A lot of people “give up” things for Lent. The biblical—and therefore, accurate—word for this is fasting.

If you’re going to fast it’s important to know the reason. Going through the motions is of limited value if you don’t know why you’re doing it.

One example of fasting is found in Ezra 8:21: “I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey…” As they prepare to return to Jerusalem, the fast will humble the people and be a part of their request for safe travels.

Another example is in Esther 4:16: “Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.” Esther was making a request of her adoptive father Mordechai. In this situation, the fasting is a kind of spiritual refinement and strengthening, showing God how much they need his help in their dire situation.

For a longer explanation of fasting, see the link at the end of this devotional. For now, let me point out a few things:

First, fasting reminds us how much we depend on God. Our physical hunger reflects our spiritual hunger. Our physical need reflects our spiritual need.

Second, fasting helps with discernment. When facing something challenging, we need greater vision, clarity and strength. Ironically, a weakened state is often that place of greater vision, clarity and strength. We open the door more widely to the power and presence of God.

But there is another neglected dimension to fasting. It is a small sacrifice which prepares you for bigger sacrifices. 

A bigger sacrifice might be “giving up” your home to another family until they get back on their feet, or “giving up” a month of summer vacation to go on a mission trip, or “giving up” a large sum of money to get a community project off the ground. If you’re used to making regular, smaller sacrifices, bigger sacrifices won’t seem so big when they present themselves.

We live in a time which is deathly allergic to anything that deprives us of comfort. But a mentality of comfort-at-all-costs is often an enemy to our discipleship. In a world of self-indulgence, self-denial is counter-cultural. It refines and prepares us to engage in acts of self-sacrificial love. 

Some of you will engage in some sort of fast for Lent. Some won’t. Fasting for Lent isn’t prescribed in the Bible. But fasting in general is. So whenever you do it, remember why you’re doing what you’re doing. 

In life, you never know what God is going to lay before you. Be prepared. Smaller sacrifices prepare you for bigger ones. 

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Notes and extra content:

—“Fasting: powerful, passed-over and counter-cultural.” Click here for a post and podcast about the meaning of fasting.

—Bible quotes are from the NIV.