should eat every day, but only a little, so as not to be satisfied.” John Stott fasted daily by never having a second helping at meals as a way of standing in solidarity with the poor and building in regular limits. Others fast from certain foods that are becoming addictive and unhelpful. Others work towards regular day long fasts. If you consider this please consult your doctor if you have health problems. Diabetics, heart patients, expectant mothers, or those with a history of eating disorders should not do long fasts. We might also consider other non-food related ways of incorporating life restoring limits. Perhaps God might be inviting you to limit things like technology use or internet shopping.
How might God be inviting you to experience some life restoring limits during lent?