Introduction:

Many of us think of fasting as being about food.  We might “give up” chocolate for Lent.  Or perhaps, we have decided our fasting should be less about material things and more about self-improvement.   So we give up gossip.  Rarely, though, do we ask ourselves why we would fast from anything at all.  Giving up chocolate might help our waistlines.  Giving up gossip might make our workplace more friendly.  These are good things!  However, what if we saw our Lenten practice of fasting as more than just a restart of what were likely New Year’s resolutions gone bust?  What if we reframed fasting to be about growing our understanding about who we are as God’s beloved children, and what gets in the way of us living as who we are?

Fasting is the recognition that we are dependent on God for everything:  everything from our next meal to our next breath.  It helps us remember that we aren’t as self-reliant as we would like to be.  Ultimately, fasting is a practice that helps us move from worry (and the need for control that worry can grow in us) to trust in the One who is our constant Helper, Keeper, and Companion, who is with us in our worry.  Fasting could still be about chocolate or gossip, because chocolate might be about loneliness and gossip about the need to look good—places of worry for many of us.  But maybe there is something more true for you to fast from this Lent.