Stranded: When You Fast

Mitch Video

as most of you know, we have been actively looking to hire a youth pastor to help lead the next generation

it is with great excitement that I announce that we have officially hired someone

Mitch Stiller will be coming on to staff as our Youth Pastor starting August, and he sent us a little video to help you get to know him

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Intro

we are wrapping up Stranded

last week we talked about prayer and the Lord’s prayer

part of the Lord’s prayer is praying for forgiveness for us, not just me

Praying for forgiveness for us means praying for our nation, and in light of recent events, I think we can all agree that our nation desperately needs prayer

Address to the Indigenous Community

Micah 6:8 tells us to seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God

We should be troubled by the news, especially with the Marieval school being so close to us

2 Corinthians 5:18 says we have been given the ministry of reconciliation

Let us be praying for those impacted by what has gone on in the residential schools

When you Fast

this morning we finish Stranded by talking about fasting

which brings me to my first question

If you were stranded on an island, what would you miss most?

we talked what you would want with you on the island

but if you were deserted, what would you miss most

in all honesty, I have no idea

I watch Survivor, and I could only imagine which luxury I take for granted right now, is the thing I would long for

which brings us to our passage this morning

Matthew 6:16–18 ESV

“And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

What is Fasting?

what is fasting? Fasting is essentially denying yourself something for a season

Often, fasting involves denying yourself food, but it could be a number of other things

at this basic understanding, Jesus is essentially telling us not to draw attention to our fasting by making our faces gloomy and disfigured

Stop Complaining

what Jesus is really saying in this passage is, when you fast, don’t draw attention to your fasting

if we are without something that we desperately want, what do we often do about it? We complain about it

Jesus is using fasting as a tool to teach us contentment, self-control, and that ultimately, our faith is between us and God

But what is the point of fasting?

When should we be fasting?

there are two major reasons we fast, and in order to truly appreciate why fasting is connected to these things, we need understand something about ourselves to see the connection

the first reason we fast is connected to an extremely hard season of life that we all go through.

We Fast When We Mourn

when we lose a loved one, we often lose our appetite, not just for food, but for any of life’s pleasures.

Why? Because we are overcome with grief, sorrow, loss. We are overwhelmed with so many emotions and memories, and the last thing we want is to enjoy life

Grief leads to self-denial, but we don’t call it fasting, we just recognize it is part of the grieving process

We should mourn our sin

In the Old Testament, there is only one instance in the Law of Moses where the people of God were told to fast

the Day of Atonement - the sins of the nation were atoned for

it probably wasn’t hard to practice self-denial on this day, because the weight of the nation’s sin would have been on everyone’s shoulders

fasting is often done in times of repentance because the sin in our lives should stir the same grievous, sorrowful feelings as losing a loved one

As the sin of our nation comes to light, we should be grieved, not only at the loss of life, but that people are capable of such atrocities against other people

Fasting is a sign of Earnestness

There is another scenario where we fast

Michelle calls it pastor mode in me. It is when something major is going on and I’m focusing on the little details that need to be done and I’m not thinking about food or small talk or any of the other things that get in the way of accomplishing the task at hand

we have the missions team arriving today, pastor mode will kick in sooner or later

you may not have pastor mode, but when the pressure is on, we all respond in a similar way

Fasting in Connection with Prayer

imagine with me if we took that same attitude to prayer. Not all the time, just when we really needed it

healing, reconciliation, relationship, financial need

in the OT, Israel would fast before battle, begging for God’s protection and divine direction

but if we prayed with such determination, that we committed the time and energy used to eat or be on our phone, and devoted to praying until something changed.

we would pray differently, that would be a powerful and effective prayer

that is the point of fasting!

When was the last time you prayed with that kind of determination?

Fasting is between us and God

fasting is done in connection with repentance of sin, because sin should create such a strong reaction within us that we don’t want to eat or enjoy life’s pleasure until the sin is resolved

fasting is done in connection with prayer, when we set aside the luxuries of the world for intentional, focused prayer until something happens

along the way, fasting helps us understand what we really need in life and what has been a distraction

Then, when the islands of life hit, and we feel stranded, there are less of those little luxuries to miss, and more of an incentive to find our strength in Christ

Communion

as we come to communion, there is an interesting story in the gospels involving three groups of disciples

in the story, we learn John’s disciples and the Pharisees disciples all fast, but Jesus’ don’t

Jesus says the bridegroom’s party feast while the bridegroom is with them, but fast when he goes away

Jesus is the bridegroom, and we fast and long for the day that we are reunited with Him

on that day, fasting ceases and communion ceases