To Fast and Pray

“Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the LORD your God, and cry unto the LORD.”  Joel 1:14

There are several references to fasting in scripture.  In Isaiah 58:3-6, God chastised the people of Israel for their improper use of fasting.  Unger’s Bible Dictionary describes fasting as “a profound humbling of the soul before God in repentance and self-denial on account of one’s sin and the punishment with which it has been visited.”  To be so mortified and appalled at one’s own sin that one has no desire for food was a sign of true repentance.  The Jews of Isaiah’s day fasted, but did not repent, yet they still expected God to be pleased with their “pious” or “religious” acts of feigned devotion.

In Matthew 6:16, Jesus warned us that when we fast to not be like the hypocrites who went around with long faces hoping others would notice that they were fasting and would be impressed with them.  Instead, Jesus said that on the day one chooses to fast, do not act any differently than one would any other day.  For example, get dressed as usual, brush your teeth, go to work, school, or church like normal.  Don’t do or say anything to call attention to the fact that you are fasting.  Then fast, pray, and worship the Father in secret.

If others notice that you are abstaining from food, be honest, but realize most won’t understand.  Some may call you a “religious fanatic”, hence a good reason to keep it to yourself.  Don’t have a long face and act like it’s such a hard task to serve the LORD.  Why would anyone be enticed to follow the Lord by observing our intense, melodramatic, morbid, and/or miserable example?  Remember the little song, “If you’re happy and you know it, then your face should surely show it!”

In this day and age, I rarely hear of anyone who makes a habit of fasting except for trying to lose weight, for being so busy that they take no time to eat, or for a medical test.  That is not Biblical fasting.  Just imagine if everyone who claims to be a believer in Christ would take one day a week to fast or just fast one meal a week and spend the time usually set aside for meals in sincere repentance and prayer, I think we might just see a revival in our land.  If we are going to experience revival, it has to begin with us.  We surely can’t depend on the world to change without an honest, sincere, and prayerful effort on our part.