Fasting for Lent

A friend of mine is pregnant just now, and has written interestingly about fasting while pregnant. I must admit, even though Lent has begun, I have not yet decided how to fast this year. While Rhiannon arrives at Lent from a fairly rigorous branch of Christianity, my background is more liberal and I have never traditionally fasted for Lent. I have however, always given something up at this time, and as my understanding of my faith has increased, my choice of what to give up has become more important to me.

The following began as a reply to her post, but quickly became too long and so I have adopted it for here.

Fasting is about giving up luxuries, not essentials. It is important not to confuse the two. For some, washing and showering feel great, a little treat in the morning to prepare for the day ahead, or in the evening to prepare for bed. They feel like luxuries, but they are also essential for health and relationships. Please don’t quit them!

Fasting is meant to be a sacrifice, we should feel the loss of giving up on something. So giving up coffee, while it sounds great, wouldn’t be that hard for me, I hardly touch it anyway. Giving up watching television is something I have done in the past, and I did miss my favourite shows, and I saved a lot of time! However, again, I hardly ever watch TV any longer, so giving it up completely would be no great shakes. We should pick something that really hurts to quit, otherwise there would be no point.

The counterpoint to the sacrifice of fasting is that spiritually, it should be a feast. We should give things up in order to spend time with God and to focus on our relationship with him. Traditionally and biblically, the Jews fasted to draw closer to God and to learn his will (eg. Judges 20:23-28). Our fasts should have the same purpose.

If you don’t traditionally fast for Lent or if you, like Rhiannon cannot fast just now, why not give up something that you tell yourself is essential, something that is time-consuming, and something that with a little honesty you can live without. Use the time to do something you really ought to do – spend time with the Lord, study his word, pray to him, enjoy him.

I think this year, I will be giving up Facebook for Lent.

How to start?

I’ve been trying to work out what to put in a first post for a while.  This seems like an easy out, but here goes.  The following is a letter which I wrote and sent last night.  Gavin Strang is my MP.

Dear Mr Strang,

I write with deep concern regarding the current round of violence in the Gaza Strip.  Yet again, there has been a huge over-reaction from Israel to relatively minor terrorist activity.  The rockets launched from Gaza have killed 1 Israeli citizen, and do not justify the response seen in the last three days.

I was pleased to read Gordon Brown’s comments that he was appalled by Israel’s behaviour and that there was no military solution to this situation.  In this light, I would like to know what actions our government is taking to prevent our ongoing export of arms and ammunition to Israel.  If there is no military solution to their problems as a nation, why do we continue to sell them weapons?  If our leader is appalled at their behaviour, what is he going to do to show his distress? After all, actions speak louder than words.

I look forward to hearing from you on this matter.

Yours,

Russell Simpson