Prayer: Fasting from the World

Lent often conjures up ideas of fasting from foods or denial of physical and material things.  Fasting can be done on a different more spiritual level.  Jesus went into the desert, into the wilderness... alone to pray.  Silence and solitude are also ways of fasting; one is literally denying oneself the pleasures of world and community. This aloneness cleans us out, just like a dietary fast has a cleansing effect on the body.  This is an important part of most spiritual disciplines and integral to a life of prayer. 

The idea of a fast of prayer and meditation is to devote a portion of your day to the discipline of silence and solitude outside of your normal practice of prayer.  Intentionally make the length of time that you sit in silence a bit longer than you are comfortable with.  If you are fine sitting still alone for 5 minutes, then make your fast 10 minutes, if you're OK for 15 minutes, try 30 minutes.   Keep to your set length of time (I have used a timer).  While in your "world fast”, focus on God.  You can do this in a number of ways- have a conversation with God (Have any questions about God and about your journey with Him? Take this time and ask Him and listen for an answer),  meditate on His Word, use your imagination and participate in a Bible story (Read the Scripture before you do this), reflect on God’s love for you  and offer praise and thanksgiving, or simply rest in silence and expect God's presence.  This is not sitting alone like a silent, empty, void; here we sit in silence and solitude so that we can center on God. We are making the point to stop and be with Him, so you might as well have some sort of communication and interaction!

This takes practice, practice, practice! To be quiet and still in our loud busy world is a very difficult thing. Our minds are busy, our bodies are busy, and everyone around us is busy. Solitude and silence takes discipline, not only self discipline, but some amount of discipline from your family.  Let your family know what you are doing and ask them to respect your time with God.  Your practice of occasional solitude will benefit those around you in the long run.  By strengthening your relationship with God, through prayer and meditation, you inevitably strengthen your relationships with others.  After spending time with God, I am a much nicer person to be with.  I become re-calibrated in this solitude; I find new strength to love my neighbor and to attend to the needs of the community.  I return to the world cleansed and renewed. 

There is another, more conventional fasting going on while you are on a "world fast". Over time you may find that your time in silence and solitude becomes a sanctuary filled with worship and praise, and the thought of food, entertainment, or money does not even cross your mind.  Hunger for external things diminishes in the act of prayer; the food that we eat with our hearts, minds, and fills us.  I'm only hungry for physical things when I stop praying.  As Jesus said, prayer and fasting  go hand in hand.

Blessings to you during this season of Lent.