Ash Wednesday & Fasting

By Katie Heemstra

“When we come forward to receive ashes on Ash Wednesday, we are saying that we are sorry for our sins, and that we want to use the season of Lent to correct our faults, purify our hearts, control our desires and grow in holiness so we will be prepared to celebrate Easter with great joy.”

-Father Michael Van Sloun

As many of you know, today is Ash Wednesday and we are entering into the season of Lent.  Over the next six weeks we as a church will be celebrating this season of Lent together through giving up something or possibly taking on a spiritual discipline, but each of our individual celebrations of this season may look different from one another.  Because of this, we wanted to take time to explore different approaches to Lent and disciplines that could be practiced during this Lenten season. So keep checking back weekly for new posts on different spiritual disciplines.

The Discipline of Fasting

The season of Lent is one of reflection, one of looking inward and asking God to show us ways in which we can grow closer to him and become an even clearer reflection of who Jesus was while he walked on this earth.  One of the most common things we hear of people doing for the season of Lent is fasting. Whether it is fasting a certain food item (like chocolate or coffee) or certain food groups (like meat or sweets), this is what we hear most answered when we ask Protestants, “What are you giving up for Lent?”  But fasting can truly be so much more than that if we really bring God into the process.

Fasting itself is when a person abstains in some significant way from a certain item that is necessary in (and if not necessary a huge part of) our life.  Most commonly it is food, but in recent years people have been fasting other things more commonly, like social media and entertainment. By abstaining from a very usual part of our daily routine, fasting creates space in our lives that we can intentionally fill with the presence of God.  

This abstinence is not easy, there is a reason this is called a discipline.  But I’ve heard it said that every growl of hunger in your stomach or craving for that chocolate bar (or itch to pick up your phone and scroll through IG), is just a marking point in our day of fasting to stop and thank God for his provision.  His provision of enough food to eat on a normal basis, his provision of the sweet things in our lives (and not just dessert), his provision of good relationships with those we love.  

As Dallas Willard says in The Spirit of the Disciplines, fasting, “certainly proves humiliating to us, as it reveals to us how much our peace depends upon the pleasures of eating,” and I would go further to say the pleasures of this world.  Fasting can be a very frustrating experience and looking at our frustration can be humbling. What does it truly mean to us to delete our social media accounts for 40 days? If we don’t drink coffee for a month and a half?  If we choose to abstain from using our car for 40 days and choose to focus on how God provides a path before our feet to lead us closer to him?

There are so many things you can fast if you choose to try this discipline over the next six weeks.  Just ask God to show you, “Is there something in my life right now that I am relying on for comfort, sustenance, affirmation, (fill in the blank), more than you?”  And if he shows you something ask what it might look like to give that up for Lent.

Personally, the most unique thing I have fasted for Lent is control.  Last year God revealed to me that I was relying on myself and what I wanted for my life far more than I was relying on him and I was quickly leading myself toward a train wreck.  God stopped me and met me at my absolute lowest and asked me to give up control for six weeks, to let him lead me, and to trust him with whatever happened. Since burying myself at rock bottom (which was my other choice) sounded way less appealing, I decided to give up control.  What did that look like? It was painful. It looked like giving up some dreams I had. It looked like giving up the exact future I had pictured for myself. It looked like forgiving instead of holding past wrongs against someone. What did I gain in return? Complete freedom. I have never felt so free in my life and so in the center of God’s will before I gave up control last year.  Do I sometimes get tempted to take the reigns again? You bet I do, but I quickly remember the bullet train to destruction I was on just a year ago and it gets easier and easier to leave those reigns in God’s hands.

So, my question to you:  Is God asking you to let go of something for the next six weeks?  Whether the answer is yes or no, I dare you to ask him!

Other Resources:

If you want to know more about Ash Wednesday and Lent, here is a great article from Christianity.com giving an overview of the history, practice, and heart behind this season of reflection and confession.

Here is an open-source version of the Spirit of the Disciplines by Dallas Willard for your reading pleasure if you want to dive deeper into fasting or other spiritual disciplines.