Lent: Putting the fast in Steadfast

Lent: Putting the fast in Steadfast

From Light to Life

As our Steadfast series continues, the Church calendar is turning.

Epiphany—the season focused on the manifestations of the Incarnation—culminates at the Transfiguration, where the voice from the cloud of glory clearly identifies Jesus as the Divine One, proclaiming, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to Him.” (See Matthew 17)

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, the 40-day journey toward the cross and resurrection. We transition from what Ancient-Future Time identifies as the cycle of light to the cycle of life.

“Although we praise the Lord for many reasons,” wrote the patristic father John Chrysostom (4th C), “we praise and glorify Him above all for the cross.”

The cross.

Lent draws our attention to the cross.

Robert Webber once observed that many Christians live as though the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ never happened. “Lent is the season we do something about that.” (Ancient-Future Time, p. 99)

During Lent we heighten our awareness of our sinful condition and our need for repentance. Lent offers an opportunity to return to God. Fasting is one way we respond.

Forty Days of Dependence

Fasting is a vital biblical practice. Jesus taught that spiritual victory over entrenched demonic opposition required “prayer and fasting.” (See Mark 9:29) Jesus lived what He taught. At the onset of His ministry, Jesus fasted and prayed for forty days in the wilderness (Matthew 4). His was a forty-day spiritual test, resisting the world, the flesh, and the devil.

Lent echoes that forty-day pattern of spiritual battle—not to reenact it, but to be immersed in its posture. Lent is a season to grow deeper in dependence on God alone.

That kind of radical dependence is what forges steadfastness.

Putting the Fast in Steadfast

This year, the spiritual emphasis of Lent intersects with our theme: Steadfast. The second half of the word steadfast is fast.

If steadfast means firm, committed, rooted and grounded—then embedded within it is the principle of self-denial. A heart that holds fast to Christ must learn to let go of competing appetites. With these objectives in mind—steadfastness and sacrifice—we can see the benefits of entering a season of fasting.

We do not fast for recognition or approval. Jesus warned against performative devotion—“when you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do” (Matthew 6:16). If we fast to be recognized for our piety or to gain affirmation, that recognition is the only reward we will receive.

Fasting is also not a way to manipulate God. We do not earn spiritual merit or divine favor. Fasting does not change God or His will. On the contrary, it bends our will toward His.

A Personal Confession

Now, I have to confess—I do not naturally enjoy fasting. But I believe in it, and I practice it, because not enjoying it is often the point.

Yet there are tangible spiritual benefits. Sometimes I feel closer to God. When I feel hunger, I remember that I am fasting. The discomfort becomes a prompt to prayer. The body interrupts the day and says, “Remember to pray.”

Formation Through Fasting

In this way, fasting trains response. It teaches us to notice God and turn toward Him. If worship is response to the revelation of God, then fasting helps train that response. It strengthens the will to say no to the urgings of appetite and yes to cultivating steadfastness. Spiritually, it is a deliberate act of reorientation.

To put the fast in steadfast is more than wordplay. It is embodied prayer. It is choosing something concrete as a response to God’s grace.

Lent gives us forty days to consider what governs us—and what might be surrendered.

Reflection

What appetites most easily command your attention?

What small act of voluntary restraint might strengthen your relationship with Christ?

Prayer:

Heavenly Father,
teach me to hunger after righteousness.
Bend my desires toward You.
Form in me a heart that holds fast—
steadfast in faith, hope, and love.

Amen.

Listen to "Whosoever" on Bandcamp 

PS: On Ash Wednesday we hear the words, “Remember that you are dust.” Lent reminds us that our lives are finite. The apostle Paul wrote near the end of his life, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7). That theme of finishing well undergirds the song Whosoever from the Keep the Faith project—a reflection on making our lives count in light of eternity. I invite you to listen to it here.

https://robstill.bandcamp.com/track/whosoever

PPS: If it's helpful, here's what this year’s Lenten fast looks like for me: no desserts or sweets, plus an extended fast of roughly forty hours every ten days. I share that not as a prescription, but as an example. What might yours look like this season? Drop me a line at rob@robstill.com

ABOUT THE STEADFAST DEVOTIONAL SERIES: 

Since the beginning of this year, we have been exploring what it means to live with steadfast faith. Steadfastness is a character trait essential to growing in spiritual maturity. These companion essays include:

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