There are many theories that explain the origin of sin according to the Bible. But apart from that, we ourselves as humans tend to fall into sin many times. Because of this sinful state, humans are actually aware that their relationship with God will be increasingly distant. And because of that there are many things that humans do to help restore their relationship to God. Starting from praying to doing forgiveness of sins in Christianity.
It is known that there are fasting activities carried out by religions that we know. Although fasting performed by our other faithful brothers and sisters looks more stringent, it turns out that many religions do fasting as one of the activities in their worship rituals. This is done because there are indeed many purposes of fasting that have many benefits for those who fast and in the following I will share information about the purpose of Christian fasting for you.
1. Help grow faith
The purpose of the first Christian fast is to help grow the faith of the people. By fasting, we will try to reflect more on everything that happens in our lives. This is because during the fasting period there are several rules that we must follow where these rules will make our space of movement much narrower and not as free as when we are not fasting. It will help us to see from a new perspective because there are some rules during fasting that we must live and follow. For example, if previously we still had some fears about some things that might happen to our lives, then after undergoing fasting some of these fears will be overcome because we have entrusted our lives to God.
Even Jesus himself advised his disciples who were trying to cast out demons by praying and fasting. This means that fasting can have a big enough impact to help develop our faith in Him, by entrusting everything that happens in His name. Moreover, if fasting is accompanied by prayer, which has many benefits for Christians, the faith will surely grow better. The existence of a measure of spiritual growth in us can be seen from how much we believe in God's plan and do not worry about everything that will come as long as we have done our best in our lives.
2. Means of self-control
Means of self-control is the next goal of the Christian fast. Fasting is more than just an activity to withstand hunger and thirst. Doing fasting activities is where we can try to hold ourselves back and keep away from the temptations of the devil that knocks us down and makes us do things that Satan wants more than things that God wants more. So, through fasting, we can have better self-control in choosing and deciding whether to do good or bad things. Talking about self-control, of course, this will be even broader. Self-control is also concerned with how we can control our emotions and to help you with this there are several Bible verses about patience that you can read and reflect on every day.
Controlling emotions is not an easy thing. This becomes even more difficult when we meet someone's fault, whether it's a stranger or someone close to them, who keeps making the same mistakes. However, because Jesus himself taught us to continue to love and forgive one another, of course, we can change our tendency to often feel emotional into a person who loves to forgive and see the good in others. And Jesus also teaches us to keep forgiving others who have made mistakes even up to seventy-seven times seven times, and to join in praying for those who are hostile to us. Because these things are a matter between our relationship and God that is more important and who we are that we have the right to judge and not forgive our neighbor.
3. Awaken to stay grateful
Furthermore, the purpose of Christian fasting that can be felt is to help awaken us to remain grateful in whatever conditions and circumstances we are in. By fasting and feeling hungry and thirsty, we will feel that there are other people out there whose conditions are not as lucky as us. There are people whose condition is very far below us. And by unanimously having the determination to fast, then we will indirectly be formed into a person who is more grateful for our situation. The meaning of gratitude in the Bible must really be understood and contemplated. By knowing and trying to be grateful then we will become a better person for fellow human beings and for ourselves.
A heart that always has gratitude will help us also become a better person. Gratitude teaches us that everything we have is enough, and that we don't have to worry about the future that will come because a day's troubles are enough for just one day. Having a heart that is always grateful will also prevent us from becoming greedy humans. Greed can have a bad impact on our safety later and of course it can also harm others around us. And also know that greed can also be a form of idolatry because we focus more on one thing like money for example. Some things about idolatry actually have a fairly broad scope and therefore recognize and learn what it means to worship idols in the Christian faith.
4. Beginning to start good habits
The next goal of Christian fasting is that this can be a prelude to starting a good habit. A habit where we will become more frequent in praying and reflecting on our daily circumstances. Maybe if before committing to fasting we tend to forget to pray and choose directly to do all our work, then this will slowly change.
By regularly fasting, we will also begin to realize the bad effects of the consequences of sin according to the Bible by continuing to try to change old habits into good habits. Doing reflection and meditation regularly will also help clear our minds of all bad things and this will help us to become a person who has a more positive mindset in the future. All good habits will begin with positive thoughts, thoughts that want to bring us closer to God the Father.
5. As a form of proof of love for Father
As human beings who are fragile and often fall into sin, we often double up on God without us realizing it through some small things. One example of sinful acts in Christianity that we often do is to doubt the power of God. We doubt what will happen next in our lives. And this is tantamount to us doubling up on God and preferring to believe in our fragility as human beings who are all limited in their abilities.
Doing fasting and consciously following the rules applied during fasting is the same as meaning that we have tried to give a form of proof of our love for Father. Because we consciously want to limit ourselves from worldly desires and draw closer to God. The existence of proof of our love for God that we manifest by fasting will certainly please God. And this is certainly a good thing because two individuals show their love for each other, and with this, our relationship with God will be strengthened and there will be no gap for the devil to tempt or damage the relationship we have intimately established with God. .
6. Help maintain health
If fasting is often associated with spiritual benefits that can be felt by those who fast, then this time I will add the health benefits of fasting. Fasting is the same as giving our bodies the opportunity to stay away from various foods that can harm our health. Fasting will help us detoxify the toxins in the body so that the toxins in the body will come out and our metabolism will be smoother and healthier.
Those are some of the goals of Christian fasting that I can share with you. Hopefully by knowing some of these fasting goals, you can become more determined and have a strong determination in doing your fast. Thank you for taking your time to read our article. Don't forget to also read and find out more about some good and right ways to fast for Christians so that you can do your fast smoothly.