Daniel Fast: Day 4

Fasting takes obedience, that's for sure. Already, at the end of day 1, the aromas of greasy, deep-fried goodness flooded my nose as i passed the restaurants on Washington Ave, on the way to class. Even the awkward and ordinary scent of different cuisines mixed with laundry detergent in my apartment hallway made my stomach turn and my mouth water. WOW! Even something as simple as a fast proves how much we take for granted. Putting food into my body simply for the sake of being able to function rather than for pleasure, or out of boredom or another emotion is a whole new concept to me! And healthy food, mind you: The runny tastelessness of almond butter replacing that good old jar of Jiffy Peanut butter...not being able to drench my vegetables in a pool of butter and salt...eating banana chips (a new favorite snack of mine) in place of greasy potato chips...not being able to have an Icee or candy at the movie theater...watching Sarah eat a healthy serving of Hamburger helper and a pop and a cupcake IN FRONT OF ME ;)...and always being hungry hungry hungry.

Besides fasting food, I am also fasting Facebook. Oh my goodness, how many countless hours do i spend on this addicting site! Time that could be spent doing all this homework. Or even better - time that could be spent in prayer, meditation, and dwelling with the Lord and in His word. When we go through a period of fasting - be it food, the internet, tv, what have you, the absence of that thing allows us to turn to the Lord more, to rely on Him. In retrospect, we are able to acknowledge times when we put that thing, the filling of our stomachs or the time online, before God. Fasting anything but fruits, veggies, and the 'appropriate' snacks, also a cleanses and detoxes the body from all the crap we consume:

Don't you realize that you body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? Yo do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body. -1 Corinthians 6:19-20

I'm waiting for my roomies' responses and written updates about their fast, so stayed tune :)

To end, a song that may not relate to this blog post or to this fast, but one that speaks to my heart. It has been one of my favorite songs since i heard it. And i LOVE Shane's explanation. Check out this video and the song itself: Embracing Accusations by Shane and Shane.