Lent is a season of time leading up to Easter that helps us focus our attention on God. Accompanying this season of reflection and prayer is the practice of fasting. I highly recommend some sort of a fast multiple times per year. Fasting, quite simply, is removing something from your normal routine and replacing that time with prayer and reflection toward God.
Many times, people mistakenly assume that fasting is simply going without food. Not true. You can fast anything that will draw your attention to God consistently. One of the most effective fasts that I have seen in recent memory was when a young man in our church fasted Facebook for Lent last year. He made the comment, “I never realized how compulsively I checked my Facebook updates until I took that away from my normal routine.”
What is something that you can give up between now and Easter? Sundays aren’t included in the fast, by the way. So what can you give up on Monday-Saturday that will help you remember to allow God into your normal, daily routine. This can be a life altering season as you replace something simple in your daily life with prayer.
My wife, Dara, has also started a blog that will have Scripture readings posted online to help you stay on track with many others as we go through this season together. Click here to join along with us as we read God’s Word together!
