Day 8: Practicing Self-Control

Week 2, Monday, January 11

Text: 1 Peter 1:13
“Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.”

Thought for the day:
This week, we are going to introduce the discipline of fasting to our spiritual disciplines. Do you have a regular exercise or practice in your daily routine that could be avoided? The discipline of fasting causes us to practice self-control for the greater purpose of approaching God in prayer. In 1 Corinthians 5:7, the Apostle Paul suggested that married couples might want to avoid sexual intimacy for brief periods of time for the purpose of drawing nearer to God in prayer. The spiritual discipline of fasting is the voluntary giving up of a regular practice (such as eating), in order to make time and space to focus your attention on God.

Journal/Exercise:
Write down one way that you will practice fasting for the next couple of weeks. Some potential suggestions might be: giving up a meal per day, giving up a favorite beverage, giving up television, giving up the use of your computer, etc.

Let me offer some advice. Please do not give up sweets in order to “lose a few pounds.” Losing weight might be great, but if this is your purpose, it cannot really be called a spiritual discipline. Do not give up spending money on collectible items in order to “save a few dollars.” Neither should you give up television in order to “read a good book.” The purpose of this practice of fasting is to draw you mind to God in prayer. You will be aware of God’s presence whenever you have to practice self-control, and you can set aside the time that you save by coming to God in prayer.

Write down in your journal how you intend to fast, and pray that God will bless your fast so that you can be more aware of His presence in your life.