Month 5 - Spiritual Disciplines | Week 3: Hungry for God
Anchor Scriptures For M5 | W3
“As the deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.”- Psalm 42:1 (ESV)
This week, we will be covering the following topics:
- Hunger Is Biblical Language
- What Hunger for God Is, Practically
- Fasting Makes Space for Hunger
- What Fasting Means Biblically
- Does Jesus Assume Fasting
- Fasting Trains Desire, Not the Body
- How Different Christian Traditions Have Practiced Fasting
- Eastern Orthodox Christianity
- Monastic Christianity
- The Early Church
- Western Protestant Traditions
- The Danger of Constant Fullness
Hunger Is Biblical Language
Scripture speaks of desire for God using the language of hunger and thirst, not only as metaphor but as lived experience for us to contemplate.
“My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.” (Psalm 42:2)
“I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.” (Psalm 143:6)
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” (Matthew 5:6)
Hunger of this kind isn’t treated in Scripture as spiritual immaturity.It is treated as spiritual health.
A soul that longs for God is alive.A soul that never feels hunger is often overfilled elsewhere… and potentially for the religious hearts amidst us, even just filled with - pride.
God repeatedly allows hunger in order to teach His people where life actually comes from:
“He humbled you and let you hunger… that He might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.” (Deuteronomy 8:2–3)
Hunger is the soul recognizing that it was made for communion with God and cannot be sustained by substitutes (Isaiah 55:1–2).
Biblically, hunger is what arises when false sources of fullness are removed and the heart is allowed to tell the truth (Hosea 5:15).
What Hunger for God Is, Practically
Hunger for God shows up in ordinary life as:
A growing dissatisfaction with shallow substitutes (Psalm 73:25–26)
A longing to be with God rather than merely informed about Him (Luke 10:39–42)
A desire for Scripture to nourish rather than decorate belief (Jeremiah 15:16; Matthew 4:4)
A restlessness that draws us toward prayer instead of distraction (Psalm 27:4; Psalm 63:1)
It is not anxiety (Philippians 4:6–7).
It is not striving (Psalm 127:1–2).
It is not spiritual ambition (Luke 18:9–14).
It is the ache of dependence waking up again.
This is why Scripture treats hunger not as spiritual immaturity, but as spiritual health.
“O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you.” (Psalm 63:1)
A soul that longs for God is alive.A soul that never feels hunger is often overfilled elsewhere, with religious familiarity, or self-sufficiency (Revelation 3:15–17).
Fasting Makes Space for Hunger
Hunger itself can be stifled.
Scripture consistently shows that when life is crowded with constant intake, the soul loses its sensitivity.
“One who is full loathes honey, but to one who is hungry, everything bitter is sweet.” (Proverbs 27:7)
Noise, comfort, control, and distraction quietly dull desire (Amos 8:11).
Making space for God is not about effort necessarily, but it is about removal.
“Be still, and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10)
What is keeping you from being still, so that you can know that He is God?
Making space might mean:
Removal of what keeps us perpetually full (Luke 12:15)
Removal of what keeps us constantly stimulated (Ecclesiastes 5:10–12)
Removal of what numbs attentiveness (Hebrews 5:11–14)
Space allows hunger to surface.Hunger reorients the heart.And a reoriented heart becomes attentive again to God (Isaiah 30:15).
This is where fasting enters the biblical story.
Biblically, fasting doesn’t manufacture holiness. It creates space.
Space for the body to feel lack.Space for the soul to surface desire.Space for prayer to become necessity rather than routine.
Moses fasted before receiving the Law (Exodus 34:28).
Elijah fasted before encountering God at Horeb (1 Kings 19:8).
Jesus fasted before beginning His public ministry (Matthew 4:1–2).
The early church fasted before sending leaders and making decisions (Acts 13:2–3).
In Scripture, fasting regularly precedes clarity, obedience, and encounter.
What Fasting Means Biblically
The primary biblical word for fasting in the Old Testament comes from the Hebrew tsum, meaning “to abstain” or “to withhold” (Ezra 8:21). In the New Testament, the Greek word nēsteuō literally means “to not eat” (Matthew 4:2).
But biblically, fasting isn’t defined merely by the absence of food.
It is defined by intentional dependence.
Fasting is the chosen interruption of normal provision in order to awaken hunger for God.
“Return to me with all your heart, with fasting…” (Joel 2:12)
It is not self-denial for its own sake (Isaiah 58:3–7).It is not spiritual severity (Colossians 2:20–23).It is not punishment of the body.
It is, as we have already said, a way of creating space.
In Scripture, fasting often accompanies prayer because hunger sharpens attention.
“While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said…” (Acts 13:2)
Fasting slows us down (Daniel 10:2–3).It exposes what we instinctively reach for (Matthew 4:3–4).It reveals humbly whether we live by the bread of the world alone, or by the word that comes from the mouth of God (Deuteronomy 8:3; Matthew 4:4).
This is why fasting is consistently connected to listening, discernment, repentance, or longing (Nehemiah 1:4; Acts 14:23).
It is not an end.It is a means of reorientation.
Before Scripture ever commands fasting, it reveals why fasting matters.Not to make God near, but to make us attentive (James 4:8).Not to earn favor, but to recover desire.
Only once hunger is understood does fasting make sense.
Does Jesus Assume Fasting
Jesus doesn’t introduce fasting as a novel discipline. He assumes it as part of the normal life of His disciples.
“And when you fast…” (Matthew 6:16)
Not if.Not should.When.
Fasting appears alongside prayer and generosity as a quiet discipline, meant to be unseen, not performed. Its purpose is not display but as we have covered, a personal reorientation.
Later, when questioned about why His disciples were not fasting, Jesus responded:
“The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.” (Matthew 9:15)
Again, “and then they will fast.” Not - And then if they want to they can, or they would have the option, but they will.
Fasting isn’t rooted in rule-keeping or severity. It is rooted in longing. It is the embodied language of desire when presence feels distant.
Fasting Trains Desire, Not the Body
Fasting in Scripture isn’t self-punishment. It is self-honesty.
“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4)
Fasting reminds both body and soul that life is sustained by God, not merely by provision. It reveals what we reach for when comfort is removed and what quietly sustains us when ease is taken away.
Fasting doesn’t aim at control. It aims at awareness.
How Different Christian Traditions Have Practiced Fasting
An Awareness, Not an Instruction
Across the history of the Church, fasting has never taken only one form. Practices differ widely, but the direction remains the same. Hunger is used to orient the heart toward God.
What follows here is not a prescription for you to follow. It is an awareness of how the wider Body of Christ has stewarded hunger as a spiritual discipline.
Eastern Orthodox Christianity
Fasting as Rhythmic Formation.
In Eastern Orthodox Christianity, fasting is not primarily an individual choice. It is communal, calendar-based, and formative.
Orthodox fasting often involves abstaining from certain foods during weekly fast days and longer seasons such as Great Lent. The aim is not deprivation for its own sake, but simplicity that allows prayer to deepen and life to slow.
St. Basil the Great wrote in the fourth century:
“Fasting gives birth to prophets, strengthens the powerful, makes lawgivers wise. Fasting is a safeguard for the soul, a steadfast companion for the body.”
Orthodox teachers consistently warn that fasting without humility becomes harmful. Hunger is meant to soften the heart, not harden the will.
A common Orthodox saying summarizes the posture well:
“Do not fast from food alone. Fast from anger, pride, and distraction.”
The discipline is not about mastery, but freedom.
Monastic Christianity
Fasting Within a Whole Way of Life
In both Eastern and Western monastic traditions, fasting doesn’t stand alone as a separate practice. It exists within a broader rule of life that includes prayer, Scripture, silence, work, and simplicity.
St. Benedict, whose Rule shaped Western monasticism for centuries, warned against excess and spiritual heroics:
“Let all things be done with moderation, so that the strong may have something to strive for, and the weak nothing to run from.”
Monastic fasting was intentionally unremarkable. It was steady, ordinary, and sustained. Its power came not from intensity, but from consistency over time.
Hunger was not meant to dominate attention, but to quietly redirect it toward God again and again.
This reminds us that fasting was never intended as a shortcut or technique, but as a support for a life already oriented toward God.
The Early Church
Fasting for Discernment and Dependence
In the book of Acts, fasting appears most often in moments of discernment.
“While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said…” (Acts 13:2)
The early church fasted before sending missionaries, appointing leaders, and stepping into unknown obedience.
Fasting functioned as a confession of dependence. It slowed decision-making and made space to listen.
Western Protestant Traditions
Fasting as Intentional Return
In many modern Western churches, fasting is less structured and less communal. It often takes the form of skipping meals, fasting for a day or season, or abstaining from media, entertainment, or comforts.
Reformers like John Calvin emphasized a focus on purpose over form:
“Fasting is not a matter of form, but of purpose, that the flesh may be subdued and the spirit raised to prayer.”
In these traditions, fasting often functions as a reset. A way of interrupting constant fullness and returning attention to God in a sharp return.
Its strength lies not in uniformity, but in intentionality.
A Shared Thread
Across these traditions, one theme remains consistent.
Fasting is not about absence.It is about attentiveness.
Not about earning.But about remembering.
Not about control.But about clarity.
We havent covered these practices for you to become a “hyper-monk” with a thousand new models to copy, but rather so that we can be witnesses to the Church’s long understanding that hunger can be a teacher.
The Danger of Constant Fullness
Scripture repeatedly warns about the subtle danger that comes with fullness.
“Take care lest your heart be lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God.” (Deuteronomy 8:14)
“Woe to you who are full now, for you shall be hungry.” (Luke 6:25)
Fullness will dull memory and alterness.Hunger sharpens attention.
Fasting, whether from food, noise, media, or comfort, allows us to feel truthfully again.
This Week’s Invitation
Making Space. This isn’t a command to fast in a specific way. It’s an invitation to make space.
Choose one form of restraint.
A skipped meal.
A simplified meal.
A fast from media.
A fast from constant noise.
A fast for whatever creates space.
Pair it intentionally with prayer or Scripture. Don’t rush to fill the discomfort.
Ask:
What do I notice when this is removed?
What desire surfaces?
What am I actually hungry for?
Watch/ Listen/ Read
Watch
Do you hunger for God? - John Barnett
A short visual teaching on longing for God Himself rather than His gifts. This video helps bring the theme of desiring God into felt reality rather than an abstract concept.
3 Levels of Fasting - and Why Most Christians Stop at Level 1
Read & Listen
“The Place of Fasting in the Christian Life” - Article & PodcastRead: The Place of Fasting in the Christian Life (C.S. Lewis Institute)A balanced, historically grounded overview of fasting’s role in Christian discipleship, showing (with biblical examples) how fasting has been understood as a way to draw near to God.
John Piper, A Hunger for God: Desiring God through Fasting and Prayer - LINK
Do you have that hunger for Him? As John Piper puts it: “If we don’t feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because we have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Our soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great.”
Arthur Wallis, God’s Chosen Fast - LINK
It is not so much a how-to manual, but a reference that explains the purpose of fasting, details accounts of fasting in the Bible, and includes a comprehensive biblical index.
Listen
Psalm 57 | “Under the Shadow” | UK Lo-Fi / Ambient Garage | The Christ Focused Music Collective
Psalm 57 is a prayer prayed from hiding. David is not in comfort or control, but seeking refuge beneath God’s protection. This makes it especially relevant for a week focused on hunger and fasting, because it captures what remains when strength, certainty, and self-reliance are stripped away.
Psalm 88 | “Unanswered Prayer” | Lo-Fi / Ambient Lament | Christ Focused Music Collective
Psalm 88 is one of the darkest prayers in Scripture. It contains no resolution, no visible deliverance, and no movement toward comfort. And yet, it is prayed.
This matters for a week focused on hunger because Psalm 88 shows us what remains when comfort, reassurance, and easy answers are removed. It is the sound of a soul refusing distraction and choosing honesty before God. There is no performance here, only presence.
📅 This Week’s 30-Min Rally Point
We’ll meet for our first 30-minute rally point this Thursday at 7:00 PM EST via Zoom.This is a space for reflection, encouragement, and activation, a rhythm of checking in, praying together, and pressing forward.
🕖 Zoom Time: Thursday @ 7:00 PM EST🔗 Click to join the Zoom call - Zoom URL
Bring a Bible, a journal, and any wins or wrestles you want to share. This is a safe space to grow.
Sneak Peek at Month 5 | Spiritual Disciplines - Week 4: In the Quiet
Anchor Scriptures
“Be still, and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10)“And after the fire, the sound of a low whisper.” (1 Kings 19:12)“Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” (Luke 5:16)
If fasting removes what fills us, silence reveals what remains.
Scripture shows us again and again that God does not force His voice over noise. He waits for attentiveness. Quiet unsettles us because it removes distraction and leaves us face to face with our thoughts, our desires, and our need. What remains in the silence often tells the truth about what has been shaping us.
In the Bible, stillness is not emptiness but encounter. Elijah hears God not in spectacle but in a whisper. Jesus regularly withdraws from the crowds to be alone with the Father. Silence becomes the place where formation happens, not because God is distant, but because we are finally present.
Next week, we will explore why stillness is so difficult, how Scripture treats quiet as a spiritual discipline, and why God so often speaks when we stop filling the air.
God is with us!
Father,Teach us again how to hunger for You.Remove what dulls our desire.Restore what comfort has numbed.
Meet us in the removal of our excess,as we venture into honest need.
Amen.
I’m glad you’re here.
Let’s run the race - Eyes Up, Chin Up!
Grace and peace,
Sam Johnston
