As we continue in The Good Life, a year of Spiritual Disciplines, we come to Fasting. Fasting is a discipline we see throughout Scripture, including in the life of Jesus. Fasting has certainly gone “out of style” in our current culture, but followers of Jesus have engaged in fasting since the beginning. As we learn to fast together this month, we are going to pray and ask that God first and foremost gives us a greater sense of intimacy with him. After that, we are going to ask God to help us hear His voice more clearly, ask to be set free from addictions and things holding us back in our lives, and to come to greater understanding of God’s sustaining presence in our lives.

We know fasting is difficult! It’s not always fun or easy, but nothing will reveal what controls us more than fasting. Lean in this month! Watch the teaching video, follow the 5 Steps For Fasting, and push yourself a bit this month. You can do more in regard to fasting than you think you can!

 

5 Steps To Begin The Discipline Of Fasting

1. Pray and ask God to lead you in your fasting. Make him the center of the whole process.

2. Select a frequency and length for your fasts. When will you fast and for how long? (Suggested schedule below)

3. Do not make a public declaration of your fast, but invite a small community to pray for and with you as you fast.

4. While fasting, use mealtimes as opportunities for prayer and Scripture reading. We have created a Mealtime Prayer Guide for you.

5. Use hunger pangs as calls to prayer. Like a bell calling monks to prayer throughout the day and night, our hunger can remind us to stop what we are doing and pray.

 

RESOURCES

• “Celebration Of Discipline” by Richard Foster – Chapter 4: The Discipline Of Fasting

• Mealtime Prayer Guide
• March Reading Plan
• Life Group Leader Guide #1
• Life Group Leader Guide #2

 

Suggested Fasting Schedule (Please feel free to create your own schedule)
March 1-5: Fast one meal per day (for example, fast lunch all week)
March 8-12: Fast one day (24 straight hours)
March 15-19: Fast two days (48 straight hours or two 24-hour fasts)
March 22-26: Fast three days (72 straight hours or three 24-hour fasts)
March 29-31: Fast as you feel led

A few special considerations
1. If you have medical concerns about fasting (diabetes, etc) please contact your doctor before you begin fasting.
2. If you struggle with an eating disorder of some sort (anorexia, bulimia, etc), we encourage you to abstain from fasting this month and instead we want to help you seek help. Please contact our Relationship Center by emailing trc@cachurch.com. We have trained counselors who are willing to begin working with you to help you overcome this disorder.