There’s something profoundly human about fasting. When we abstain from food, comfort, or distraction, we feel our need. Our stomachs growl. Our hands reach for what isn’t there. We become acutely aware of our dependence.
And that’s exactly where God meets us.
Jesus spent forty days in the wilderness, hungry and vulnerable, before beginning his ministry. He knows what it feels like to need. He knows the ache of longing. He knows what it is to be hungry, like so many people around the globe. When we fast during Lent, we’re not proving our strength—we’re acknowledging our weakness, and we’re aligning ourselves with others in need. And in that weakness, in that need, we discover this incredible promise: God doesn’t love us less. He loves us enough that he became human like us. He loves us enough to know our hunger, to understand what it means to need, to understand our weakness. As Hebrews 4:15 says, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.”
Our hunger during Lent doesn’t push God away. It pulls us closer to the Bread of Life, who satisfies our souls.
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Jorg Greuel
