True Fast!

As interested as Christ is in our sincere commitment to Him, he's also very much concerned with our complete state of well-being.

It is often said that Christianity is not a religion; man's way of reaching​ a higher power or state of being through his own efforts. Rather, it is a relationship that God has established with His children, with God being the aggressor and man, the beneficiary.

With all these being said, is it then compulsory to fast?

I mean we all most times unconsciously see fasting as an avenue to reach out to God, to manipulate Him, to get him to change his will to our favour, or simply for the sake of self righteousness. And truthfully this is wrong!

We must have the right motives for fasting. It should be an exercise done in spirit and in truth as it is also a form of worship.

Fasting is all about changing yourself, and not changing God.

In as much as there are no commands in the New Testament that followers of Jesus are to fast, Jesus sometimes fasted, and He assumed that His followers would also fast on occasions. However we must go about this with wisdom and divine leading.

"Story time mimi..?"
Sure babbbyyyyy!!! You should know I was gonna link this all up with a personal gist.😂

So, on this particular day, I was left at home all alone. My parents had gone for a 2-day conference, my older siblings to work and my younger sibling to school. It was one of those days I loved. Cause honestly, I enjoy spending time alone, as it gives me the opportunity to pray and meditate more without disturbance.

On this day, I had it all planned.
I mean; I was gonna fast for the first 18 hours of the day, thereby breaking my fast by 6pm (I honestly thought this was gonna get God's attention and make him more interested in me than ever before. It's safe to say I thought my righteousness was what I needed to please God). I was gonna worship and study the word for about 6 hours and then pray through the rest.

You need to have seen me pipu of God, I was so determined. The zeal of His house had consumed me.

I took a perfect spot in the living room, laid a beautiful, colourful wrapper on the floor, arranged my jotter (one in which I write down all God tells​ me) and my ever cute Bible. I had my phone and earphones alongside as I might want to pray while vibing to any gospel song.

Trust me, I was prepared.

The gate leading to the compound was shut and the burglary to our apartment locked with a padlock. No disturbance!!

I first started with worship songs, then I moved to my devotionals, Bible readings for the day then back to worship. Honestly I worshipped for about 4 hours when I suddenly felt I needed to stay calm for a while, to hear if God had anything to say before moving on with my prayer session.

As I sat right there on the wrapper, with my eyes closed and my mind focused on heaven, my stomach began to make funny sounds as one who had been starved of food for days. And just then, I heard loud and clear in my heart.. "Oore, go and eat".

Ehn? Go and eat ke?
I want to fast till 6pm and it's just after 12🙁.

But just as I kept wondering if it truly was God who spoke or my fleshy heart, I heard again "Go and eat the bread and egg in the house"

Me: Ha!! Bread and egg ke? What's going on??!!

It took a while, but finally I had to get up, fry the egg and eat the bread alongside. Now just to confirm that he truly was the one speaking, he completed his instructions with "Don't forget to remain for your sister". And boom He didn't say anything else.

I jejely ate my brunch in peace and slept off afterwards. Wait, did I sleep? I can't even remember sef. I was just so sad. I mean He behaved like my fast was irrelevant. But later on, i think about a year later, he showed me something in the word from Isaiah 58.

I'll give a brief outline here but you sure can read and meditate on it later.

"Indeed you fast for strife and debate, And to strike with the fist of wickedness. You will not fast as you do this day, To make your voice heard on high. Is it a fast that I have chosen, A day for a man to afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head like a bulrush, And to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Would you call this a fast, And an acceptable day to the Lord?"

"This is the kind of fast day I'm after: to break the chains of injustice, get rid of exploitation in the workplace, free the oppressed, cancel debts. What I'm interested in seeing you do is: sharing your food with the hungry, inviting the homeless poor into your homes, putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad, being available to your own families."

Beloved, just in case you're a lazy reader like me, and you sure didn't read those two paragraphs, the whole summary is that the fast in which the lord has called us unto is one of LOVE.

LOVE is the greatest command and the purest fast.

Now, don't get me wrong.
I'm not saying it's wrong to do dry fasts or marathon fasts and the likes, no. What I'm saying is that we should get our motives right.

Fasting should be done as the need arises, for example, there were days I got up in the morning, with an urge to fast unknown to me that strange things were gonna happen that day. It should be from a genuine inner conviction, and most times with a clear scriptural purpose. People in the Bible fasted and prayed because they wanted something specific to happen. They either wanted God to change them, to change their circumstances, or to reveal something to them.

Ultimately, fasting is far more about focus. It is taking your focus off the things of this world in order to focus more on the things of God.

Fasting can thus be a means of growing closer to God and not a means of justifying the genuity of your heart to God.

Oh my..!!
I've said a lot😱. Pardon me😭.

But hey, I'm open to suggestions and criticisms. I mean, we learn everyday 😊.

I'll close with this; what is fasting to you?

What type of a Christian are you?

A religious Christian? Or a relationship driven Christian??

Biko, I have an 8am class tomorrow, goodnight!!🏃🏃😚