Fasting and Lent

I remember being a missionary and teaching about fasting, giving up food for 24 hours as a way to connect with God, to sacrifice for him, and to show him we are coming before him in humility and seriously seeking an answer or a blessing. At first, this man we were teaching was overwhelmed by the idea of not eating for 24 hours, but promised he would consider it. When the next fast Sunday came around, he agreed to try. That Sunday, he shared words with me that I will never forget. He said that fasting was very difficult for him, but that every moment he felt hungry during the day, it reminded him of what he was doing and why. So the very fact of feeling hungry became a constant reminder all day long of his devotion and love for God, and his willingness to sacrifice for his relationship to God. It's one of the life lessons I have always held onto. When I fast, every time I feel hungry or weak, I let it be a reminder of what I'm doing and why. A reminder of how much I love the Lord, and how much I want him to know it. 

When I'm giving something up for Lent, this principle is so extremely powerful. Every day, every time I come across that thing I'm giving up, or focus on that thing I'm doing, I let it be a reminder of why I'm giving that thing up. We promise that we will try to remember Christ, that we will keep him in our thoughts... for me, this makes it easy for those 40 days. It is 40 days of thinking of him constantly, and when I realize how powerful that is in my life, it trains me to think of him always, even outside of Lent.