Part 3, Chapter 23
Food is necessary for our survival. But even more necessary for us is God. We wouldn’t exist without Him and we wouldn’t breathe and so forth. God is more necessary than anything else. He is the Being that made us. Food, is a good thing that God made, and yes, we do need to eat to be nourished and yet this pales in comparision with our need for God. Sometimes we have to remind ourselves of our need for God and there are disciplines that help us to do so. One such discipline is fasting.
The beauty about fasting, if it done right, is that we are working and trying to trust in God more. When we fast we should be praying, even the day before the fast begins. Prayer during fasting brings us into relationship, it opens us up to what He is doing for us. He gives us the grace to fast so that we can rely on Him. Thus, when we are fasting we should be, throughout the time of the fast, relying on God for what we need. I have found when I fast without God, I am more easily prone to anger, and breaking the fast, why? Because I am trusting in myself rather in the Lord. For a fast to work, which means we are building up discipline, it has to involve God, otherwise why are we doing it! Fasting is done as a discipline so that we can be more the Lords by having our hearts centered on Him. “Whosoever gains heart has won the whole man. But this heart needs to be trained in its external conduct, so that it may display not merely a true devotion, but also wisdom and discretion” (Introduction to the Devout Life, 118). So we fast to trust, and rely so that our hearts may be purified of anything that is not bringing us to the Lord.
Some fast days are easier than others. Some days we have to break the fast because there is something going on that requires our full strength. “If your work is necessary or profitable to God’s glory, I would rather see you bear the exhaustion of work than of fasting” (Introduction to the Devout Life, 119). So if we planned to fast and we are called to drive for 8 hours, it probably would be wise to break the fast and give up something else on this day.
Another way to fast is to eat what is put in front of us. This helps us to eat food, but not be stuck on making food into a little god. So often we want to eat what “tastes” good. We focus on filling our stomach with pleasures. Eating food is necessary, but eating good tasting food is a bonus. “And the real meaning of those sacred words, ‘Eat what is set before you,’ lies in such an indifference to what one eat and drinks” (Introduction to the Devout Life, 119). We do need to eat, but we should be able to eat anything at anytime because this is the food that God is providing for us.
There is one important rule about fasting: we should consult our spiritual director or confessor about fasting. “Make it a rule then never to undertake any bodily austerities without the advice of your spiritual guide” (Introduction to the Devout Life, 121). Fasting can be dangerous, and we can do harm, so it shouldn’t be something that we jump into hastily. Rather, it should be discerned with the help of God and our spiritual guide.
PS. Maybe I will fast from long posts :)