Lenten Fasting At Work - 2

Let's pick up from our last post where we talked about fasting during Lent. 

If you've never tried fasting at work, it's not so bad. Of course, we must be prudent. We can't fast so much that we can't think clearly or persist in performing our duties well and on time. We owe our best to our boss, our customers, and our clients.

Then again, I've read of working men in "the old days" who kept a complete fast throughout the day, let's say on a Wednesday or a Wednesday and Friday, and returned home to a simple bowl of soup and some bread. They managed to do manual labor under such circumstances.

Were these fellows heartier than we are today? It seems so.

Of course, their lives were generally harder than ours today. Think of the days before modern appliances, central heating, etc. Folks lived physically challenging lives, both men and women. (We're talking mostly of those who weren't rich and privileged, but even those fancy folks didn't have the comforts we have today.) If you've ever spent time in a relatively rugged environment, you may have gotten a taste of what it was like back in those "good old days." 

But back to today, for those who've not practiced fasting at work, how about we introduce it a bit at first; then increase the intensity or frequency. Sort of ease into it. You may be surprised that it's not all that difficult.

Indeed, if you're one of those hale and hearty types who occasionally fast because it's supposed to be healthy to do this once in a while, you'll more easily be able to give it a whirl during Lent. Of course, we're not looking for "one and done" sort of fasting; we want to see if we can sustain some sort of fasting discipline throughout those Forty Days.

Cutting down on quantity, or cutting out food we particularly enjoy works equally well; but a bit of hunger does seem to be more in the spirit of our endeavor.

(And, as we mentioned in our last post, we can also consider "fasting" from bad habits or behaviors that we might have at work. It's doesn't have to strictly be about food.)

A caveat here, especially if we're ambitious and especially successful in our fasting: Doing so, we must avoid letting our "self" be puffed up. We do it for love of Jesus, Whom we know suffered and died for us - not for us. If we feel a bit of satisfaction in our success, okay. But beware of pride poking its devlish head into the mix.

Now, fasting may not work well for some of us. If we exercise vigorously, and/or have physically demanding jobs, we may need to tread lightly (albeit not as "delicate flowers"!). Or perhaps we have a condition - like Diabetes - that requires food intake to keep our bodies stable. "Know thyself" and we can manage this according to our individual circumstances.

To get the ball rolling, here are some additional simple suggestions that many if not most of us can follow:

Delay eating (after saying grace) for some minutes (2,3, more?) This falls under the umbrella of mortification - something that should be part of our lives everyday. During Lent, though, we can increase our waiting time, for example, from 2 minutes to 3 or even 4.

We mentioned cutting our a food we enjoy. What about cutting out - or reducing - condiments from our meal that enhance its flavor (salt, sugar, mustard, mayo, etc.)? This practice has been a favorite of saints and those desirous of becoming saints. (And that's us, right?) Again, if we're already doing this from time to time, turn the dial up a bit for Lent.

While we want to avoid building up our "self" as we pursue fasting, don't be surprised when we get good feeling as a result of our efforts. Kept under control, there's nothing wrong with feeling good about what we're doing. 

On the flip side, if we start getting testy with folks because we're hungry or if there's a real physical let-down or symptoms like dizziness, faintness, mental fuzzy-ness, etc., we very well may be overdoing it. And that's not going to help anyone.

However we decide to proceed, make a good beginning and then adjust as necessary. Lent last for a while. When we fast, it can seem interminable. Sacrifice does cost us, after all.