My experiences of fasting for lent by Anna Steinbrich.
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Thirteen hours and thirty minutes. From sunrise to sunset. No eating, no drinking. It has been six and a half weeks since I started fasting for Lent. This is a religious observance in the Christian calendar spanning from Ash Wednesday to the Saturday before Easter. It reminds Christians of the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert without eating or drinking anything (Matthew 4,2). I was inspired by the concept of Ramadan found in the Islamic tradition. I saw this as a challenge as well as an opportunity to give me more time during the day to read the Bible and pray.
Saturday the 11th April was my last day of fasting. I did manage to complete it, except for having lunch at Church on the third day. However, since it was for the Christian community, I decided that it was an acceptable excuse. Apart from that, I have done it every single day. I wish to reflect here on some things I have learned over the past month and a half.
Firstly, I discovered that Lent is not 40 days long! This surprised me because everyone talks about it as though it is. Nevertheless, at the end of March, in a stage where I was getting a bit fed up with fasting, I realized that the period from 26th of February to the 11th of April is not 40 days but 46. After doing some research I would come to find that Sundays are not included in these 40 days. Not fasting on Sundays would have been much easier but perhaps would have made it too easy. Nevertheless, I can tell you that 46 days, six and a half weeks, is very long when you cannot eat and drink during the day.
A more positive realization I had was that the body quickly gets used to the new rhythm. The first week was a bit rough. I got lightheaded during the day, had a hard time concentrating on my work, and my stomach started rumbling in tutorials. Fortunately, the temperature was still mild so there was no danger of dehydrating as long as I drank enough in the morning and evening. Never before in my life did I know the times of sunrise and sunset that well. There were two instances where I did not get out of bed in time and had to go through the day without eating or drinking anything. Even though I still managed to get through the day I would not recommend it. Just as I would not recommend having breakfast and then rowing 2k. Every rower can tell you that a 2k is one of the worst things to do anyway but not drinking anything afterwards is not pleasant. But I would come to learn that it is still possible.
Besides these little challenges, I did not deal with any physical problems after the first week. It is the mental willpower you have to fight for. I had doubts about whether I would be able to do it alone. However, after the first few days, I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was. However, as soon as I got home and still had three weeks to go, things got a bit tough. Perhaps it was the fact that I was not at university anymore, where I had lectures, tutorials, rowing training and other hobbies to distract myself. In contrast, at home, I was in one place the whole time. Another factor contributing to the increased difficulties I faced with fasting at home may have been because, with the sun setting later, the days were longer. The period in the middle of my fasting was the hardest when more than one half was over, but the end was still not quite in sight.
The original purpose of my fast was not just to challenge myself. It was about Jesus. I planned to take the time in the morning after breakfast when ordinarily I would have been awake anyway, to read the Bible and pray. This is something I usually do in the evening which is often hard to do as I would be too tired and have to go back to bed. I couldn’t do it during lunchtime either as I would be spending the time with my friends at university and later with my family at home at the dining table. I would do this as I did not want to miss out on the social part of eating. The reason why I was undergoing this challenge became more prominent to me in the second half of Lent. Whenever I was a bit grumpy or craved something to eat, I was reminded of Jesus’ suffering and the great gift he gave us by dying on the cross to free us from our sins. If it was not for this, I am not sure I could have done it. Remembering the reason gave me the discipline I needed. I would lie if said that I am not excited to eat normally, but I would do it again next year. Lent didn’t make me starve. Yes, I was hungry. But don’t we all hunger? Sometimes it is for food, but often it is for something more. For appreciation, for safety, for love. Even if you are not Christian, maybe consider fasting. It does not need to be 40, or 46, days. It can be one. Who does not like a little challenge?
I started praying before dinner. For several months I had wanted to get into the habit of praying before eating as it is a nice way to include praying in your daily routine. Usually, I would forget, but during Lent, because I was so thankful to eat in the evening, I remembered to pray. This drew me even closer to God and I hope that I will keep up this habit after Lent. Now I am at the end of my fast and can celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. Suffering is not the end; death is not the end. Jesus conquered death and ascended to his, and our, Father in heaven. We can unload all our worries in front of God. Nothing that seems to suppress us is stronger than God and his love for us. “I am leaving you with a gift – peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” – John 14:27 NLT.
Edited by Marnie Ashbridge
The Quarantine Times 