Fasting and Prayer

“Blow the trumpet in Zion;
Sound the alarm on my holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
For the day of the LORD is coming, it is near –
A day of darkness and gloom,
A day of clouds and thick darkness!
Like blackness spread upon the mountains
A great and powerful army comes;
Their like has never been from of old,
Nor will be again after them in ages to come.” —Joel 2:1-2

The Old Testament lesson assigned to Ash Wednesday has Joel calling the people by the blowing of a trumpet to a fast. The Prophet Joel sees the recent ‘bad luck’ of the people as being a direct reflection upon their refusing to follow God, most especially in their worship practices.

I once was at an Ethiopian meal with a group of immigrants. One woman was ‘fasting’ and so she was eating only bread and fruit, maybe some vegetable greens. Being confused by her definition of a ‘fast’ I questioned her. “What does a fast mean to you?” This pious and faithful Christian woman from Ethiopia, who had struggled greatly to come to America and try to start a new life answered, “A fast is when you refuse to eat that which the rich people eat.” I loved that.

My idea of a fast was when you denied yourself. It was a physical fast that, hopefully ends up being a lesson to yourself about your reliance upon God. There are many different understandings of a fast in the Bible. Many times it meant a different diet, but not wholly
denying any sustenance. Always, always, always ‘fasting’ goes hand in hand with prayer. I believe prayer is an active communication. I believe that prayer or communicating with God leads to great and humble acts of faith. This Ethiopian woman gave me a new understanding of fasting. Her fasting was not showy or self centered. It was a statement that aligned her with Jesus, the champion of the poor.

Lent is a time to blow the trumpet. It is a time to sound the alarm about the ways in which we are not covenantal people. It is a time to reflect upon the ways of Jesus and the ways of society. It is a time to fast. Whatever fast you may take on, may it reflect your choice to follow Jesus, for the day of the Lord is coming near!

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