November 17, 2019 - INSCRIPTIONS FROM THE HEART
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4 But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
(ESV, Mt 4:1-4)
As we approach the holiday season, food and fitness once again become emphases of our lives. From Christmas dinners to gym memberships, chocolate offerings to oversized sweaters, diets to dining in, the holidays can be a time of compromise. One of the most common New Year's resolutions is a personal commitment to fitness, only to have the majority of these resolutions disregarded a few weeks later. Similar to the effectiveness of a marathon runner who stops and is distracted by every drink and energy station, the Christian walk and commitment to spiritual fitness is also challenged when we stop for whatever distracts us from God.
Fasting is a way for us to re-establish our priorities in life. Note the temptation of Christ came after his fasting. It was here that he was able to respond to temptation with the word of God after he prioritized his words. We often fall to temptation when we forget who we are and what we are meant to do. As God’s people, is our priority God? And if our priority is God, what is distracting us along this journey? It is in realizing that we are distracted that we may want to consider fasting, not because what we may be fasting from is evil but that it has taken the place of God in our lives. Indulgence makes us slaves to our human desires, while self-denial weakens those influences and strengthens our will and ability to persevere.
Has something taken God’s place in your life? Do you find yourself stagnant in your spiritual walk, while over-indulgent in other areas of life? Is your life out-of-balance, hearing much from the world but unable to come up with a response? Consider fasting from that activity or thing, and instead replace that time with speaking to God in prayer and hearing from him through His Word. Make a commitment to put him first this season, saying “Lord, I’m giving this up for (SET THE TIME) because I love you and want to be fed by your Word. Teach me to love you above all else, and allow me to hear from you during this time.”
Pastor Tony Tira