FOOD FOR THE SPIRIT

Whew! This has been a really, really, really tough week for me. I mean, a WEAK week! I don''t know what it is about hitting that twenty-pound mark, but I've struggled more this week than I have for a long, long time. Sigh. And I've gained four pounds. Yesterday, the scripture that states so reassuringly that "with God nothing shall be impossible," just kept running through my mind, so I've decided to make that my mantra. So, this morning for my scripture study, I looked up the scripture to read it word for word:

". . . If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall removed and nothing shall be impossible unto you."

"Howbeit this kind goeth not out but BY PRAYER and FASTING" (Matthew 17:20-21).

I just about turned back to my regular reading without reading that second verse, but the spirit whispered for me to read just a little further. And there was my answer: if I want this extremely large, seemingly impossible mountain moved, I need to call upon the powers of heaven through fasting and prayer. I recently stopped nursing my eleven-month old, so this will be the first time I've fasted for quite a while, and I'm actually really excited. So today, I'm fasting for hope. I'm fasting for an increase of faith. I'm fasting for my health. I'm fasting for a renewal of purpose. If any of my readers would care to join me in this fast, I know that strength comes in numbers. What could you fast for in your own lives?

Here are a few quotes from a recent Ensign article on fasting with power:

"What if there were a way to overcome our habits, addictions, and burdens? What if there were a way to gain sufficient confidence in the Lord that you could call down the powers of heaven?

What if there were principles you could teach your loved ones that, if applied, would allow them to overcome personal weaknesses and draw closer to God?

As we properly understand and live the law of the fast, these desired blessings can be ours" (Elder Shayne M. Bowen, "Fasting with Power," Ensign, April 2009, 64-67).

“Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?” (Isaiah 58:6).

"To develop spiritual strength, we need to do our part. If we are not willing to work and be obedient, we should not expect the miracle. In my experience, miracles are always found through obedience and hard work" (Elder Shayne M. Bowen, "Fasting with Power," Ensign, April 2009, 64-67).


Paul said, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).

“When a person starts a fast, biochemical adjustments begin in the bloodstream to compensate for the lack of food. A carbohydrate substance known as glycogen is released from storage areas in the liver and the muscles. The body uses glycogen as food to keep cells supplied with energy. After 24 hours this food source is used up, and another source of energy is needed.


“Dr. Siegfried Heyden of Duke University’s Department of Community and Family Medicine says when this happens, the body starts looking for other energy sources. ‘The first thing happening after a 24-hour fast is the breakdown of fat cells. And these fat cells, when they break down, produce ketone bodies, as they are called. And these ketone bodies seem to have an effect on our psyche in that they make us no longer hungry’”1 (Elder Shayne M. Bowen, "Fasting with Power," Ensign, April 2009, 64-67).

PLEASE read this article! It has helped me more fully understand why fasting is such an important principle of the gospel. You can view it in its entirety at http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?hideNav=1&locale=0&sourceId=dc87eafcee340210VgnVCM100000176f620a____&vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD