**Well friends, I could be stirring up a hornet’s nest here, but I’m going to trust that as I ask the questions below, you know I’m asking to truly find understanding in an area I don’t understand.**

I’m studying Philippians deeply right now. I’m writing an 8-week bible study on this book and preparing to teach 4 sessions at a retreat in May, using this as our anchor verse for the weekend:

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)

As I’ve prepared to teach this verse, reading it over and over, I keep thinking of the few words before and the few words after.

The Lord is near . . . (Phil. 4:5b)

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:6-7)

Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. (Phil. 8)

According to these verses, I can’t help but see the verse before “do not be anxious” reminds us of God’s nearness, His presence, Immanuel. The verse after “do not be anxious” gives us an alternative way to think.

Think on these things:

Whatever is
True
Honorable
Right
Pure
Lovely
Good
Whatever is excellent, worthy of praise

When I think of the verses before and after, I wonder how much of our battle with anxiety is fought through remembering God is near and fought through our thought life?

Now, I must confess . . . I don’t struggle with anxiety. There have been seasons in which I was anxious, but those are usually related to high stress, projects due, busyness, etc. But on the regular, I’m not a super anxious person. I don’t say that with pride, I say that so you know I don’t have a lot of experience or personal understanding here. I’ve watched friends I love struggle with anxiety, crippling fear, worry, stress and know it’s incredibly difficult to navigate and that’s why I’m asking for help.  I don’t understand, I don’t have the answers, I’m seeking them out.

I’ve heard people/thinkers/pastors/teachers/counselors friends say:

Anxiety comes not from thinking too much, but thinking too little. Anxiety comes from thinking too little about God. Anxiety is rooted in letting circumstances and fear rule our thoughts, over knowing the truth about God and His promises.

Anxiety is misplaced trust.

Spiritual stability is found in how you think.

Anxiety is unfulfilled responsibility.

The way you handle trials, temptations, and difficulties is a reflection of your view of God. If you understand all of his power and all of his promises, all of his purposes and all of his plans for you, and you know that he is near, what are you going to be anxious about?

Anxiety is physiological. Just as you would take and antihistamine for allergies, you would take an anti-anxiety pill for anxiety.

Now some of these are blunt, one-sided, I know. I’m wondering . . .

1.  Do you agree/disagree with the statements above? Why or why not?

 2.  How much of our thought life controls our anxiety?

 3.  If you struggle with anxiety, what has helped you in the midst of it?

 4.  What causes anxiety? Is it only physiological or is there some aspect of thinking or mistrust?

5.  Are anxiety, stress, worry, and fear similar?  Different?  Related? 

I don’t pretend to know all of the answers. I’m not a therapist, doctor, theologian, etc. But, I want to open a conversation in which we can be kind and seek a healthy dialogue without assuming or implying anything. I also know Jesus talks about worry, anxiety, and fear quite a bit, along with the rest of the Bible.  I would love to hear your responses to the quotes above and answers to my questions.

Rules of engagement:

1. Be kind
2. Engage respectfully
3. Seek to understand responses
4. Offer clarity

Leave a comment below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Out of curiosity, I did a little search on Pinterest regarding fasting. I found articles on fasting titled “7 Tips for Getting Rid of Cellulite”, “How to Lose Your Double Chin”, and “Get Rid of Back Fat Fast!”. Nearly all of the articles had to do with quick tips on weight loss. Nothing but weight loss tips and diets to keep us focused on ourselves and the impossible standards of perfection. This is the epitome of the hashtag #pinterestfail.

So what is fasting? Is it simply starving yourself to lose a few pounds or chins? Is it dieting? Is it about willpower? Is it only for the spiritually elite?

“Fasting is a believer’s voluntary abstinence from food for spiritual purposes. Other types of fasting—despite the benefits they may produce for the mind and body—could not be classified as Christian fasting, and fasting by a non-Christian obtains no eternal value. It is for believers in Christ, for the Discipline must be rooted in a relationship with Christ and practiced with the desire to become more like Christ.” (Donald Whitney)

Fasting is meant to draw you closer to God, and with every hunger pang, turn to Him in prayer. It is not a practice to keep us focused on ourselves and achieving the perfect body or religious points of sacrifice, but to focus on Christ, His broken body, and His perfection. It is designed to make you hunger and thirst for God and His kind of life. Perhaps that’s why Jesus warns us in the Sermon on the Mount to make sure the motivation of our fasting is for God alone (Matt 6:16-18).

We don’t live in a country where self-denial is practiced. In fact, self-sufficiency is more of our gospel than self-denial here in America. We are very impatient, used to getting what we want, when we want, rushed, busy, and overextended. The practice of fasting and abstaining to get more of God seems so foreign to us when we can have any of our needs met at the snap of our fingers.  Why would we abstain when we can have instant gratification? So often, we don’t fast because we’re satisfied so easily.

Fasting causes us to rely on the Lord, to turn to Him in our want and in our need and seek Him. According to scripture, here are some reasons as to why we fast:

Why We Fast Individually

We Fast to Grow Closer to God and Seek His Will

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry.” (Matthew 4:1-2)

Jesus fasted. Jesus modeled a life submitted to God and drawing near to Him. Before He set out to do His ministry, he pulled away into the wilderness to fast and hunger for God.

We Fast for the Impossible

And He *said to them, “Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.  [But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.”] (Matthew 17:20-22)

Of course we know God can do whatever He wills. We can fast and pray; yet He will determine the outcome. But oh how we of little faith neglect this call to fast in hopes that God will do the impossible.

We Fast to Let Go of Idols

“But Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself with the king’s choice food or with the wine which he drank; so he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself.” (Dan 1:8)

While Daniel did not abstain from all food in this fast, he intentionally abstained from certain food to avoid his heart being lured away from complete devotion to God. Later Daniel fasts again on behalf of his people.

We Fast in Mourning and Grief for Our Sin

“So I gave my attention to the LORD God to seek Him by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth and ashes.  I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed and said, “Alas, O LORD, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments,  we have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly and rebelled, even turning aside from Your commandments and ordinances.  Moreover, we have not listened to Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings, our princes, our fathers and all the people of the land.” (Daniel 9:3-6)

Much like Nehemiah, Daniel mourns for the people and repents not only for his sin, but the sin of the people.

Before he ever laid a brick to rebuild the wall, Nehemiah started his project weeping and fasting; recognizing things were not the way they should be. “They said to me, “The remnant there in the province who survived the captivity are in great distress and reproach, and the wall of Jerusalem is broken down and its gates are burned with fire.” When I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.” (Nehemiah 1:3-4)

We fast when things aren’t the way they should be, out of confession and mourning for the people of God.

We Fast in Our Suffering

“Then the LORD struck the child that Uriah’s widow bore to David, so that he was very sick. David therefore inquired of God for the child; and David fasted and went and lay all night on the ground. The elders of his household stood beside him in order to raise him up from the ground, but he was unwilling and would not eat food with them.” (2 Samuel 12:15-17)

In the midst of circumstances out of our control, we can fast and pray and beg God to move.

We Fast in Anticipation for a Greater Feast

“Then he *said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’” (Revelation 19:9)

This is actually not a verse on fasting, but it’s a reminder of what is to come. We can abstain and go without and hunger on this earth, because there is going to be an abundant feast waiting for us in heaven that will satisfy us for all of eternity.

Why We Fast Together

While Jesus teaches us to fast in secret, in order to be seen by God and not men, there is also a call in scripture to fast corporately, or together, as the body of believers.

We Fast to Seek God and His Will

“While they were ministering to the LORD and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”  Then, when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.” (Acts 13:2-3)

While the church was beginning to spread, the early church fathers were fasting for God’s wisdom and direction with what to do next. The spirit leads us in our hunger to obey His will.

We Fast to Intercede for Others

“Go, assemble all the Jews who are found in Susa, and fast for me; do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maidens also will fast in the same way. And thus I will go in to the king, which is not according to the law; and if I perish, I perish.” (Esther 4:16)

Esther was being brave and bold to step up and attempt to save the Jews, her people. But, she wouldn’t go alone. She called on her people to pray and fast along with her, and the LORD saved an entire generation.”

A Corporate Confession of Sin

“Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the sons of Israel assembled with fasting, in sackcloth and with dirt upon them. The descendants of Israel separated themselves from all foreigners, and stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers. While they stood in their place, they read from the book of the law of the LORD their God for a fourth of the day; and for another fourth they confessed and worshiped the LORD their God. (Nehemiah 9:1-3)

A Corporate Fast to Seek Help From the LORD

“Now it came about after this that the sons of Moab and the sons of Ammon, together with some of the Meunites, came to make war against Jehoshaphat.  Then some came and reported to Jehoshaphat, saying, “A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the sea, out of Aram and behold, they are in Hazazon-tamar (that is Engedi).”  Jehoshaphat was afraid and turned his attention to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. So Judah gathered together to seek help from the LORD; they even came from all the cities of Judah to seek the LORD.” (2 Chronicles 20:1-4)

A Corporate Fast to Seek Refuge in the LORD

“Then I proclaimed a fast there at the river of Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God to seek from Him a safe journey for us, our little ones, and all our possessions. For I was ashamed to request from the king troops and horsemen to protect us from the enemy on the way, because we had said to the king, “The hand of our God is favorably disposed to all those who seek Him, but His power and His anger are against all those who forsake Him.” So we fasted and sought our God concerning this matter, and He listened to our entreaty.” (Ezra 8:21-23)

Fasting is not about dieting, unless we’re seeking the diet to be filled by God and found in Him. Fasting is to lay aside having our needs met in anything but Christ. It’s to hunger and thirst for His righteousness, to seek His Kingdom. It’s going without to be with Jesus. It’s emptying ourselves to be filled by His Spirit.

This week before Holy Week, practice with me as we look to the darkest and most joyful few days in all of history, the death and resurrection of Christ. Christ our King who gave up everything so that we would become heirs in His abundance.

Resources for this week as you practice fasting:

1. In Isaiah 58, the Lord shows there is a fast that honors God and one that doesn’t. Read through Isaiah 58:1-12 and record your observations.

Religious Fast (v.2-5)                                                 Fast That Honors God (v.6-12)

 

2. Watch the women on this panel share about fasting, what it’s meant for them and how they have practiced this discipline.

3. Practice fasting. Abstain from food for 24 hours. If you can’t abstain from food for medical purposes, try abstaining from something like television or social media for 24 hours, or reducing the amount of food (one meal), practice silence or solitude for 24 hours, etc.

Journal about your experience. How did you feel physically? Emotionally? Spiritually? How much was it on your mind? Did that push you to God and dependence upon Him?

“These hunger pangs teach us we’re waiting for a greater feast.”  

-Lore Ferguson Wilbert

 

I can remember a time when I said, “I don’t know how people can handle social media. Keeping up with Facebook, Twitter AND email!?! This was even before Instagram and Pinterest were even a thing. It stressed me out thinking I had to check work email, my personal email, and text messages, along with these social media sites.

Then I joined Twitter. A year or so later, I joined Facebook. Then Pinterest, Instagram, and oh my word . . . it was like one after the other, I had a smart phone with apps and too much distraction in the palm of my hands.  Now, I’m all in and overwhelmed with information.

This week for Lent, we’re talking about the spiritual discipline of simplicity. As I thought about how I would practice this discipline, I wasn’t too sure? I already decluttered my whole house. I have less than 50 items in my closet, I’ve kept only what I use regularly in my kitchen, and we don’t buy a ton of things. And to be honest the process of simplifying isn’t exactly simple.

So this week simplicity is less about getting rid of stuff, and more about living in a slow, simple, intentional way. The way to a simple life isn’t just decluttering your stuff; it’s also decluttering your heart and mind from constant distraction, information, and busyness.

So how will I practice simplicity?  By eliminating social media, hurry, and noise as much as possible.

Social Media/Technology

For a couple of weekends in February, I fasted from social media. No constant checking or updating, posting and sharing. I left my phone at home when we went out on a date or left it in the other room when I was spending time with people.

I realized when I’m not constantly checking my phone or social media sites my heart and mind are slower. I don’t feel as busy and overwhelmed. I’m not getting upset over a negative post or people posting pictures about sad, dying dogs that need to be adopted, or bloggers writing mean blogs about other bloggers. There’s enough real life hard stuff right in front of me, I didn’t need to drag in other people’s stuff too.

Not to mention, it affects our real life relationships too: 6 Ways Social Media is Ruining Our Friendships .  There’s that whole jealousy and FOMO thing that can do a lot of harm to your heart and mind. If you find yourself jealous, angry or annoyed with people, time for a break. If you find yourself thinking negative things about others or yourself, or assuming motives about what/why they post, take a break.

And for some, unfollow. I unfollowed nearly all of the sites that post beautiful expensive fashionable things for my closet or my home. Mostly because it cultivated discontentment and the desire to shop and buy new things. I went through and did some digital decluttering in January and unfollowed, unclicked, and deleted much of what I was taking in.

Today, I’m deleting all of my apps and taking my work email off of my phone. I went through and unsubscribed from things and will be fasting from social media for the next few days and unplugging as much as possible. I not only needed to declutter my closet, but my brain too.  *If a complete social media fast is too much, try limiting to just 10 minutes a day. Keep a journal to see if your anxiety, jealousy, insecurity, FOMO, and distraction decrease.

Hurry

Another way to live simply is to eliminate hurry. I hate being rushed. It stresses me out to go from one meeting to the next to the next. I never want to feel hurried out of a conversation or too busy to enter in. I realized hurry is a disease for simplicity. If we are always late, rushing out or squeezing things in, it’s hard to practice simplicity.

So this means saying no to a lot. This means scheduling meetings or time with people with margin before or after. It means not having something every waking moment of the day so you can slow your heart, your life, and be still.  In fact, for me it means scheduling actual times when I will go on a walk, read, or spend time with the Lord.  Yes, those things make it to my calendar so my day is not a whirlwind and there is time for slowing down.

Noise

Noise comes in many different forms. Social media could fall under this category too. But I am actually referring to real, constant noise in the background of your life. When driving in your car, we have the radio on. At home, the television (or children, but those you can’t really mute). In nearly every spare moment we have something clouding our mind and filling our ears. So what about redeeming some of that time for simple silence? The part of noise we can control (music, TV, podcasts, phone calls) is just unnecessary noise that keeps us from silence. Not to mention, most recent statistics state the average American watches 37-40 hours of television a week. So add those hours plus the hours with social media, no wonder we feel drained, busy and overwhelmed!

Joshua Becker, the founder of Becoming Minimalist, says, “Focusing your attention on television, movies, video games, and technology affects your life more than you think. Media rearranges your values. It begins to dominate your life. And it has a profound impact on your attitude and outlook.” Read full article here: 10 Most Important Things to Simplify 

There is much we can do to pursue a more simple life. When I pursue the 3 things above, I notice I have more margin for people. I will have more time and space to pray, to visit people (unhurried), to go on a walk, to write a note, to invite people over for a meal, to read more books (not just status updates), and more.  In all of this, the hope is as we simplify we look to God in those free moments and free spaces in our soul.  I hope you find ways to pursue simplicity this week and turn to Christ to be filled.

How will you practice simplicity this week?

Which of the 3 practices above do you most resonate with and why?

I’ll also be enjoying these books this month, seeking more ways to live a more simple and intentional life.

Breaking Busy by Alli Worthington

The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness by Tim Keller

An Unhurried Life: Following Jesus’ Rhythms of Work and Rest by Alan Fadling

The Listening Life by Adam S. McHugh

Down to Earth: A Guide to Simple Living by Rhonda Heizel

Other Resources:

10 Unconventional Habits to Live Distraction-Less

8 Dangers of Social Media We’re Not Willing to Admit