Fasting and Feasting

Fasting and Feasting

This week Kevin framed the biblical practices of fasting and feasting around the idea of making space for God.

Lynne Baab writes,
“When we fast, we are affirming that life is best lived in rhythms. On feast days we embrace God’s abundant gifts and we rejoice in that abundance. On fast days we mourn and we long for the restoration of all things. Brokenness and abundance coexist in life… the rhythm of fasting and feasting calls us to embrace both sorrow and gladness in different times and seasons. The Bible is full of both emotions.” 

A brief word for each.

Fasting, Scot McKnight defines, is “a response to life’s sacred, grievous moments.” Rather than a ploy to manipulate God, Fasting aids us in participating in what God has already been up to. The mystery of our faith which we recite weekly, Christ has died, Christ has risen, and Christ will come again, situates us in the middle of a story where God has already acted and will act again. Fasting is a way of living in the tension of this story and responding to it by making space with our very own body.

A Psalm, Prayer, and Meditation for Fasting:

Psalm 42:1-2: “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” 

A Blessing to Begin a Fast: “Almighty God, bless and receive this fast as an offering of my whole self to you. Allow my hunger to be transformed into holy desire. Strengthen me to go without to make room for more of your Spirit. Jesus, bread of life, satisfy me as I feast on your unfailing love.”

Daily Bread, A Meditation on Matthew 6:11

Give us today our daily bread.

Give us today our daily.

Give us today our.

Give us today.

Give us.

Give…

The Table

The word Eucharist originates from the Greek word for thanksgiving, and refers to the practice of communion, Christ’s body and blood shared amongst the church in the bread and wine. While the Eucharist itself is often reserved as a sacred ritual, there is an element by which our entire being in Christ could be considered ‘eucharistic’ - a celebration of divine fellowship. To live ‘eucharistically’ is to embody life with God in the festivity and sanctity of everyday existence, extending the hospitality of Christ to all. Our ordinary feasting then can be a symbol of eucharistic life; As Christ welcomes us to his table, we welcome and celebrate with one another. Tish Warren Harrison writes, “The Eucharist- our gathered meal of thanksgiving for the life, death, and resurrection of Christ- transforms each humble meal into a moment to recall that we receive all of life, from soup to salvation, by grace.”

Three Questions For Feasting:

What might it look like to share a meal this week as an extension of God’s welcome in Christ?

Who might you want to share your table of thanksgiving with?

Where are the spaces you can extend hospitality as you feast?

By Ben Ide