May 1: Insight Post by Michael Thayer
Friday Insight Post
by Michael Thayer
“Today, the most faith-affirming thing may be to say no to something, so that you can say yes to something better, something that makes you realize Jesus is in your midst, in the next room, across the table.” This was the last sentence in my daily devotional reading the morning I wrote this post, quoted from the book Rise: An Authentic Lenten Devotional (yes, I know, Lenten - I am a bit behind), written by John Pavlovitz, and recommended to me by my father.
Earlier in the reading, Pavlovitz reflects on the impact of his hectic, packed life, writing “I think I most often miss Jesus because I miss people - because I am too busy or distracted to be truly present in every day that I am surrounded by human beings whose lives he said that he inhabits: the least of these, my neighbors, my loved ones, my son.”
One of our reflection questions for this week is “How does fasting change your perspective toward the needs of others?” When I, intentionally and purposefully, fast and give up something that is a part of my daily life, it provides me with an opportunity to refocus my attention and fill the gap by engaging in my relationship with others and become attuned to their needs. As followers of Christ, isn’t this what our lives should be about, serving God by serving others?
I am not always so great at this. Sometimes I fill the gap created by something that I, or someone else, has removed from my life with a focus on myself, and my needs (or more frequently than I would like to admit, my wants). At the heart of this passage is a message I need to remember: that there should be an others-focused purpose when we fast, that should manifest in real world impact on the lives of God’s children, working to free those who are wrongly imprisoned, providing food and clothing to those in need.
If I do it right, aligned with God’s design and Jesus’ example, fasting can help me take that step back, refocus on the needs of others, and then do something for them to help meet those needs, as Jesus modeled for us and as God so graciously does for me every day.
Michael Thayer
Leadership Team Member
Footnote: John Pavlovitz, Rise: An Authentic Lenten Devotional (Chalice Press, 2022), pg. 60
New Hope Church
Lorton, Virginia
www.newhope.org