Brian and I were chatting in the kitchen this weekend when I mentioned something about snacking. He, a lovingly faithful reader of this blog, referenced my recent post and said, “I thought you were going to snack from the fridge.” Without missing a beat, Ben piped in, “Then you need to start keeping your chocolate in the fridge.”
Fast Forward January 27, 2007
This evening at church we’ll take communion and break our fast. Three weeks. I really didn’t know if I could make it, but God gave me unprecedented strength. As one who has never been able to stick with any type of diet, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to resist all the foods I love so much, but there were no slips, no moments of “I just can’t take this anymore, I need it!” God truly never let me be tempted beyond what I could bear – perhaps that’s one reason he has me at a workplace where everyone is fasting 
I realized a couple more things along the way:
- It’s a lot harder to overeat on meals you don’t like very much. One of the reasons that I love to cook is because I like to make foods exactly the way I (and my family) like them. But with the fast there were just some meals that were as good as they were going to get – and that wasn’t so tasty.
- I need to snack from the fridge more. That might be one of the most valuable food lessons I learned – snacking on fruits and vegetables.
- I was able to appreciate the natural tastes of foods more – a banana with raspberries tasted like an explosion of flavor.
- And it’s okay to be a little hungry. I realized during the fast that I am scared to be hungry. There’s really no good reason why – I was a very well-fed child. I do have to watch out to make sure my blood sugar doesn’t dip too low or I get shaky and headachy, but nothing catastrophic. So I might try to let myself be a little hungry a little more often.
Grocery shopping this afternoon was a delight! I almost kissed the milk jug and bag of coffee. Tonight we’ll be celebrating on a pizza feast.
This has been a great season of spiritual discipline. I entered into the fast mostly out of obedience and as a different way of sacrificing for God. I’ve been reminded through this time that God should be my first resort, not my last. And that I should hunger for him more than any piece of chocolate. And that He’s infinitely stronger than a cup of Starbucks coffee!
Weekend Update January 16, 2007
Here’s a quick look at the first full weekend on our fasting journey:
- Food sets the mood. We like our weekends to feel set apart, different from the week. We do lots of things along these lines: leisurely, homemade breakfasts, long stretches of reading (with coffee for me), fun food on Friday and Saturday nights. So when Brian and I discussed dinner plans for Friday night, it seemed downright wrong to be having soup and salad. It seemed like the fun police came to snatch our good time away. But we reminded ourselves that part of the reason for the fast is to sacrifice the worldly pleasures for greater treasures.
- And when we woke up to a blustery Saturday morning with icicles hanging off the trees (in Texas), I had to remind myself of that again as I started the tea kettle and not the coffee pot ;)
- And since I love a hot beverage, if I wasn’t drinking herbal tea, then I was often enjoying hot apple cider – which also turns out to be a pretty good reading accompaniment.
- I got occasional cases of the grumps which usually either followed the umpteenth meal I had cooked or being in places where I’d usually be eating/buying favorite foods.
- Honey-mustard saves the day! We often have burgers and fries on Saturday nights (turkey burgers, whole wheat buns and organic, baked fries), so in an effort for some fun food I tried for something close. I found some Veggie Medley Gardenburgers (no bun, of course), baked the usual organic fries (all fast-friendly ingredients), and made some coleslaw with Veggenaise mayo. It was the ketchup for the fries that befuddled me until I remembered honey- mustard. I just mixed some plain mustard and honey and voila – dipping heaven!
- And in case you didn’t catch the previous post, can you tell I reeeeally like food? Funny how something so simple as sustenance can take on much greater meaning. I spent a few moments last night catching up on some favorite blogs, and found the perfect counterpoint to my rumblings: ‘Two ways to taste God are by drinking in His words and breathing in His presence in prayer. This is a way to take refuge in Him. “
Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Psalm 34:8
Thanks for sharing that, Katherine. It hit the spot!
- And ya know what? God did give us an absolutely wonderful weekend together. By the end of the day Sunday, I felt full of love, relaxed, renewed and not one bit deprived. Those momentary pleasures we skipped were just that – sure they’re pleasurable, but they’re merely momentary. Those sips and tastes are so small when compared with what’s truly important in our lives.
Fast Times January 12, 2007
This past weekend, we embarked on a new faith adventure. Our pastor challenged our entire church to begin a 21-day fast. Let me quickly say that we are not being asked to starve for 3 weeks – the first day was juice and water only, followed by 20 days of a Daniel Fast. You can find plenty of online explanations, but it basically amounts to a vegan diet, with no sugar, wheat or caffeine.
Fasting as a topic of discussion can be a grey area, since it’s not about drawing attention to yourself but drawing closer to God. However, I do rely on this space as a chronicle of our family life (since it’s getting harder and harder to remember what happened just last year), and this is a big part of what we’re experiencing right now.
I’ve never fasted before and always considered it one of those things other people did, like washing feet – cool and Biblical in an ancient sort of way, but not a requirement. But our pastor painted a different picture this weekend, by referencing Matthew 6, “When you fast…” Not if, but when. And then he asked us to join as a church and fast together.
When I first heard this was coming, my gut reaction was, “No way!” I reeeeeally love food, and don’t tend to behave well when people tell me I can’t have what I want. But Brian encouraged our participation and I began to see it as a challenge, as well as a time for obedience. Of course January is a time for fresh beginnings and the usual hopes to take care of myself better, so the fast is a great way to commit to that – not only with the food we eat, but also getting more sleep because there will be no more morning caffeine safety net. But more than that, I’m seeing this as a spiritual window-washing – cleaning things up inside and out. And you can bet I’ll be leaning on God even more (no chocolate, bread, or coffee!!), which will undoubtedly enrich my relationship with Him. And I’ll be interested to see what new perspectives we gain during this time.
So we started on Sunday after a late afternoon lunch. I packed a bunch of juice for work and was doing fairly well until about 2:30 when I started to feel a little fuzzy mentally. The next 24 hours were pretty rough, even though we got to break the fast on Monday evening with dinner. After we ate, I completely crashed, my body in rebellion over the blood-sugar roller coaster ride. The next morning was time for the lack-of-caffeine headache, which lasted until late afternoon. There was an echo of it the next day (Wednesday), but thankfully I think that part is over now. I’m still struggling with getting really tired, partly due to missing coffee, but also trying to figure out how to keep my blood sugar from swinging all over the map.
And a tip to anyone fasting: do not make the same mistake I did and look through the grocery store circulars to see what’s on sale. Just don’t go there. You do not want to see the loaves of bread and roasted chickens taunting you in all their 4-color newsprinted glory.
The best moment of the fast so far came this afternoon. I had a meeting with my boss this morning and realized just how much work there is to do in the next few weeks. Then I got a little ticked off at the fast, thinking that some coffee and quick-fixing food would come in really handy in the near future. But I gave that up to God and asked him to show up powerfully, especially in my work life. And I found I was able to focus more and accomplish more this afternoon than I have in quite some time.
It’s going to be a journey, but I can’t wait to see where He leads!
Post-Christmas Catchup January 12, 2007
Time seems to get a little more slippery in December, so here we are on January 11th finally ready to blog again. There were lots of great moments over the holidays as a family of three and then enjoying a visit from my mom after Christmas. Here were some of the highlights:
- Receiving Christmas cards daily and catching up with what our friends and family have been doing. One of our favorites was a letter typed on a real, old-fashioned typewriter by Brian’s 89-year-old great aunt.
- Investing time and thought into gifts for others. It wasn’t about big-ticket items, but finding something meaningful: a custom-made name stamp for a newly-married teacher, dinner out for Brian’s sister and husband, traveling tools and toys for family friends who enjoy all kinds of trips, a box of homemade cookies for my step-Grandpa who is spending his first Christmas alone. Brian set the tone early in the season and it was great fun! And there is something so satisfying about a tidy stack of boxes all ready to be picked up by the mailman!
- Enjoying old traditions and feeling free to leave behind the ones we had outgrown.
- Seeing Ben purchase gifts from his own funds for the first time.
- Spending unstructured, chatty time with Mom.
- The whole Christmas season at our church, with particularly lovely Christmas Eve services, worshipping the One who began it all.
- And Brian’s gift(s) to me? That’s going to have to be a post unto itself. Soon
