One of the lessons I have learned in the last several years is this: I like being able to get what I want. At the beginning of this year our church participated in the Daniel Fast. This is a twenty-one day fast where we do not eat any meat, or anything that is processed. It was my first time participating and it was an incredible challenge.
What I learned was that I am not good at denying myself. Even though the purpose was noble I found myself drifting into selfish modes of thought. I would think about all the food I would eat when the fast was over, or how much I missed this or that food. It wasn’t until about the middle of the second week that I began to notice this pattern.
It was at that moment that I began to ponder about Paul admonition to take every thought captive (2 Corinthians 5:10). There should not be any idle thoughts floating around in our minds. This is the ideal, but we all know that our minds will wonder and our attentions will be distracted. The power of Paul’s encouragement is found in the fact that we are helped by the Holy Spirit. God’s Spirit is able to call our attention back from idleness and into focused thought. Pray that during these forty days you are able to more intentionally and faithfully focus on those things that will bring honor and glory to God.
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