5 benefits of accidental fasting

Fasting is one of those spiritual sounding words. We all know it’s great for us to fast, but we don’t really want to do it.

Sometimes, it seems, God makes us fast even if we don’t plan it.

About two months ago, I was sitting in the university library, waiting for my next class to start at 7:15 p.m. I had grabbed two lonely slices of bread as I walked out the door early that morning but as I bit my nails in the library, I realized it had been over eight hours since I had eaten.

“A fast?” you’re saying. “Eight hours is hardly a fast.”

I agree. It’s not much, but it’s definitely long enough. At about 6:00 p.m. on a usual day, I would’ve been ready for my evening gorging. The point isn’t how long the fast is. The point is simply that…

…this was accidental.

I didn’t plan to go without food. It crept up on me. I was feeling hungry.

Through this (albeit brief) experience, God tought me a few benefits of these accidental fasts.

1) Hello, dependent one

This could be said of any fast, but there was a different dynamic at work when I wasn’t expecting to fast. The moment I recognized that food was out of reach was the moment I realized how hungry I was and how dependent I am. Perhaps you finished a meal within the last hour, but if not, simply think about not eating for a while, and you’ll begin to experience the feeling of the accidental fast.

2) What happened to your preparation?

When you plan to fast, you can prepare yourself, psyche yourself up, eat a nice meal beforehand, whatever. When it’s accidental, you lose the mental preparation. For most fasts, the hardest part is mental. Consider a 1-day fast. In one day, the physical aspect of your body isn’t too bad. Sure, you may lose a little weight (mostly water probably). Overall though, one day out of a week doesn’t change you. It’s your mind that’s telling you you need to eat.

Fasting on accident, the hunger doesn’t gradually creep into your stomach like with a normal fast. In the beginning, I thought, “Oh, yeah, I’ll grab a sandwich shortly.” But suddenly, I realized that that sandwich wasn’t going coming shortly. Panic ensued.

“I really need to eat, I really need to eat, I really need to eat.”

3) Bye, bye “spiritual feeling”

When you plan a fast, whatever the duration, you usually begin with a spiritual feeling about it. Maybe you didn’t tell anyone about your fast, but you have this all-too-familiar feeling that you are doing something superior to other brothers and sisters in Christ.

Maybe I’m the only one that feels like this.

I generally feel as if I’m doing something that’s going to change God’s mind or change someone else’s mind or change the world. I’m gung ho about it because I have a “spiritual high.” More often than not in my experiences, that spiritual high is sinful. When I’m feeling that high, I’m out of touch with reality. I’m depending on my own spiritual strength to prevail and guide me through the fast.

My spiritual strength is useless though. It hinders the fast from accomplish anything. It’s only at the point where I’ve quit relying on my own strength and let God empower me that the fast starts to be effective. With an accidental fast, that point of surrender is much sooner. About the moment I realized I was not going to be eating for some time, I give up.

“God help me. This isn’t as easy as I thought.”

4) Here, use my high powered weapons instead

If I had planned this fast, around meal time, I would have found a quiet spot to meditate. I’d open my Bible, read a passage, ask God what he was trying to teach me, and find an application for my life. Throughout the day, I’d have my Bible handy or have key scripture verses on index cards in my pocket for moments of struggle.

With accidental fasting, not so. When I started this accidental fast, I didn’t have access to my Bible or any motivational teaching. I had to rely on God for everything. Instead of reading the Bible or index cards, I fumbled through verses I’d memorized. Instead of a quiet setting, I had a professor lecturing on statistics. When class let out, I retreated to the library only to be bombarded by the sound of constant typing. So I prayed silently and asked God to strengthen me.

5) Take me with you

Before I realized my hunger, I felt confident in myself (sounds disgusting now, doesn’t it?). I had left God in my head rather than trusting Him in my physical world. This was His way of reminding stay with Him all the time.

Being with God at all times is not an easy feat, and something I had almost grown accustomed to ignoring. I’ll keep God mostly, not always. That’s too difficult.

No, actually it’s too difficult not be with Him always.

Serving Suggestions

(1) Always be prepared for a fast. That doesn’t mean constantly eating. It means constantly abiding in Christ. Learn some Bible verses. Learn how to pray throughout the day. Learn to focus on what God wants rather than what you want.

(2) Try accidental fasting. Next time you feel yourself growing hungry, depend on God and use the time to draw closer to Him using some of His high powered weapons. I’m not saying that we should go into battle unprepared. On the contrary, I’m saying that you and I need to be prepared all the time, not only when we are preparing for a fast. Try it, and let us know in the comments what God teaches you.