Fasting Blesses You

From January 1-21, Riverwood is once again doing "21 Days of Prayer & Fasting." For 2025, we are seeking to cherish God through His Word. But as we focus on Psalm 119 each day and in our Sunday Worship Gatherings, here on the blog we want to focus on the other part of the 21 Days - fasting. To do this, we will look at Isaiah 58, considering The Blessings of Fasting.

The topic of fasting is rarely a topic the average person relishes discussing. Typically, when a person fasts, they don't do it with much enthusiasm. Usually, it feels like drudgery to give up food, a favorite drink, sugar, social media, TV, or whatever. (Just so you know, this isn't a modern thing: even the Jews of Jesus' day felt miserable when fasting.) So I wouldn't blame you a bit for thinking the title of this three-week blog series (The Blessings of Fasting) is an oxymoron.

But I hope to show you from a chapter in the Old Testament book of Isaiah that fasting shouldn't make us miserable internally nor externally. Rather, it should help transform us into Christlike people who are a blessing to God, others, and even ourselves.

So let's begin this series by considering how fasting, as painful as it might be, actually blesses our lives...

Wanting Results

I remember years ago talking with a pastor friend who worked a commission-only job for about a year while between ministry jobs. As we chatted on the phone, he shared that the day before, he'd had two different customers walk into his store wanting to make a purchase, but said they needed to "sleep on it."

My friend knew if they waited, they would miss out - and sure enough, both items were sold within the hour to other people. This meant he missed out on the commission, and the individuals missed out on the incredible deal.

I remember my friend saying with much frustration, "So basically, I put in 50 hours of work last week and got nothing to show for it."

If you were in his shoes, you would be frustrated, too. None of us enjoys putting hard work into something only to see no return.

The Point of No Return

I think we often approach fasting the same way. We want something from God, and we think if we work hard enough at fasting, He'll change His mind and give us what we want.

But as we see in Isaiah 58 (our key passage for this series), fasting isn't about changing God. It's about God changing us! Look at the first part of verse 3 with me:

"Why have we fasted,
and you see it not?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you take no knowledge of it?" (Isaiah 58:3a)

The people are questioning God in these sentences. They are fasting, but God doesn't seem to be responding. They're working hard, but they are seeing no return on God's part. Why?

Well, God told them...

"Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,
and oppress all your workers.
Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
and to hit with a wicked fist.
Fasting like yours this day
will not make your voice to be heard on high." (Isaiah 58:3b-4)

You see, the people were fasting trying to get things from God, making the fast all about themselves. This is why God basically responded, "Fasting isn't to change me, it's to change you! However, you are acting just as sinful and selfish as ever, even in the midst of your fast!"

But God wasn't done. He continued...

"Is such the fast that I choose,
a day for a person to humble himself?
Is it to bow down his head like a reed,
and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
and a day acceptable to the Lord?" (Isaiah 58:5)

In other words, God was saying fasting is supposed to change us. It's supposed to humble us, so we might gain a clearer perspective that we are truly dependent upon Him: for food, for clothing, for work, for relationships—for life! And that shift in perspective is a tremendous blessing! It transforms you from being self-centered into being Christlike.

So as you undergo your fast during these 21 Days—whether it's food, entertainment, social media, your phone, or whatever it might be—may you not falsely think your fast is to move God to give you something. Rather, may your fast humble you and help you realize that what you get in a fast is God Himself. And that is a blessing!