What a dichotomy of ideas and textures! The hard act of the breaking of Christ's body and the wonderful new flavors of bread not savored for 21 days. The painful loss of blood and the sweetness and tartness of the fruit of the vine rekindled and renewed through abstention.
I have been thinking to what end did this fast accomplish. I have been reading both the Fasting book and The Daniel Fast book by Susan Gregory. One more than the other speaks of what we get from the fast. There are still tones of success in both of them. This touts of magic wand theology. Our God is not a magic wand God. He is a God that does have our best in His plans, but that does not mean that by fasting we are ushered into an ability to have God wave His magic wand over our problems and afflictions to have God solve them.
However, this fast has taught me what I have been missing by not having certain disciplines in my life that should have already been producing fruit in my life. One of my goals that I believe should be a part of every fast is that of adding something spiritual to our lives when we are withholding something physical from our lives. I personally found that doing these during the time that I would have normally had that thing that I am withholding helps me truly appreciate God in an added way.
For me, I wanted to have a better prayer life. I wanted to commune with God in a more intimate way in order to have a deeper relationship with Him. I turned to the Psalms where God spoke to me as I went through them. Most of what I gleaned was not that of special insight or Godly revelation. Instead it was a methodical approach to reading and understanding how and what David was going through as he wrote them. The pain he endured. The feeling of separation from God. Yet, David recurrently praising God in the middle of the hurt he endured. He truly leaned on God. But it really wasn't a crutch type of leaning. It was total dependence on God.
How incredible! One thing that I learned through David's psalms and Susan Gregory's devotions was that it was through being prepared, having an ongoing relationship with God that is growing and deepening, that he and we are able to persevere. It is not so much that we run to God when we need Him, but rather by having an ongoing relationship with God we are able to be so close to Him that those times do not shake our foundation. Instead, they strengthen our foundation, because we have already become one with the Father (God). In our weakness, He is strong. Our strength comes from Him.
When we do feel closer to God, it is not because of what we got. I believe it is because of what we gave.
