Fasting for Clarity

Normally, one should not brag or promote the idea of fasting. Fasting- the practice of abstaining from an action or actions for a set period of time- is something special for the individual that chooses to do it. However, I am fresh out of topics to blog about and since I am doing one right now, I just wanted to share with you my experience with fasting. 

Every year, I go on something that resembles a Daniel's Fast (Daniel Chapters 1-3; 10 from the Bible gives context). By no means am I pastor, but I'll try to give a brief synopsis: In Chapter 1, Daniel rejected the diet of the Babylonians because it conflicted with his own. He maintained that he would continue the diet that he knew from his past and promised that it would enable him to do the work commanded of Nebuchadnezer). When I was a child, I really enjoyed the story of Daniel and it's always meant something to me. The fact that he was able to attain clarity, peace, and strength by living a less decorated life, is inspiring. In my adult years, I made the decision to take one month of the year to emulate, to an extent, Daniel's example. 

 

And so, I take on a very strict, clean lifestyle for one month. I try to modify this fast by giving up everything that I over indulge in- so basically, I give up on a lot of stuff. From tv to certain music to Facebook, I retire all of the things that bring me pleasure in hopes of attaining focus. By getting rid of things which could be distractions in my life, I try to just work on me- become a better person. What am I like without Facebook? What can I do with my time instead of tweeting about Scandal or yelling at D'Antoni's weak use of the Lakers during a game? These are questions that a fast, prayerfully, can answer,

The first week was met with bleh results. This was due in part to the fact that I kept telling myself that I had a lot of work to do and I had to give in against my will. A little devil in my head kept saying things like, "eat that WaWa breakfast sandwich" or "play that song a couple of times" because you're in the final stretch of work. There isn't anything wrong with the aforementioned things, let me be clear about that. However, as I enter a stage in life where  I have to make a ton of decisions (and complete a lot of work), clarity, structure, and productivity are great things to have.

I've been much better this second week with following through with fasting and its been such a blessing. I've gained some of the clarity and focus that I've been longing for. I am just about finished my analytic essay for the master's program. I have completed a lot of the grading and small end projects for my classroom. I've accomplished so much this week and navigated through a couple of challenges quite well. 

This final week will be full of very big decisions and submissions. I really do believe that this fast might do a lot for me... I'll keep you posted. :)