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The Pastoral Lens

With Pastor Brian Horrobin of First Baptist Church, Wallaceburg

30 Hour Famine

Tuesday, May 27, 2003

Have you ever tried fasting a meal, say, lunch? How about going without food for a whole day? Did thoughts of food dominate your thinking? Well, I spent this past weekend with a number of teens and young adults in a 30 hour fast to promote awareness for world hunger. The idea is the brainchild of World Vision, an Christian relief and aid organization which works in countries all over the world to help the needy and starving.
As our group ventured out on this endeavour, we had 2 goals in mind. The first goal was to get teens to somehow gain a greater appreciation of what many, many people in the world today face on an ongoing basis: gnawing hunger. To be sure, it's hard to imagine just 30 hours of fasting producing such a desired result, but hey, when most kids today are used to snacking whenever they want, and as much as they want, believe me, 30 hours can seem like an eternity! Our gang found out that being hungry is not fun. They also had to put up with seeing others, who were not part of the project, eating. They weren't eating stewed tomatoes and eggplant casserole, either. They were chowing down on all sorts of stuff kids like: pizza, chips, donuts, etc. Merely talking about food became a vastly unpopular subject pretty quick.
The second goal of the 30 hour famine was to raise money for the hungry people in third world countries (or more correctly, two thirds world). The students were challenged to go out and get people to sponsor them, either by the hour, or for completing the whole thing. There were prize incentives dangled like carrots in front of a horse's nose for those achieving the most sponsor money. In fact, the grand prize was for the winner to have the privilege of throwing a blueberry pie in the pastor's face (ah, that would be me!). All in all, I think we all came away with a greater awareness of the effects of hunger.
Contrary to popular belief, fasting does not move God. Rather, fasting puts the one fasting in a position where the focus on God becomes clearer. As we abstain from food and say "no" to the cravings of our flesh, we increase our attention on the things of God. In Isaiah 58: 6-7 the Lord describes the work of true fasting: "...to loosen the bonds of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free, and break every yoke...to divide your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into the house; when you see the naked, to cover him..."
So, the next time you see one of those ads on television portraying a hungry child with big eyes and a bulging stomach from malnutrition, you have a choice. You can turn the channel so that you don't have to deal with it, or you can try fasting a meal or three and sending the money you saved on food to some agency helping feed the hungry. I'll leave you with the motto of Compassion International: "You can't change the world, but you can change the world for one person." Go for it!