100 Days of Discipline Day 6

Scripture:  Matthew 6:16-17, "When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting.  I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.  But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face."

This chapter today was chock-full of stuff that I wanted to write about, and some day when I become a pastor I'll probably go back and look more in depth at the Sermon on the Mount stuff (Yes, I know it's cliche as a pastor, but still...it's good).  I'll expound upon the thoughts here.  Expound.  I like that word.  But no, what really stood out to me here was the wording in these two verses.  Notice how Jesus doesn't say, "If you fast...But if you fast...", no, instead Jesus says, "When you fast...But when you fast...", as if he's saying, "You're going to do it, so when you do..."  I think if fasting wasn't so important Jesus would've used the word "if", but the fact that he used the word "when" sets off alarms in my head.  Why?  I don't. 

I used to.  Two years ago.  Two years ago when I was a senior in high school, I was also the student chaplain for my small private school in my small town in my small, sheltered world.  Student chaplain.  For the whole high school.  To me, that was a big deal.  It gave me leadership opportunities that I wouldn't have had otherwise, I was considered an official part of the worship team and Chapel Committee, I was on Student Government, and I was able to speak in chapel a few times myself.  That year, I wanted to try something new for our school.  I felt like my school was under spiritual attack a lot.  Apathy, sin, selfishness, arrogance, pride...those were a few of the things that I could see in the people around me, and even somewhat in myself.  I felt the great need to pray for my school, knowing that prayer is a powerful weapon, and lift it before God and beseech Him on behalf of my school.  Every Tuesday I would fast lunch and go into our prayer chapel and just lift the lives of the students as individuals, the lives of the school as a whole, and my own life before God.  For close to half an hour, I would kneel, sit, or stand on the floor before the cross in the small chapel, and pour out my heart before God.  Did I see much change?  No.  Was there much change?  Possibly.  We can't undermine the behind-the-scenes work that God is constantly doing in our lives that we can't necessarily see with our own eyes. 

So why do I tell that short story?  Honestly, I haven't had much practice in fasting, but from the looks of it, I should.  So here I go, I need to start fasting.  I mean, what's so great about reading it in the Bible, but not actually doing anything about it?  Jesus calls us, each of us, to fast.  To have the discipline in our own lives to deny the "bread" of this world and remind ourselves that we're living in an earthly body for a heavenly kingdom and the kingdom is far greater than this world.  After all, Jesus says later in Matthew, "If any man is to come after me He must deny himself..."  To me, this is part of denying yourself. 

Is Jesus calling you to fast?