Towards a Lavish Fast

Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her." Luke 10: 38-42


Fasting is a spiritual discipline of disengagement. We purposefully abstain from something, food, entertainment, etc. Our desire is to grow closer to Christ, express greater devotion to Him and develop sensitivity to the Spirit’s leading.

Consider the story of Martha and Mary from Luke 10:38-41. We see that lavish devotion involves offering the Lord plenty of unstructured time. Often this passage is taught with respect to priorities, where we are encouraged to give to God first. Martha is bustling about attending to “priorities” while Mary is simply sitting at Jesus feet. Upon Martha’s objection, Jesus compliments Mary saying she has chosen a better way. The implication teased out by most teachers is that Martha is not doing wrong, but that Mary has her priorities straight, and it’s a legitimate conclusion.

But ordering one’s priorities is not simply a question of sequence. It is also a question of quantity. One cannot give God the first few minutes of each day and legitimately call it a priority because God happens to be the first in a list of activities. Again, a lavish expenditure of time is in view.

With Easter coming soon, we’ve been called to fast for the 21 days prior. That fast can become a powerful expression of worship if we are lavish in our embrace of it. What might that look like for you? If you’re a single mom working and raising your kids, it might be lavish to fast your morning coffee, spending those extra 10-15 minutes in prayerful communion with your Savior contending for His Kingdom. That’s lavish.

If you’re someone who has far more time and resources, it might mean fasting those weekends you might normally spend at your beach home, devoting that time instead to reading your Bible, talking with God, and praying for those who will receive the Savior this Easter.

If Jesus response to the Widow’s mite (Mark 12:41-44) teaches us anything, it teaches us that what is “lavish” will look different depending on your circumstances. It also teaches us that God honors those who “spend” so generously on Him. In short, what honors God and invites His blessing is obedience motivated by love. He calls us to pray and to fast, and ultimately to worship Him. He’s far less interested that we simply check a duty off our list in pursuit of the next to-do item.