Matthew 6:16–18 (NIV)

16 When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

“Oh my gosh, I am starving!” I can’t imagine how many times I have made this statement in my life, and every time I said it I really meant it, but the reality is that it was never true. It felt true, and I acted on it as if it were true, but it never was.

“Anyone want to get a Del Taco fiesta pack?” This is how the passions work, that part of you that stirs you and moves you into action with a sense of urgency. Now, sometimes this is a great thing. Your passion can help you accomplish so much more than your will power or intention ever could, but it can also move you to do things that are neither good nor advantageous. The passions are wonderful servants but terrible taskmasters.

Unfortunately, the passions are not limited to late night Del Taco runs. Unrestrained passions have divided families and robbed many teens of their virginity. Lust, greed, anger, violence, gluttony, drunkenness, drug addiction, pornography… These are all the effects of passions that are allowed to be in the driver’s seat of a person’s soul.

The purpose of fasting isn’t to torture yourself to become holy. Don’t confuse self-flagellation with self-control. The latter is the virtue we are after. Self-control is the power to say no to the passions, and this is what fasting builds in you. When you fast, you tell your body and your passions that they are not in control. It is as though you are saying “Yeah, I hear you. I know you want to eat, but that isn’t what we are doing right now.”

Your Turn:

This week, you are going to choose something to fast. What you fast will depend on what in your life tends to have greater control over you. Maybe it is social media, or Netflix, or food, or pickleball. What is something that, if you stopped doing it for a week, would be challenging? You want to activate the passions within you that will try to get you to do that thing. You have to activate them so that you can overcome them.

Step 1: Choose something that you will fast this week. It should be challenging and difficult at first.

Step 2: Begin the fast today and maintain it for 1 week.

Step 3: During the week every time you are tempted to partake in the thing you are fasting, address the passions and tell them no.

Step 4: IN THAT MOMENT when you tell it no, ask God to meet you and to fill you with Holy Spirit. This should be something that you are doing with God. This will help you come to know that God is all you need.

Step 5: Pray earnestly for someone else to come to know God’s love and salvation. Do it every time you are tempted by the thing you are fasting. When we fast, it is never just for ourselves.

Step 6: When the temptation passes be sure to thank God for His grace. Teach yourself to value His presence.