September 23, 2024 • 38 mins
Can fasting transform your spiritual life and deepen your connection with God? Join us as we unravel the profound practice of biblical fasting in our latest episode, where we challenge common misconceptions and highlight its true purpose. Through insightful discussions and personal reflections, we explore why fasting is more than just abstaining from food—it's about setting aside significant aspects of our lives as an act of sincere devotion.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Fasting is not a way to get on God's good side or to
earn points.
It's not a way to get a betterresponse to your prayers.
Welcome back to the EverydayChristian Podcast, where we
(00:20):
apply scriptural principles toeveryday Christian lives.
I'm John Ridge and I'm SeanSloggett.
We want to thank you all forjoining us.
I automatically always want togo to this evening or this
morning.
Yeah, we are in this evening.
It's about 530 right now whenwe're recording.
So this evening, this morning,this afternoon, this midnight,
(00:42):
whenever it is that you decideto listen in.
Yeah, we want to thank you forjoining us Real quick.
I do want to bring out thesecups again, the Everyday
Christian Podcast mugs.
If you guys do want to try andsponsor and help us in any way,
we're selling them for $25.
They do come, pop that lid offon yours.
(01:04):
Do you have anything in yours?
No, I don't, and I've gotsomething in mind and make for
good entertainment.
But they do have lids thatclose on them so you can close
it and seal it.
They come with straws, cleanersand all that stuff, but we can
get those engraved for you ifyou would like to.
They are $25.
Like to, they are $25.
(01:30):
But with that.
Let's just go ahead and getstarted.
This evening, today, midnightthis morning, we're going to be
talking about fasting, and youknow what is fast.
I'll start with what is fasting.
You know, fasting is thesetting aside of something.
Fasting, you know, fasting isthe setting aside of something.
There are many types of fasts.
(01:51):
There are time-restricted fasts, modified fasts, juice fasts,
water fasts, you name it.
There are multiple ways to fast, some probably I've never even
heard of, and if you look atthem, most of them are
beneficial in some way, shape orform.
You know a lot of these fasts,especially in today's world,
(02:13):
would be beneficial for us justbecause of all the pesticides,
herbicides, any sides, whatever,whatever we have in our foods,
the msg's, yada.
You know we can go on and onabout all that stuff, the cia,
the fbi, yeah, all all thatstuff in your food.
They're putting chips in yourfood now.
(02:35):
So they can.
No, I'm kidding, they'reputting chips in your chips.
Yeah, it's just creepy, uh.
So, you know, a fasting,fasting would do your body good.
You know, we're addicted to alot of these things and our body
actually goes into withdrawalsover them, which should tell you
something about it.
But that's a different subjectthere for another time on
(02:58):
addiction.
We may have to cover that atsome point.
But the point being is thatfasts are beneficial, but they
aren't always beneficialspiritually.
And as I was studying for this,I came across some scriptures
that we will get to here in justa few minutes.
But to my surprise I'm going toadmit this I've read some stuff
(03:26):
in the Bible where fasting isnot always beneficial.
Right, I'll just go ahead andread these scriptures real quick
here.
We'll start with Matthew 6, 16through 18.
Moreover, when you fast, be notas the hypocrites of a sad
countenance, for they disfiguretheir faces that they may appear
(03:49):
unto men to fast.
Verily, I say unto you, theyhave their reward.
But thou, when thou fastest,anoint thy head and wash thy
face that thou appear not untomen to fast, but unto thy Father
, which is in secret.
And thy Father, which seeth insecret, shall reward thee openly
.
And then I'm going to skip downto.
(04:12):
I'll skip down.
We'll go to Isaiah 58, verses 3through 5 is where I'm going to
start.
Wherefore have we fasted, saythey, and thou seest not?
Wherefore have we afflicted oursoul and thou takest no
knowledge?
Behold, in the day of your fast, ye find pleasure and exact all
(04:36):
your labors.
Behold, ye fast for strife anddebate and to smite with the
fist of wickedness.
Ye shall not fast as ye do thisday to make your voice to be
heard on high.
It is such a fast that I.
Is it such a fast that I havechosen a day for a man to
(04:57):
afflict his soul?
I'm sorry, I'm.
I'm reading scripture andJonathan's camera has glitched
out.
He's crawling all over thefloor.
I was trying to keep a straightface and nobody would know that
, but he got caught on the cordsand fell while he was crawling.
(05:21):
So it's kind of hard not toFell while he was crawling.
So it's kind of hard not to.
Oh, is it such a fast that Ihave chosen a day for a man to
afflict his soul?
Is it to bow down his head as abulrush and to spread sackcloth
and ashes under him?
Wilt, thou call this a fast andan acceptable day to the Lord.
(05:45):
So at least twice in thescripture that we can find, once
in the Old Testament and oncein the New Testament the Bible
calls those out who fast fortheir own glory or their own
self-well-being.
I'm not saying that a healthfast is wrong, but doing it for
Sean and for what I can getnoticed over, for my pleasure,
(06:08):
my benefits, isn't always right.
The Bible does call on us totake care of ourselves to an
extent, but for the rightreasons.
These examples in scripturesthat I read about are calling
those out who are bitter aboutit, those who cause strife
because they're suffering thehey, look at me, such a poor,
(06:30):
miserable, wretched Christianthat I am, that's doing
something for the Lord.
See the look on my face.
Can't you tell I'm suffering?
Or that don't approach me.
I'm being religious for mySavior.
That don't approach me.
I'm being religious for mysavior.
That is not proper fasting, noris that being a proper
Christian.
Back on the health side of it,you know we do need to take care
(06:52):
of ourselves, right, and andfasting, I believe, can be a way
to help with that.
But but again, what's?
You know we've mentioned thisbefore what does it go back to?
What's your you know we'vementioned this before what does
it go back to?
What's your reasoning for it?
You know, if you're trying todo it to be healthier, then I
believe that's okay.
But if you're doing it to makeyourself look better, you know,
(07:20):
for the vain glory for aprideful reason.
I think there's a problem there.
But when you get that fastingbut while you're doing it it's
the hey, look at me then Ibelieve that you do run into
some issues there, brotherJonathan.
(07:40):
First of all, I was very fast inchanging out that battery them.
First of all, I was very fastin changing out that battery.
I don't know, for some reason,that one of the camera batteries
had an issue, which, if you runa podcast or know anything
about any sort of editing orvideo software, whatever it is,
cameras etc.
Things are bound to go wrong,and I love it because we always
(08:02):
I always set this up and I'mlike, oh man, we're good, we're
golden, things are set up, nice,and then something always
happens and so I'm crawlingunder the camera to swap out
this battery pack and hopefullySean's doesn't go out, but we'll
, we'll find out.
You know, brother Sean.
Um, I think that you knowsomething that I wrote down.
I'm going to share a little bitin more detail at the end of
(08:23):
this podcast, but something thatI wrote down and had been
thinking a lot about in studying, for this is what fasting isn't
, and I sort of I had to changemy phrasing, because fasting,
there's fasting everywhere.
You know, there's fasting inchurch, in Christianity, in
(08:46):
different cults and religions,but then there's fasting that's
not religious and that's not youknow, quote biblical.
So I had to rephrase and saywhat biblical fasting is not,
and so I'm going to touch up ona lot of that too.
But to your point about youknow the different health
benefits.
There are health benefits tofasting, just in general.
(09:07):
You don't have to be aChristian to have and
participate in those healthbenefits when it comes to
fasting.
But I think about what liketrue biblical fasting is.
If you're fasting, you know,for health reasons, nothing
wrong with that.
But if you think about you knowthe fasting that, like Jesus
(09:31):
did in the Bible, or the fastingseveral fasted in the old I'm
drawing a blank now, I'm out ofbreath but several who fasted in
the Old Testament, you knowwhat was the purpose of their
(09:51):
fasting, what was the truebiblical purpose of that, though
there was health benefits tothat, I wouldn't say and I know
you would agree with this andI'm not going against what you
said because I have that writtendown too it's like there are
different health benefits, butyou know, fasting it's not just
what we get out of our health orwhat we get in return, or that
God will answer a prayer.
(10:12):
But fasting is for much morethan even just that too.
You know, I think about Jesus.
The Bible says he fasted and Iknow you're wondering like why
would he do that?
I think that he did that, foran example, in Matthew 4, luke 4
.
But Jesus, the Bible says, wasled by the Spirit into the
wilderness, and the Bible tellsus that he fasted 40 days and 40
(10:33):
nights, and the most I've everfasted from food was 10 days.
It was a struggle Like youreally start to realize what
your body can go through butalso what not to do.
I think I drank like I can'tremember what it was I drank
during my fast and let me tellyou something it was the worst
(10:53):
thing I could have ever done,because my body's trying to
flush out things and then youmix in like I think it was apple
juice or something like that,and it was just.
We'll save that for another,another time.
But Jesus fasted for 40 days.
He fasted in such a way thateven when the devil tempted him
(11:15):
with bread, he said no.
And so we look at Jesus example.
He fasted for 40 days.
And so we look at Jesus'example.
He fasted for 40 days.
He's giving believers theexample of what I believe to be
denying your flesh.
And he fasted and denied all ofthese earthly things.
I mean he could have been givenriches, he could have put
(11:39):
himself high on the pinnacle, hecould have been high on the
totem pole and said what he didwas he humbled himself, which,
by the way, he didn't deservethat.
He deserved to be high andlifted up.
But he's showing us humility inthat moment, and when the devil
tempts him with bread, he saysno, now I'd have a hard time
(12:06):
with that.
It was difficult in those 10days to fast, and every time you
fast, you always it seems likeeverything is heightened.
It's like I'm fasting, theydecide to have a Paul Luck
church.
Yeah, they decide to have aPaul Luck church.
I'm fasting.
Now, all of a sudden, the guyswant to have a Paul Luck church.
Yeah, they decide to have aPaul Luck church.
I'm fasting.
Now, all of a sudden, the guyswant to go grab wings or
(12:26):
something.
You know, I'm fasting and nowI'm driving behind a guy with a
barbecue trailer and you cansmell the barbecue as you drive
by, like all of these thingshappen and it, honestly, it's
probably just normal.
But when you're fasting, it'sjust, it's probably just normal,
(12:48):
but when you're fasting, it'sjust.
It's as if that sense isheightened and then you're
starting to crave and you'redesiring it.
But I don't.
I have a hard time thinkingthat if I was tempted and I had
the ability to turn somethinginto bread, that I wouldn't do
it.
You know, obviously I don'thave that ability.
But to see Jesus there in thatmoment and really tells us A,
(13:10):
the example, but B what theexample does.
You know, we fast because weare essentially denying us and
we are depending on God, we aredepending on his savior.
And I think that a lot ofpeople don't fast.
I wrote this down and it'sactually again, the wording's
(13:31):
not great, but I wrote severaldo not believe that fasting is
essential for your walk withChrist.
Now, I actually think thatpeople do believe that, but
their actions do not.
You know, they sort of fastingis sort of a lost art, if you
will, in our church, inChristianity, and I think, out
(13:53):
of everything in the Bible, justbased off of Jesus' example.
Obviously there's more to it,but just based off of his
example.
I think that, out of everythingin the Bible or acts of
surrender in the Bible, like oneof the main things you can do
to show you're surrendering toGod is fasting, and that can be
food.
You know, like you said, we canget into a lot of it, like that
(14:16):
could be a drink or whatever.
You know you can obviously fastfrom differing things.
There's things that waste yourtime, that waste time with you
and god, that that maybe youfast with and essentially give
up on or, yeah, decide not to doanymore.
Uh, but I've, I've got thatmuch farther down in my note.
(14:37):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, you know thatI know some that have fasted
social media and at times Ithink that's very needed.
Sometimes I'm like, oh please,you know, the soda, the food,
the whatever, you know it'swhatever can be a hindrance.
Can I interject something righthere, and I'll let you continue
.
I don't mean to interrupt you.
(14:57):
I always roll my eyes whenpeople get on there and like,
all right, guys, I'm leavingFacebook for a couple of, couple
of weeks.
I'm just like, just do it.
No, why don't you just do it?
I mean, you're like the peoplethat paint their faces and make
themselves look like they'refast, it's like that.
It's like that hey, look at me,I'm so humble.
It's like I'm.
(15:19):
I'm going to talk about howlittle attention I require.
I'm going to bring attention tohow little attention I really
need.
I mean, that's part of it.
You know when you're, you knowthis.
In Isaiah 58, where I readthat's what they were doing a
lot of times.
They kept bringing attentionback around to it.
(15:46):
Or in um, in matthew, you knowthere, it says that they
disfigure their faces, that theymay appear unto men to fast.
So they were trying to dosomething holy, yeah.
But they made it to the pointwhere, like, oh man, that guy
looks miserable.
Hey, bro, are you all right?
Man, I'm, I'm blessed to theLord, but I've been fasting for
a week now.
But God is my strength and he'sokay, we get it.
(16:08):
You know we're not.
Yes, god is your strength.
Yes, god will be your help.
But if you have to makeyourself look miserable, so
people ask you I've got a lotmore questions I get that
feeling on I can't, I'm going tokeep going off on this.
But I get that feeling onFacebook posts because it's like
(16:28):
, what do you expect to happen?
Like if you get on there andturn off comments and say that
I'd still think it was kind ofgoofy anyway, but at least it's
a little less goofy than keepingcomments on where people are
like what's going on, bro,what's wrong, man, I don't know.
Just tired of it, just tired ofall the drama.
I have drama in my life, don'task me.
Yeah, I have drama in my life.
Don't ask me, or else you're agossiper.
(16:50):
Yeah, exactly, you know.
I do feel as though, throughthat type of surrender, you can
fast from anything.
I feel that, you know, althoughI believe the ultimate
sacrifice really is is, um, isfasting from food.
Uh, you know, I, I, I don't.
(17:10):
I'm never going to say that youcan't fast from, like social
media or Facebook or whatever,but how many years can you go
fasting from Facebook?
You can go forever fasting fromFacebook, not in today's world.
Well, you can't.
I'll argue that point.
Well, you can.
That doesn't mean that it'ssmart.
I mean, if you deleted yourFacebook today, you would never
(17:32):
have to have a Facebook everagain.
Like that's not.
You're not depending on thatfor your life, whereas food and
nourishment you are, and so Ithink some of that, though,
comes back to the addiction side.
Yeah, you know, I, I, Iwouldn't.
I know some people that,honestly and I mean I'll just
say it I know some people that Ithink it would do them better
(17:56):
oh yeah, to fast social mediaRight Than it would be to fast a
meal.
Yeah, myself included.
They work out all the time.
They're very healthy.
They, you know, they watch whatthey eat, they're you know all
(18:17):
their food is homegrown meals.
Yeah, food is homegrown meals,but I mean, heaven forbid you
say something that they disagreewith.
Yeah, all over you killing you,sorry, go ahead.
No, you're fine, I agree withthat.
I think that I guess, in my from, what I think about when I
(18:40):
think about fasting from food isyou know, you need food to
survive.
You don't need Facebook tosurvive, obviously, you know.
And so I think that that's whythat sort of seems like the
ultimate fast to an extent, andit does all depend on what
you're depending on.
I mean, I feel like I couldfast.
You know, a lot more often I'vetried to fast for, like, diet
(19:03):
reasons and hated it, cause it'slike you're going okay, if I'm
not fast, for God, I'm notfasting.
I mean, I don't, we'll get that.
There's a whole mental,psychological issue with that
anyway.
But I think you can fast fromlike video games, you can fast
from from television.
You can fast from fromtelevision, you can fast from
your phone.
(19:23):
You know if you, if you feellike and it doesn't have to be
like days on end you know it'slike if you, if you take time.
And there's a really good book.
I can't remember what the nameof this book is now, man, I'll,
I'll, uh, I'll try to find itand I'll put it up on the screen
for you guys.
But there's this book whereit's.
I mean, it's it's a little like10, 15 page booklet and it's
(19:47):
talking about this guy and hislife and he has like this chart
and he just goes through the 24hour period of a day and he
marks what he does within thattime period and it's like eight
hours sleep and then, you know,I eat breakfast for 30 minutes,
I work for, however, howevermuch time, and he just breaks it
(20:08):
down like that.
Well, in this booklet it haslike a little place where you
can write things in yourself anddo the same thing, and I wrote
stuff in and I was like I don'thave time, but I'm also wasting
a lot of time, and so there'sobviously moments and we call it
a fast, but you know, I don'tknow if that's the right phrase
(20:30):
per se, but you know there aretimes where you can fast, and it
doesn't have to be days on end,maybe it's just two hours and
instead of, you know, watchingYouTube or TikTok or scrolling
through social media, you couldpray or study or read a book,
something you know.
Do something for God in thattime frame.
I think God would bless you forthat.
(20:51):
Bishan, you know fasting andthis is where I think you were
trying to go with it, and if I'moff, then just tell me and I'll
take it as what I'm saying.
You were talking about the foodbeing dependent.
You know, we get so dependenton a lot of these things, right,
and that's why I brought up thesocial media or the video games
or whatever.
We get so dependent on thatkind of stuff.
(21:13):
Yeah, fasting is not selfish,right, fasting is selfless.
Yeah, fasting is selfless.
Yeah.
So if, if you're and I and Iagree with the the food, you
know, that's where a lot of thefasting came from.
But if, if you're so bound upby the video games or the social
(21:36):
media or or the coffee orwhatever it is that that you
can't function during the daywithout it.
Right, then, setting that asideis is setting yourself out of
the way, and I believe that'swhere God could see that Right
You're.
You're getting Sean out of theway.
(21:58):
Yeah, I'm breaking me down.
I'm saying it doesn't matter, Idon't matter Overall, I do not
matter.
My feelings don't matter, yeah,my opinions.
Don't matter what I think,doesn't matter my desires, don't
matter what I want, nothingmatters.
(22:20):
It's me showing God I amdebasing myself, because what
we're doing in our lives andagain, not everything wrong with
this, but we're trying tofurther ourselves, we're trying
to be better.
We're trying to financially,spiritually, mentally, whatever
(22:40):
we're trying to make ourselvesgrow so we can be better human
beings, stronger human beings,wealthier human beings Right.
But when you get Sean out ofthe way or whatever gets you out
of the way, you're actually forlack of my scale is not, but
you're trying to do this andthen you're just like wait, god,
(23:02):
I'm really not.
Yeah, god, I'm going to showyou where I need to be.
Yeah, yeah, and I know thosescales.
They're different scales, butthat's what we're doing.
Yeah, when you're doing that is, you're saying, hey, let me get
me out of the way.
And in Isaiah 58, verses threethrough 5, they were trying to
(23:27):
just continue to make themselveslook better.
In it all, that was verses 3through 5.
If you continue reading 6 and 7,is not this the fast that I
have chosen?
To loose the bands ofwickedness, to undo the heavy
burdens, to let the oppressed gofree and that ye break every
yoke?
This fast here is the selflessfast.
(24:07):
Yeah, we're loosening the bondsof wickedness.
We're helping those that areheavy burdened.
We're loosening the bonds ofwickedness.
We're helping those that areheavy burdened.
We're freeing oppression.
We're breaking the chains.
Yeah, we're feeding the hungry.
We're bringing the poor in.
We're clothing the naked.
It's a helpful fast.
(24:28):
It is showing the true love ofChrist that we know.
Yeah, it's being the exampleset before us.
Fasting can be selfish or it canbe selfless, and that's where
we need to be.
A lot of times is.
I think it's a question we needto ask ourselves when we're
(24:51):
fasting is am I being selfish oram I being selfless?
Right, right, and it has a lot,and everything with what you're
saying has a lot to you.
Depending on God, you know,depending on him training your
(25:11):
body to depend on him, trainingyour mind to depend on him,
training your mind to depend onhim, training your spirit to
depend on him.
I do again interject somethinghere, but and then I'll come
back to that point that thosepoints that you're making but
you know you had mentionedearlier about people in the
(25:33):
Bible that, would you know, makethemselves look like they were
just miserable.
You know that, like, oh, I'vebeen fasting so that people
would ask me that I was fastingso I could tell them that I was
fasting.
That bothered me when I readthat it says of a sad
countenance, for they disfiguretheir faces, that they may
(25:57):
appear in a men to fast.
Yeah Right, disfiguring yourface?
Yeah, just to look holy, so youcan get recognized as being
holy.
Yeah, well, I want to.
The reason I brought that up asecond time is because I wanted
to interject something here andit's kind of funny.
But you, there's nothing wrong,but this is sort of a preface
(26:24):
or caveat, whatever.
I don't believe there'sanything wrong with telling
someone that you're fasting, notgoing and saying, hey, man, I'm
fasting today.
But some people are so worriedabout it.
It's like like one time I was,uh, morgan's great grandma.
Um, you know, we loved her verymuch, but she, she passed away
early last year, I think itmight've been.
(26:45):
It's actually might've beenlike a year and a half ago now,
um, two years ago, somethinglike that.
But anyway, I remember one timewe were at my wife, my
mother-in-law's house, and shewas there.
She was sitting on the couch.
They had just made like atortilla soup or something, and
I told her I was like I'm goingto go make you a bowl, you know,
no, no, no, no, no, no.
And so, yeah, of course, don'tget up, I'm going to make you a
(27:07):
bowl.
No, no, no, no, no, it's fine.
And someone pulled me and saidshe's, she's fasting, you know,
and, um, I thought that I gotkind of a kick out of that,
because she's just, you know,the sweet old lady trying to not
look like a Pharisee or notlook like someone who's made
herself appear to be holy.
Um, but I, I say all that tosay, you know, you don't, you
(27:29):
don't have to do that, likethere's nothing wrong and it's
not like you're denying yourflesh any less or that God's all
of a sudden not going to listento your prayer If you say, no,
I can't do that.
Today I'm fasting, you know.
So I wanted to throw that outthere, but then I wanted to go.
There's, yeah, there'sabsolutely a point.
(27:50):
Yeah, you know, I agree withthat.
Yeah, you know, I, I agree withthat.
Yeah, you know, you can makeyourself look more of a fool,
you know, you could have satthere and argued with your great
grandmother for 10 minutes overa dumb bowl, yeah, and then,
you know, eventually youprobably would have showed up
(28:10):
with it.
And then now, now she has abowl of soup sitting in front of
her.
Now she's stuck with the choiceyeah, do I let it sit here and
go to waste or do I eat it andbreak my fast?
Now, because I've told God, youknow, yeah, there's absolutely
a point.
And I don't think like in her,like she's one of the greatest
(28:32):
women of God that I knew, butlike I know she wasn't meaning
any ill intention.
But I do know people that arelike that, that they sort of um,
it's like a, it's like reversepsychology.
For them it's like no, I can't,you know.
And then they're like wantingpeople to ask them so that they
can tell them that fasting islike dude, just say I can't, I'm
(28:55):
fasting, like that's as easy asthat.
But I wanted to go back to tolike what you were Don't look at
me, don't look at me, I'mfasting.
I wanted to go back to thatbecause that is, that is
something that physical, thatthat biblical fasting is not.
You know, we don't fast forappearances or to look holy, we
don't.
(29:15):
I like that that you hadmentioned that it's like they
disfigured their face and Jesuswas just like go wash your face.
You know that's his answer.
Like go wash your face, becausethat's not fasting.
That's not the point of fastingto make you look holier.
But something I wanted tomention with that is you know,
(29:36):
fasting is not a way to get onGod's good side or to earn
points.
It's not a way to get a betterresponse to your prayers.
Like a lot of people takefasting and they're like man, if
I fast for 50 days over this,then God's going to give me the
answer that I need no, um can.
(29:58):
Can he do that?
Sure can you fast on behalf ofsomething?
I believe that you can, but tofeel or believe that if I give
up whatever it is, that all of asudden I'm in God's, um, I'm,
I'm better in God's, or I'm morein God's grace, or that I'm
more accepted by him, or thatI've got you know little point
(30:22):
systems in heaven and at somepoint it's like a grocery store
I'm going to be able to usethose reward points for
something in the future.
Like that's not what the pointof fasting is.
That's not what fasting is inthe future.
Like that's not what the pointof fasting is.
That's not what fasting is, andI think that a lot of people
confuse fasting with somethingthat can be used to get God to
(30:42):
answer your prayers.
But it's so much more than eventhat.
It is like you said.
It's that act of surrenderingto God, to what I believe is to
do his will, which is to helpthose who are hungry and help
the poor, and to deny me so thatGod's work can be fulfilled in
my life.
(31:03):
If you keep reading that Isaiah,chapter 58, verses eight
through 11, says then shall thatlight break forth as the
morning and thine health shallspring forth speedily and thy
righteousness shall go beforethee.
The glory of the Lord shall bethy reward.
(31:24):
Excuse me.
Then shalt thou call and theLord shall answer.
Thou shalt cry and he shall sayhere I am, if thou take away
from the midst of thee the yoke,the putting forth of the finger
and speaking vanity, and ifthou draw out thy soul to the
hungry and satisfy the afflictedsoul, then shall thy light rise
(31:48):
in obscurity and thy darknessbe as the noonday, and the Lord
shall guide thee continually andsatisfy thy soul in drought and
make fat thy bones, and thoushall be like a watered garden
and like a spring out of waterwhose waters fail, not so there.
I mean, there's severalpromises in there.
(32:10):
You know of things that can andwill come, and I believe yeah,
you know I of things that canand will come, and I believe you
know you've already mentionedit, but I believe that we do
need to make that a regular partof our lives.
But it's not, it's not just I'mjust reiterating what you said,
I know, but it's not just thepoint system.
You know, the part of one partabout these scriptures that kind
(32:34):
of got my attention was youknow, when you think about
fasting, it's, it's somethingabout me.
You know what's?
I got something going on.
Lord, help me, help me, help me, and that is a part of it.
This is talking about, you know,taking the hungry, satisfying
(32:55):
the afflicted souls, clothingthe naked, helping the poor.
You know it's creating a betterChristian out of you so you can
do more of the will of God andwhat he wants.
Yeah, you know, make it aregular part of your life, For
(33:18):
when we need him, he's alreadythere.
Yeah, that's something that Iwrote down and I read it several
times.
You know I've been guilty of it.
I'll go and I'll fast when Ineed God.
Right now, lord, I need you toshow up right now, god, it's an
emergency.
I've got to have you right now,lord, where, if it's a regular
(33:42):
part of my life, I'm drawingcloser to Christ.
So when the need arises,whether it's for me and my
family or whether it's for youand your family, I've already
got a connection establishedhere where I can say Lord, yeah,
(34:02):
it's not, it's not Lord.
It's been a minute since Italked to you, but Lord, it's me
again.
Yeah.
Yeah, we think about Jesus goingand starting his ministry.
Yeah, I mean he fasted.
I mean think about Jesus goingand starting his ministry.
I mean he fasted.
I mean think about that.
It's like we expect to just goheadfirst into ministry,
(34:24):
whatever that may look like,without, like we were talking
about denying us, and so youhave to consider that, make it a
part of your daily routine.
And you know, brother Sean, Ican't sit up here and lie to
people.
I don't feel like I do a goodenough job in that in my daily
routine.
You know, I feel like I coulddo much more and I could fast
(34:45):
more often and from differentthings.
And you know I wouldn't say Inever try.
I do, you know, and sometimes Isucceed and sometimes I fail,
but you know it's something thatI feel like you know in my own
life I could definitely work onand I pray that someone
listening to this could alsowork on that and hopefully get a
(35:07):
better understanding of whatfasting is in this episode.
But we wanted to thank you all.
I don't know if you hadanything else before we close,
but I wanted to thank you.
Everyone who's listening andall the support that we've had
over these years Really reallyappreciate that.
Some of you are probably kind ofwondering about the setup.
(35:27):
We are changing so many thingsabout the podcast.
The background is actuallygoing to be we keep trying new
things, seeing what's going tostay.
We are trying.
We've got ideas.
We're trying Trump right now.
That's just my own wall.
Like that's my own personalwall.
It has nothing to do with thepodcast.
I'll have to show you your dadon there sometime for the
(35:48):
audience.
They'd get a kick out of that.
But I wanted to mention a coupleof things.
Our virtual youth class it'ssort of turned into just like a
virtual class.
I guess the word youth I usethat very loosely because we
have ranges everywhere from like17 year old, 18 year olds to,
like, I think, the old well, Iwon't say the oldest in our
(36:09):
class, but we'll just say 17 to45.
Okay, so it's somewhere betweenthere.
But any, if anyone wants to, ifyou're above that, he'll
welcome you to.
Yeah, I'll, I'll, I'm fine withit.
Someone was like, you know isam I probably too old for this?
I'm like, no Like.
Are you ever too old to learnthe Bible class?
(36:35):
We're discussing several topics.
We'll actually probably bediscussing one the evening of
the time that you get this orwatch this podcast.
But if you do want to be a partof that, message us on Facebook.
You can email us attheeverydaychristians at
gmailcom.
Find us on the social mediaplatform of your choice by
searching the Everyday ChristianPodcast.
That's the Every Day Christianpodcast, or search at podcast
(36:57):
for him, and I'm going tomention these mugs, these
tumblers.
Mugs, these tumblers, one moretime, the everyday Christian
podcast tumblers.
It will hold your, have your,keep your drink cold for hours,
as well as hot for hours.
It's got lid straw.
It's got a closable lid.
By the way, it is only $25.
That is shipping included.
If you would like to supportthe show, go ahead and purchase
(37:20):
one.
Send us a message and we willmake it happen.
So, brother Sean, sign us off,bro.
Thank you all again.
God bless you.
God bless, thank you.
Fasting is not a way to get on God's good side or to
earn points.
It's not a way to get a betterresponse to your prayers.
Welcome back to the EverydayChristian Podcast, where we
(00:20):
apply scriptural principles toeveryday Christian lives.
I'm John Ridge and I'm SeanSloggett.
We want to thank you all forjoining us.
I automatically always want togo to this evening or this
morning.
Yeah, we are in this evening.
It's about 530 right now whenwe're recording.
So this evening, this morning,this afternoon, this midnight,
(00:42):
whenever it is that you decideto listen in.
Yeah, we want to thank you forjoining us Real quick.
I do want to bring out thesecups again, the Everyday
Christian Podcast mugs.
If you guys do want to try andsponsor and help us in any way,
we're selling them for $25.
They do come, pop that lid offon yours.
(01:04):
Do you have anything in yours?
No, I don't, and I've gotsomething in mind and make for
good entertainment.
But they do have lids thatclose on them so you can close
it and seal it.
They come with straws, cleanersand all that stuff, but we can
get those engraved for you ifyou would like to.
They are $25.
Like to, they are $25.
(01:30):
But with that.
Let's just go ahead and getstarted.
This evening, today, midnightthis morning, we're going to be
talking about fasting, and youknow what is fast.
I'll start with what is fasting.
You know, fasting is thesetting aside of something.
Fasting, you know, fasting isthe setting aside of something.
There are many types of fasts.
(01:51):
There are time-restricted fasts, modified fasts, juice fasts,
water fasts, you name it.
There are multiple ways to fast, some probably I've never even
heard of, and if you look atthem, most of them are
beneficial in some way, shape orform.
You know a lot of these fasts,especially in today's world,
(02:13):
would be beneficial for us justbecause of all the pesticides,
herbicides, any sides, whatever,whatever we have in our foods,
the msg's, yada.
You know we can go on and onabout all that stuff, the cia,
the fbi, yeah, all all thatstuff in your food.
They're putting chips in yourfood now.
(02:35):
So they can.
No, I'm kidding, they'reputting chips in your chips.
Yeah, it's just creepy, uh.
So, you know, a fasting,fasting would do your body good.
You know, we're addicted to alot of these things and our body
actually goes into withdrawalsover them, which should tell you
something about it.
But that's a different subjectthere for another time on
(02:58):
addiction.
We may have to cover that atsome point.
But the point being is thatfasts are beneficial, but they
aren't always beneficialspiritually.
And as I was studying for this,I came across some scriptures
that we will get to here in justa few minutes.
But to my surprise I'm going toadmit this I've read some stuff
(03:26):
in the Bible where fasting isnot always beneficial.
Right, I'll just go ahead andread these scriptures real quick
here.
We'll start with Matthew 6, 16through 18.
Moreover, when you fast, be notas the hypocrites of a sad
countenance, for they disfiguretheir faces that they may appear
(03:49):
unto men to fast.
Verily, I say unto you, theyhave their reward.
But thou, when thou fastest,anoint thy head and wash thy
face that thou appear not untomen to fast, but unto thy Father
, which is in secret.
And thy Father, which seeth insecret, shall reward thee openly
.
And then I'm going to skip downto.
(04:12):
I'll skip down.
We'll go to Isaiah 58, verses 3through 5 is where I'm going to
start.
Wherefore have we fasted, saythey, and thou seest not?
Wherefore have we afflicted oursoul and thou takest no
knowledge?
Behold, in the day of your fast, ye find pleasure and exact all
(04:36):
your labors.
Behold, ye fast for strife anddebate and to smite with the
fist of wickedness.
Ye shall not fast as ye do thisday to make your voice to be
heard on high.
It is such a fast that I.
Is it such a fast that I havechosen a day for a man to
(04:57):
afflict his soul?
I'm sorry, I'm.
I'm reading scripture andJonathan's camera has glitched
out.
He's crawling all over thefloor.
I was trying to keep a straightface and nobody would know that
, but he got caught on the cordsand fell while he was crawling.
(05:21):
So it's kind of hard not toFell while he was crawling.
So it's kind of hard not to.
Oh, is it such a fast that Ihave chosen a day for a man to
afflict his soul?
Is it to bow down his head as abulrush and to spread sackcloth
and ashes under him?
Wilt, thou call this a fast andan acceptable day to the Lord.
(05:45):
So at least twice in thescripture that we can find, once
in the Old Testament and oncein the New Testament the Bible
calls those out who fast fortheir own glory or their own
self-well-being.
I'm not saying that a healthfast is wrong, but doing it for
Sean and for what I can getnoticed over, for my pleasure,
(06:08):
my benefits, isn't always right.
The Bible does call on us totake care of ourselves to an
extent, but for the rightreasons.
These examples in scripturesthat I read about are calling
those out who are bitter aboutit, those who cause strife
because they're suffering thehey, look at me, such a poor,
(06:30):
miserable, wretched Christianthat I am, that's doing
something for the Lord.
See the look on my face.
Can't you tell I'm suffering?
Or that don't approach me.
I'm being religious for mySavior.
That don't approach me.
I'm being religious for mysavior.
That is not proper fasting, noris that being a proper
Christian.
Back on the health side of it,you know we do need to take care
(06:52):
of ourselves, right, and andfasting, I believe, can be a way
to help with that.
But but again, what's?
You know we've mentioned thisbefore what does it go back to?
What's your you know we'vementioned this before what does
it go back to?
What's your reasoning for it?
You know, if you're trying todo it to be healthier, then I
believe that's okay.
But if you're doing it to makeyourself look better, you know,
(07:20):
for the vain glory for aprideful reason.
I think there's a problem there.
But when you get that fastingbut while you're doing it it's
the hey, look at me then Ibelieve that you do run into
some issues there, brotherJonathan.
(07:40):
First of all, I was very fast inchanging out that battery them.
First of all, I was very fastin changing out that battery.
I don't know, for some reason,that one of the camera batteries
had an issue, which, if you runa podcast or know anything
about any sort of editing orvideo software, whatever it is,
cameras etc.
Things are bound to go wrong,and I love it because we always
(08:02):
I always set this up and I'mlike, oh man, we're good, we're
golden, things are set up, nice,and then something always
happens and so I'm crawlingunder the camera to swap out
this battery pack and hopefullySean's doesn't go out, but we'll
, we'll find out.
You know, brother Sean.
Um, I think that you knowsomething that I wrote down.
I'm going to share a little bitin more detail at the end of
(08:23):
this podcast, but something thatI wrote down and had been
thinking a lot about in studying, for this is what fasting isn't
, and I sort of I had to changemy phrasing, because fasting,
there's fasting everywhere.
You know, there's fasting inchurch, in Christianity, in
(08:46):
different cults and religions,but then there's fasting that's
not religious and that's not youknow, quote biblical.
So I had to rephrase and saywhat biblical fasting is not,
and so I'm going to touch up ona lot of that too.
But to your point about youknow the different health
benefits.
There are health benefits tofasting, just in general.
(09:07):
You don't have to be aChristian to have and
participate in those healthbenefits when it comes to
fasting.
But I think about what liketrue biblical fasting is.
If you're fasting, you know,for health reasons, nothing
wrong with that.
But if you think about you knowthe fasting that, like Jesus
(09:31):
did in the Bible, or the fastingseveral fasted in the old I'm
drawing a blank now, I'm out ofbreath but several who fasted in
the Old Testament, you knowwhat was the purpose of their
(09:51):
fasting, what was the truebiblical purpose of that, though
there was health benefits tothat, I wouldn't say and I know
you would agree with this andI'm not going against what you
said because I have that writtendown too it's like there are
different health benefits, butyou know, fasting it's not just
what we get out of our health orwhat we get in return, or that
God will answer a prayer.
(10:12):
But fasting is for much morethan even just that too.
You know, I think about Jesus.
The Bible says he fasted and Iknow you're wondering like why
would he do that?
I think that he did that, foran example, in Matthew 4, luke 4
.
But Jesus, the Bible says, wasled by the Spirit into the
wilderness, and the Bible tellsus that he fasted 40 days and 40
(10:33):
nights, and the most I've everfasted from food was 10 days.
It was a struggle Like youreally start to realize what
your body can go through butalso what not to do.
I think I drank like I can'tremember what it was I drank
during my fast and let me tellyou something it was the worst
(10:53):
thing I could have ever done,because my body's trying to
flush out things and then youmix in like I think it was apple
juice or something like that,and it was just.
We'll save that for another,another time.
But Jesus fasted for 40 days.
He fasted in such a way thateven when the devil tempted him
(11:15):
with bread, he said no.
And so we look at Jesus example.
He fasted for 40 days.
And so we look at Jesus'example.
He fasted for 40 days.
He's giving believers theexample of what I believe to be
denying your flesh.
And he fasted and denied all ofthese earthly things.
I mean he could have been givenriches, he could have put
(11:39):
himself high on the pinnacle, hecould have been high on the
totem pole and said what he didwas he humbled himself, which,
by the way, he didn't deservethat.
He deserved to be high andlifted up.
But he's showing us humility inthat moment, and when the devil
tempts him with bread, he saysno, now I'd have a hard time
(12:06):
with that.
It was difficult in those 10days to fast, and every time you
fast, you always it seems likeeverything is heightened.
It's like I'm fasting, theydecide to have a Paul Luck
church.
Yeah, they decide to have aPaul Luck church.
I'm fasting.
Now, all of a sudden, the guyswant to have a Paul Luck church.
Yeah, they decide to have aPaul Luck church.
I'm fasting.
Now, all of a sudden, the guyswant to go grab wings or
(12:26):
something.
You know, I'm fasting and nowI'm driving behind a guy with a
barbecue trailer and you cansmell the barbecue as you drive
by, like all of these thingshappen and it, honestly, it's
probably just normal.
But when you're fasting, it'sjust, it's probably just normal,
(12:48):
but when you're fasting, it'sjust.
It's as if that sense isheightened and then you're
starting to crave and you'redesiring it.
But I don't.
I have a hard time thinkingthat if I was tempted and I had
the ability to turn somethinginto bread, that I wouldn't do
it.
You know, obviously I don'thave that ability.
But to see Jesus there in thatmoment and really tells us A,
(13:10):
the example, but B what theexample does.
You know, we fast because weare essentially denying us and
we are depending on God, we aredepending on his savior.
And I think that a lot ofpeople don't fast.
I wrote this down and it'sactually again, the wording's
(13:31):
not great, but I wrote severaldo not believe that fasting is
essential for your walk withChrist.
Now, I actually think thatpeople do believe that, but
their actions do not.
You know, they sort of fastingis sort of a lost art, if you
will, in our church, inChristianity, and I think, out
(13:53):
of everything in the Bible, justbased off of Jesus' example.
Obviously there's more to it,but just based off of his
example.
I think that, out of everythingin the Bible or acts of
surrender in the Bible, like oneof the main things you can do
to show you're surrendering toGod is fasting, and that can be
food.
You know, like you said, we canget into a lot of it, like that
(14:16):
could be a drink or whatever.
You know you can obviously fastfrom differing things.
There's things that waste yourtime, that waste time with you
and god, that that maybe youfast with and essentially give
up on or, yeah, decide not to doanymore.
Uh, but I've, I've got thatmuch farther down in my note.
(14:37):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, you know thatI know some that have fasted
social media and at times Ithink that's very needed.
Sometimes I'm like, oh please,you know, the soda, the food,
the whatever, you know it'swhatever can be a hindrance.
Can I interject something righthere, and I'll let you continue
.
I don't mean to interrupt you.
(14:57):
I always roll my eyes whenpeople get on there and like,
all right, guys, I'm leavingFacebook for a couple of, couple
of weeks.
I'm just like, just do it.
No, why don't you just do it?
I mean, you're like the peoplethat paint their faces and make
themselves look like they'refast, it's like that.
It's like that hey, look at me,I'm so humble.
It's like I'm.
(15:19):
I'm going to talk about howlittle attention I require.
I'm going to bring attention tohow little attention I really
need.
I mean, that's part of it.
You know when you're, you knowthis.
In Isaiah 58, where I readthat's what they were doing a
lot of times.
They kept bringing attentionback around to it.
(15:46):
Or in um, in matthew, you knowthere, it says that they
disfigure their faces, that theymay appear unto men to fast.
So they were trying to dosomething holy, yeah.
But they made it to the pointwhere, like, oh man, that guy
looks miserable.
Hey, bro, are you all right?
Man, I'm, I'm blessed to theLord, but I've been fasting for
a week now.
But God is my strength and he'sokay, we get it.
(16:08):
You know we're not.
Yes, god is your strength.
Yes, god will be your help.
But if you have to makeyourself look miserable, so
people ask you I've got a lotmore questions I get that
feeling on I can't, I'm going tokeep going off on this.
But I get that feeling onFacebook posts because it's like
(16:28):
, what do you expect to happen?
Like if you get on there andturn off comments and say that
I'd still think it was kind ofgoofy anyway, but at least it's
a little less goofy than keepingcomments on where people are
like what's going on, bro,what's wrong, man, I don't know.
Just tired of it, just tired ofall the drama.
I have drama in my life, don'task me.
Yeah, I have drama in my life.
Don't ask me, or else you're agossiper.
(16:50):
Yeah, exactly, you know.
I do feel as though, throughthat type of surrender, you can
fast from anything.
I feel that, you know, althoughI believe the ultimate
sacrifice really is is, um, isfasting from food.
Uh, you know, I, I, I don't.
(17:10):
I'm never going to say that youcan't fast from, like social
media or Facebook or whatever,but how many years can you go
fasting from Facebook?
You can go forever fasting fromFacebook, not in today's world.
Well, you can't.
I'll argue that point.
Well, you can.
That doesn't mean that it'ssmart.
I mean, if you deleted yourFacebook today, you would never
(17:32):
have to have a Facebook everagain.
Like that's not.
You're not depending on thatfor your life, whereas food and
nourishment you are, and so Ithink some of that, though,
comes back to the addiction side.
Yeah, you know, I, I, Iwouldn't.
I know some people that,honestly and I mean I'll just
say it I know some people that Ithink it would do them better
(17:56):
oh yeah, to fast social mediaRight Than it would be to fast a
meal.
Yeah, myself included.
They work out all the time.
They're very healthy.
They, you know, they watch whatthey eat, they're you know all
(18:17):
their food is homegrown meals.
Yeah, food is homegrown meals,but I mean, heaven forbid you
say something that they disagreewith.
Yeah, all over you killing you,sorry, go ahead.
No, you're fine, I agree withthat.
I think that I guess, in my from, what I think about when I
(18:40):
think about fasting from food isyou know, you need food to
survive.
You don't need Facebook tosurvive, obviously, you know.
And so I think that that's whythat sort of seems like the
ultimate fast to an extent, andit does all depend on what
you're depending on.
I mean, I feel like I couldfast.
You know, a lot more often I'vetried to fast for, like, diet
(19:03):
reasons and hated it, cause it'slike you're going okay, if I'm
not fast, for God, I'm notfasting.
I mean, I don't, we'll get that.
There's a whole mental,psychological issue with that
anyway.
But I think you can fast fromlike video games, you can fast
from from television.
You can fast from fromtelevision, you can fast from
your phone.
(19:23):
You know if you, if you feellike and it doesn't have to be
like days on end you know it'slike if you, if you take time.
And there's a really good book.
I can't remember what the nameof this book is now, man, I'll,
I'll, uh, I'll try to find itand I'll put it up on the screen
for you guys.
But there's this book whereit's.
I mean, it's it's a little like10, 15 page booklet and it's
(19:47):
talking about this guy and hislife and he has like this chart
and he just goes through the 24hour period of a day and he
marks what he does within thattime period and it's like eight
hours sleep and then, you know,I eat breakfast for 30 minutes,
I work for, however, howevermuch time, and he just breaks it
(20:08):
down like that.
Well, in this booklet it haslike a little place where you
can write things in yourself anddo the same thing, and I wrote
stuff in and I was like I don'thave time, but I'm also wasting
a lot of time, and so there'sobviously moments and we call it
a fast, but you know, I don'tknow if that's the right phrase
(20:30):
per se, but you know there aretimes where you can fast, and it
doesn't have to be days on end,maybe it's just two hours and
instead of, you know, watchingYouTube or TikTok or scrolling
through social media, you couldpray or study or read a book,
something you know.
Do something for God in thattime frame.
I think God would bless you forthat.
(20:51):
Bishan, you know fasting andthis is where I think you were
trying to go with it, and if I'moff, then just tell me and I'll
take it as what I'm saying.
You were talking about the foodbeing dependent.
You know, we get so dependenton a lot of these things, right,
and that's why I brought up thesocial media or the video games
or whatever.
We get so dependent on thatkind of stuff.
(21:13):
Yeah, fasting is not selfish,right, fasting is selfless.
Yeah, fasting is selfless.
Yeah.
So if, if you're and I and Iagree with the the food, you
know, that's where a lot of thefasting came from.
But if, if you're so bound upby the video games or the social
(21:36):
media or or the coffee orwhatever it is that that you
can't function during the daywithout it.
Right, then, setting that asideis is setting yourself out of
the way, and I believe that'swhere God could see that Right
You're.
You're getting Sean out of theway.
(21:58):
Yeah, I'm breaking me down.
I'm saying it doesn't matter, Idon't matter Overall, I do not
matter.
My feelings don't matter, yeah,my opinions.
Don't matter what I think,doesn't matter my desires, don't
matter what I want, nothingmatters.
(22:20):
It's me showing God I amdebasing myself, because what
we're doing in our lives andagain, not everything wrong with
this, but we're trying tofurther ourselves, we're trying
to be better.
We're trying to financially,spiritually, mentally, whatever
(22:40):
we're trying to make ourselvesgrow so we can be better human
beings, stronger human beings,wealthier human beings Right.
But when you get Sean out ofthe way or whatever gets you out
of the way, you're actually forlack of my scale is not, but
you're trying to do this andthen you're just like wait, god,
(23:02):
I'm really not.
Yeah, god, I'm going to showyou where I need to be.
Yeah, yeah, and I know thosescales.
They're different scales, butthat's what we're doing.
Yeah, when you're doing that is, you're saying, hey, let me get
me out of the way.
And in Isaiah 58, verses threethrough 5, they were trying to
(23:27):
just continue to make themselveslook better.
In it all, that was verses 3through 5.
If you continue reading 6 and 7,is not this the fast that I
have chosen?
To loose the bands ofwickedness, to undo the heavy
burdens, to let the oppressed gofree and that ye break every
yoke?
This fast here is the selflessfast.
(24:07):
Yeah, we're loosening the bondsof wickedness.
We're helping those that areheavy burdened.
We're loosening the bonds ofwickedness.
We're helping those that areheavy burdened.
We're freeing oppression.
We're breaking the chains.
Yeah, we're feeding the hungry.
We're bringing the poor in.
We're clothing the naked.
It's a helpful fast.
(24:28):
It is showing the true love ofChrist that we know.
Yeah, it's being the exampleset before us.
Fasting can be selfish or it canbe selfless, and that's where
we need to be.
A lot of times is.
I think it's a question we needto ask ourselves when we're
(24:51):
fasting is am I being selfish oram I being selfless?
Right, right, and it has a lot,and everything with what you're
saying has a lot to you.
Depending on God, you know,depending on him training your
(25:11):
body to depend on him, trainingyour mind to depend on him,
training your mind to depend onhim, training your spirit to
depend on him.
I do again interject somethinghere, but and then I'll come
back to that point that thosepoints that you're making but
you know you had mentionedearlier about people in the
(25:33):
Bible that, would you know, makethemselves look like they were
just miserable.
You know that, like, oh, I'vebeen fasting so that people
would ask me that I was fastingso I could tell them that I was
fasting.
That bothered me when I readthat it says of a sad
countenance, for they disfiguretheir faces, that they may
(25:57):
appear in a men to fast.
Yeah Right, disfiguring yourface?
Yeah, just to look holy, so youcan get recognized as being
holy.
Yeah, well, I want to.
The reason I brought that up asecond time is because I wanted
to interject something here andit's kind of funny.
But you, there's nothing wrong,but this is sort of a preface
(26:24):
or caveat, whatever.
I don't believe there'sanything wrong with telling
someone that you're fasting, notgoing and saying, hey, man, I'm
fasting today.
But some people are so worriedabout it.
It's like like one time I was,uh, morgan's great grandma.
Um, you know, we loved her verymuch, but she, she passed away
early last year, I think itmight've been.
(26:45):
It's actually might've beenlike a year and a half ago now,
um, two years ago, somethinglike that.
But anyway, I remember one timewe were at my wife, my
mother-in-law's house, and shewas there.
She was sitting on the couch.
They had just made like atortilla soup or something, and
I told her I was like I'm goingto go make you a bowl, you know,
no, no, no, no, no, no.
And so, yeah, of course, don'tget up, I'm going to make you a
(27:07):
bowl.
No, no, no, no, no, it's fine.
And someone pulled me and saidshe's, she's fasting, you know,
and, um, I thought that I gotkind of a kick out of that,
because she's just, you know,the sweet old lady trying to not
look like a Pharisee or notlook like someone who's made
herself appear to be holy.
Um, but I, I say all that tosay, you know, you don't, you
(27:29):
don't have to do that, likethere's nothing wrong and it's
not like you're denying yourflesh any less or that God's all
of a sudden not going to listento your prayer If you say, no,
I can't do that.
Today I'm fasting, you know.
So I wanted to throw that outthere, but then I wanted to go.
There's, yeah, there'sabsolutely a point.
(27:50):
Yeah, you know, I agree withthat.
Yeah, you know, I, I agree withthat.
Yeah, you know, you can makeyourself look more of a fool,
you know, you could have satthere and argued with your great
grandmother for 10 minutes overa dumb bowl, yeah, and then,
you know, eventually youprobably would have showed up
(28:10):
with it.
And then now, now she has abowl of soup sitting in front of
her.
Now she's stuck with the choiceyeah, do I let it sit here and
go to waste or do I eat it andbreak my fast?
Now, because I've told God, youknow, yeah, there's absolutely
a point.
And I don't think like in her,like she's one of the greatest
(28:32):
women of God that I knew, butlike I know she wasn't meaning
any ill intention.
But I do know people that arelike that, that they sort of um,
it's like a, it's like reversepsychology.
For them it's like no, I can't,you know.
And then they're like wantingpeople to ask them so that they
can tell them that fasting islike dude, just say I can't, I'm
(28:55):
fasting, like that's as easy asthat.
But I wanted to go back to tolike what you were Don't look at
me, don't look at me, I'mfasting.
I wanted to go back to thatbecause that is, that is
something that physical, thatthat biblical fasting is not.
You know, we don't fast forappearances or to look holy, we
don't.
(29:15):
I like that that you hadmentioned that it's like they
disfigured their face and Jesuswas just like go wash your face.
You know that's his answer.
Like go wash your face, becausethat's not fasting.
That's not the point of fastingto make you look holier.
But something I wanted tomention with that is you know,
(29:36):
fasting is not a way to get onGod's good side or to earn
points.
It's not a way to get a betterresponse to your prayers.
Like a lot of people takefasting and they're like man, if
I fast for 50 days over this,then God's going to give me the
answer that I need no, um can.
(29:58):
Can he do that?
Sure can you fast on behalf ofsomething?
I believe that you can, but tofeel or believe that if I give
up whatever it is, that all of asudden I'm in God's, um, I'm,
I'm better in God's, or I'm morein God's grace, or that I'm
more accepted by him, or thatI've got you know little point
(30:22):
systems in heaven and at somepoint it's like a grocery store
I'm going to be able to usethose reward points for
something in the future.
Like that's not what the pointof fasting is.
That's not what fasting is inthe future.
Like that's not what the pointof fasting is.
That's not what fasting is, andI think that a lot of people
confuse fasting with somethingthat can be used to get God to
(30:42):
answer your prayers.
But it's so much more than eventhat.
It is like you said.
It's that act of surrenderingto God, to what I believe is to
do his will, which is to helpthose who are hungry and help
the poor, and to deny me so thatGod's work can be fulfilled in
my life.
(31:03):
If you keep reading that Isaiah,chapter 58, verses eight
through 11, says then shall thatlight break forth as the
morning and thine health shallspring forth speedily and thy
righteousness shall go beforethee.
The glory of the Lord shall bethy reward.
(31:24):
Excuse me.
Then shalt thou call and theLord shall answer.
Thou shalt cry and he shall sayhere I am, if thou take away
from the midst of thee the yoke,the putting forth of the finger
and speaking vanity, and ifthou draw out thy soul to the
hungry and satisfy the afflictedsoul, then shall thy light rise
(31:48):
in obscurity and thy darknessbe as the noonday, and the Lord
shall guide thee continually andsatisfy thy soul in drought and
make fat thy bones, and thoushall be like a watered garden
and like a spring out of waterwhose waters fail, not so there.
I mean, there's severalpromises in there.
(32:10):
You know of things that can andwill come, and I believe yeah,
you know I of things that canand will come, and I believe you
know you've already mentionedit, but I believe that we do
need to make that a regular partof our lives.
But it's not, it's not just I'mjust reiterating what you said,
I know, but it's not just thepoint system.
You know, the part of one partabout these scriptures that kind
(32:34):
of got my attention was youknow, when you think about
fasting, it's, it's somethingabout me.
You know what's?
I got something going on.
Lord, help me, help me, help me, and that is a part of it.
This is talking about, you know,taking the hungry, satisfying
(32:55):
the afflicted souls, clothingthe naked, helping the poor.
You know it's creating a betterChristian out of you so you can
do more of the will of God andwhat he wants.
Yeah, you know, make it aregular part of your life, For
(33:18):
when we need him, he's alreadythere.
Yeah, that's something that Iwrote down and I read it several
times.
You know I've been guilty of it.
I'll go and I'll fast when Ineed God.
Right now, lord, I need you toshow up right now, god, it's an
emergency.
I've got to have you right now,lord, where, if it's a regular
(33:42):
part of my life, I'm drawingcloser to Christ.
So when the need arises,whether it's for me and my
family or whether it's for youand your family, I've already
got a connection establishedhere where I can say Lord, yeah,
(34:02):
it's not, it's not Lord.
It's been a minute since Italked to you, but Lord, it's me
again.
Yeah.
Yeah, we think about Jesus goingand starting his ministry.
Yeah, I mean he fasted.
I mean think about Jesus goingand starting his ministry.
I mean he fasted.
I mean think about that.
It's like we expect to just goheadfirst into ministry,
(34:24):
whatever that may look like,without, like we were talking
about denying us, and so youhave to consider that, make it a
part of your daily routine.
And you know, brother Sean, Ican't sit up here and lie to
people.
I don't feel like I do a goodenough job in that in my daily
routine.
You know, I feel like I coulddo much more and I could fast
(34:45):
more often and from differentthings.
And you know I wouldn't say Inever try.
I do, you know, and sometimes Isucceed and sometimes I fail,
but you know it's something thatI feel like you know in my own
life I could definitely work onand I pray that someone
listening to this could alsowork on that and hopefully get a
(35:07):
better understanding of whatfasting is in this episode.
But we wanted to thank you all.
I don't know if you hadanything else before we close,
but I wanted to thank you.
Everyone who's listening andall the support that we've had
over these years Really reallyappreciate that.
Some of you are probably kind ofwondering about the setup.
(35:27):
We are changing so many thingsabout the podcast.
The background is actuallygoing to be we keep trying new
things, seeing what's going tostay.
We are trying.
We've got ideas.
We're trying Trump right now.
That's just my own wall.
Like that's my own personalwall.
It has nothing to do with thepodcast.
I'll have to show you your dadon there sometime for the
(35:48):
audience.
They'd get a kick out of that.
But I wanted to mention a coupleof things.
Our virtual youth class it'ssort of turned into just like a
virtual class.
I guess the word youth I usethat very loosely because we
have ranges everywhere from like17 year old, 18 year olds to,
like, I think, the old well, Iwon't say the oldest in our
(36:09):
class, but we'll just say 17 to45.
Okay, so it's somewhere betweenthere.
But any, if anyone wants to, ifyou're above that, he'll
welcome you to.
Yeah, I'll, I'll, I'm fine withit.
Someone was like, you know isam I probably too old for this?
I'm like, no Like.
Are you ever too old to learnthe Bible class?
(36:35):
We're discussing several topics.
We'll actually probably bediscussing one the evening of
the time that you get this orwatch this podcast.
But if you do want to be a partof that, message us on Facebook.
You can email us attheeverydaychristians at
gmailcom.
Find us on the social mediaplatform of your choice by
searching the Everyday ChristianPodcast.
That's the Every Day Christianpodcast, or search at podcast
(36:57):
for him, and I'm going tomention these mugs, these
tumblers.
Mugs, these tumblers, one moretime, the everyday Christian
podcast tumblers.
It will hold your, have your,keep your drink cold for hours,
as well as hot for hours.
It's got lid straw.
It's got a closable lid.
By the way, it is only $25.
That is shipping included.
If you would like to supportthe show, go ahead and purchase
(37:20):
one.
Send us a message and we willmake it happen.
So, brother Sean, sign us off,bro.
Thank you all again.
God bless you.
God bless, thank you.
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Therapy Gecko
An unlicensed lizard psychologist travels the universe talking to strangers about absolutely nothing. TO CALL THE GECKO: follow me on https://www.twitch.tv/lyleforever to get a notification for when I am taking calls. I am usually live Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays but lately a lot of other times too. I am a gecko.