2 Corinthians 6:5; In Fastings

2 Corinthians 6:5 In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings;

Whether it was the abstinence of food to focus upon prayer or the Word or the case of the lack of the means for subsistence, the Apostle Paul shared the rigours of engagement in the gospel work.

Acts 14:21-23 And when they had preached the gospel to that city, and had taught many, they returned again to Lystra, and to Iconium, and Antioch, Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed.

Fasting is a valuable aspect of Christian living in forging a closer walk with God. It is the laying aside of the common necessity of food and drink for a short season for the purpose of spending more uninterrupted time of communion with God in prayer and study of His Word. There are divine blessings from fasting. Daniel fasted that he may obtain wisdom to understanding God’s will for His people, “And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes” (Dan 9:3). It is an earnest and sincere humbling of self to let God be pre-eminent in our hearts. Amen.