Well, it’s this time of the year when we begin the most holy fast of Lent. It is a very holy fast because it precedes the most important event in the history of man- Our salvation from the death of sin through God’s bodily death on the cross. It’s a most holy fast, too, because we remember the extreme love the Lord showed us, to the extent that He gave up His glory to be mistreated in the shame of an evil sinner, taking our shame upon Himself. We look forward to this holy period because it brings us right up close to the cross of our Lord, bringing us to His very presence, and allowing us to enjoy the many benefits that it brings. These are benefits of spiritual blessings, resting from anxieties of life, sharing in Christ’s way of holiness and experiencing fulfillment in life.
Preparing for the Cross
The story of salvation was God’s free gift to those who have accepted Christ as their saviour and become baptised in His name, but it necessitates our demonstration to God of this faith through a life of repentance- showing God that we do not regard ourselves as being worthy of His holy sufferings, because every sin we commit demonstrates to Him that we still disregard His holy sufferings as either irrelevant, unimportant or a gift abused by us. Well, the period of Holy Lent is such an opportunity to truly take a look back on our lives and on the great sacrifice that the Lord offered to bring us back to Him; It’s a time during which we humble ourselves in fasting so God may uplift us with His many blessings.
From the outset God willed that His only-begotten Son be born into a humble home, in the most humble way (that is a manger), by humble parents. He chose to spend His days on earth as a stranger, as He said: “The Son of Man has no place to lay His head” (Mat 8: 20). Despite His great power over nature, diseases, evil spirits, etc He led a life of humility, asking His followers to imitate Him: “learn from Me for I am meek and humble in heart and you will find rest for your souls”. He spent much time in prayer with the Father, as He often retreated to the mountain. He showed us that He chose to begin His ministry with fasting fourty days, being led by the Spirit. He revealed to us that the secret of power over Satan was through prayer and fasting. All these were small steps for the final climax of the greatest sacrifice made for all mankind- God’s ultimate sacrifice on the cross. Hence all of Christ’s life on earth was that of a constant sacrifice, with His death being the climax, and He says that if you want to be His disciple, you too need to carry the cross and follow Him. And when you do follow Him you will be truly worthy of the blood He shed for you.
A time of rest
It is a misconception that fasting is a time to start worrying about what ‘special’ meals you need to prepare. In fact, it’s a time to have less worry about food, and to focus more on the more important, longer-lasting spiritual life. When abstaining from food for a certain period of time, it is actually an opportunity to replace it with more spiritual activities, such as prayer, fulfilling Jesus’ answer to satan ‘man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God’. When we do eat after a time of abstinence, we get a break from heavy meals containing animal fats and replace them with non-fatty meals which lighten the body’s lusts, and you feel more energetic to enjoy the time of prayer.
St John Chrysostom also indicated that when you fast you also begin to feel compassion for those in need. This contributes to the Christian virtues of humility and meekness. When the body becomes less lustful, it also become fulfilled, since we know that lust can never satisfy a person’s soul; rather it encourages further lust, as Jesus had said: "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life" (Jn 4: 13, 14). So look forward to a time of true freedom- Freedom from the cares of the body, gaining the feeling of humility and freedom from other lusts and anxieties of life, in return for the true satisfaction that can come from Christ who quenches all our thirst.
The Blessings we receive
We had discussed at length the many blessings we receive in fasting in last year’s Lent reflection- See the mar/Apr 2007 article. We discussed that, just as God was displeased with Esau because of his lack of self-control and lust for food over his father’s and God’s blessings, as well as for the Israelites in the wilderness for their lust over meat, we don’t receive any blessings for fulfilling bodily lusts. However, the likes of Daniel and his three friends and of Jacob for his desire for spiritual blessings in place of bodily needs, these have received blessings of riches, of power and of glory- All being received through the practice of holy fasting.
As you begin to practice fasting, then, look forward to the many wonderful things that you will gain through it, rather than be preoccupied and burden yourself with worries over food and the type of food you will eat. Enjoy this period as a time to get away from the anxieties of the mind and body, a time to please God through practicing self-control and a desire to lead a holy and spiritual life of prayer, meekness and humility and hence be worthy of the holy sufferings of Christ.
May the Lord fill us with this joy through the holy fast of Lent. Amen.
