Week Seven (Fasting) - Sunday

Fasting

Fasting.  Just the thought of it seems to be contradictory, because when this discipline is first employed, it seems to be anything but fast.  We fast for many different reasons.  Some fast for health reasons and prior to medical tests.  Some fast as a form of diet.  Others fast as a means of protest.  While all of these reasons are valid in and of themselves, none of these can be considered as a holy habit.

While the origins of fasting as a spiritual discipline are not known, there are plenty of biblical references that suggest that it has long been used in moments of personal and public piety.  In times of remorse and mourning, the Bible records that people fasted as part of their penitence.  Also, people often fasted as preparation for attempting to receive some type of guidance from God.

Fasting has continued through the centuries as a way of focusing thoughts towards God.  John Wesley practiced a form of fasting in his spiritual discipline.  Yet Wesley was not as rigorous as many would expect.  Instead of fasting for long periods of time, Wesley practiced this discipline as a daily routine, from early in the morning until “tea time” (after all, we must remember, Mr. Wesley was a proper British gentleman). 

Today, many Christians are beginning to reclaim this age-old tradition to help them reorient their lives more towards God and less towards the world.  One way that has become rather vogue in recent years is to practice a type of fast during the liturgical season of Lent.  Lent is the time of year that begins with Ash Wednesday and ends at Easter.  It is the period that the church recalls Jesus’ withdrawal into the wilderness for forty days where he fasted and was tempted by Satan, yet resisted succumbing to these temptations.  Many Christians thus use this time as a time of self-examination and fasting.  Most who fast though do not totally give up food for the forty days though.  Instead, they decide to “give something up” for Lent, thus abstaining from it during these forty days.  For instance, I know many who refuse to eat sweets during Lent, or give up caffeine.  For many of these who practice this type of fast during Lent, they may replace the time that would be normally dedicated to that which they have given up with a time of prayer.  While this may seem to be a pious act, it seems to negate itself when Lent ends and the person returns to their old ways and no longer spends that time in prayer and reflection.

Fasting for Lent can be a good practice for us to recall the price that Jesus paid for us and to help us to reorient our lives, but since it occurs only forty days out of the year, it could hardly be considered a holy habit.  For fasting to become a holy habit, it must be practiced more often and more consistently.  It is up to you to establish a routine of fasting and how deeply you want to engage in it.

Let me offer some ideas of how you might consider making fasting one of your holy habits:

• Fast one day each week
• Fast one meal of a particular day
• Fast from things other than food, such as: television, radio, Internet,…
• Spend time in prayer and reading the Bible during the fast.

Again, fasting, for the purpose of 12 Habits of Holy Living, is a personal spiritual discipline.  It is up to each individual as to when, how, and to what degree that you engage in it.  You may decide to begin at a reasonable and achievable level and then intensify as you progress.  It is better to start lightly and continue this as a lifelong habit than to start out too rigid and never make it a habit.  May God bless you and your endeavor.


JOURNAL QUESTIONS

1. Reflect on your sermon notes and journal reading from today.


GROUP EXERCISE

10 minutes - Community Building (informal time of gathering)
10 minutes - Sharing of Concerns and Praises
  5 minutes - Prayer for One Another
30 minutes - Discussion of Topic
                     - What journal entry would you like to share?
                     - Have you ever fasted? Was it a meaningful experience?
                     - In conjunction with fasting, what can you do to help your spiritual growth?
                     - How do you feel about "Giving something up for Lent"?
                     - What creative way can you think of to fast? 
  5 minutes - Wrap Up/Closing Prayer 

Week Six (Prayer) - Saturday

1 Timothy 2:1-6

1 I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone-- 2 for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. 3 This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. 5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all men--the testimony given in its proper time.




^Reflect:
For whom should we pray? How powerful is prayer?

Week Six (Prayer) - Friday

James 5:13-20

13 Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. 14 Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. 17 Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. 18 Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops. 19 My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, 20 remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.




^Reflect
Why is sharing our needs and concerns and praying for one another important?

Week Six (Prayer) - Thursday

Mark 14:32-36

32 They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, "Sit here while I pray." 33 He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. 34 "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death," he said to them. "Stay here and keep watch." 35 Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. 36 "Abba", Father," he said, "everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will."



^Reflect
If Jesus is God, why would he pray to himself? What is significant about his prayer?

Week Six (Prayer) - Wednesday

Matthew 6:5-8

5 "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.



^Reflect
Is there a proper way to pray or is it up to each person?

Week Six (Prayer) - Tuesday

Colossians 1:3-14

3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4 because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints-- 5 the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel 6 that has come to you. All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth. 7 You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, 8 and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. 9 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. 10 And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. 13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.




^Reflect
How does what Paul thanks God for compare to what he prays for?

Week Six (Prayer) - Monday

Luke 11:1-4

1 One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples." 2 He said to them, "When you pray, say: " 'Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread. 4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation. ' "





^Reflect
List the order of this prayer.