Description
LARGER THAN LIFE
Want
Ed Young
January 14, 2007
I knew that the fast was tough, but I did not know that it would affect attendance this much!
Did you guys make it ok? Man, watching the weather men and weather women you would think that this was like Antarctica or something. Talk about overreaction. It was hilarious. I woke up and Lisa and I were lying in bed watching this on television thinking, “Man, this must be horrible!” Then we walked outside and it was no problem. It is supposed to get bad later today, which is what they say, right? But who are they? Thanks for being here. This has been great. Give yourself a round of applause.
Last time we did talk about fasting. Fasting is an adventure, and fasting is fun. I have not fasted as much as I should have, and I am excited to be excited about this fast. Fasting has its challenges, though. And we started the 21 day fast with a 24-hour liquid-only fast. And I was in my house counting the minutes and seconds down to when I could break the fast. And the first thing I popped in my mouth was a grape. When I ate it, my taste buds were on point. It was like, “Halleluiah!” I was so excited.
I am not going to lie; it has been tough getting off caffeine. I love caffeine. I want to clap and cry. I had a caffeine headache that started in the back of my head and I had to go to bed early on Monday night. Then I did this new thing for my new book at the studio early Thursday morning. I had to get up early to be down there and these different talk shows would sound in and I had to think fast on my feet. And they had brewed fresh Starbucks coffee in two different areas and it was calling my name. I was tempted, yet I did not drink the Starbucks. I didn’t.
It was funny, though. I got an e-mail from a lady who wanted to remain anonymous. She said that she was going to a grocery store a few days ago and she was very proud of herself because she had been strict on the fast. She was thinking about the grocery store where she shops and the bakery with chocolate chip cookies the bakery makes. She said “Ed, this bakery makes the best cookies ever.” And she said in the email, “You know, I decided I was going to cheat on the fast. I had made up in my mind.”
But as she walked through the doors of the grocery store she saw, on display, my book, “Outrageous, Contagious Joy.” Talk about accountability! We are always watching you at Fellowship Church, wherever you are.
What is a fast? This might be your first time today and you are thinking, “What is fasting? Is fasting a diet; is it going without food?” No, it is more than that.
Fasting is a spiritual discipline. It is redirecting our appetite heavenward. It is an appetite denying discipline. What does discipline mean? Well, discipline is doing what you ought to do so you can do what you want to do.
Fasting is all about God. It is when we redirect our food source heavenward. We turn it from the stuff that just sustains life to the source of life, you could say. That is what you could call a fast.
When I fast, I don’t fast to get what I want. Some people fast to get what they want. Some fast to get, get, get. They think, “Ok, I can turn God into a genie and make God do what I want him to do. So, if I fast I will get what I want.”
That is not right. When I fast, I end up wanting what God wants. And that is important. See the contrast? We want what we want. I want what I want and you want what you want. But God has different wants and desires for you and me. God’s wants and desires for our lives are larger than life.
Jesus said (John 10:10), “I have come that they may have life and have it abundantly.” God wants us to want what he wants, because when we want what he wants, we can live larger than life. That is why we fast.
Jesus commands us to fast. It is not optional. He said, “Followers fast.” He assumed that we would fast.
In Ecclesiastes 4:12, Solomon said, “A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” Last week I played the piano for you, a cord is made of three notes, right? Jesus said three things in Matthew 6 that we are to do—pray, give, fast.
Followers fast. Followers redirect their food source from the things of the earth, from material, to the stuff of God. Fasting helps me and you to realize the depth and the breadth of the power of our appetites, because the stomach is the epicenter of our appetites.
Touch your stomach. For some, it is a big pat; for others, a small pat. But the stomach is powerful. The stomach represents our appetites. It represents greed and lust. It can represent anger and a lot of other things.
I remember this guy in psychology class in high school, Maslow. Remember Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? What did he say? People thought it was revolutionary. He said that man’s basic needs are food and water. Wow! Jesus said, several thousand years before Maslow was born, “I am the bread of life. I am the living water.”
Followers fast. We redirect our food source from just the stuff that sustains life to the source of life. In Psalm 37:4 the Bible says, “Delight yourself in the Lord.” That is the hard part. How do I delight myself in the Lord? I fast to find out what he wants. Then it says “…and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
God’s desires and my desires; God’s wants and my wants have this beautiful collision in our stadium, in the stadium in our stomach. And suddenly, our wants and God’s wants sync up. And then can do what we ought to do so we can do what we want to do.
God is living through us and we are discovering, what? We are discovering God’s perspective on issues and things that we need. We will unleash the power of God and also, we are going to have blessings and breakthroughs.
Jesus healed a boy who was demonized. The father was desperate. He brought the boy to the disciples and they could not deliver the boy from the demon. Finally, they went to Jesus and the father said, “Jesus, here is my kid. Please heal him.” Jesus healed him.
Later that night the disciples said, “Jesus, how could you do that and we could not do that?” Matthew 10 says that the disciples got all of the power to do that, yet they couldn’t. Jesus said, “I was able to do that through prayer and fasting. Power only occurs through prayer and fasting.”
So, if Jesus fasted, I think that we need to fast, too. Jesus knew that certain power could only be released when we fast. It is all about the stomach. I think that if Jesus had said, “Close your eyes for a day,” I could do that. Or, “Stop up your ears for six hours. Pinch your nose for a while.” I could do that.
But the stomach is powerful and I love to eat. I am from the South. In the south we go to bed thinking, “What is going to be for breakfast? What are we eating for lunch? What can we eat for dinner?”
I cut my teeth on chicken fried steak and biscuits and mashed potatoes and gravy and all that good stuff, all that unhealthy food. I have been changing my diet, though.
When I met Lisa at 15, we began to date and she has always been interested in food. And when we went to Florida State she went through home economics and she began to study food and we began to eat healthy. We got married at 21, and from then until now we have pretty much eaten clean.
We eat like we do our finances. 90% of the time it is healthy and the other 10% it is whatever. And that 90/10 principle is a great principle. That is the one that the Bible says to do financially and otherwise. We give God the first 10% and he blesses the rest. And we can mess around with our diets for 10% and then 90% of the time, do great.
However, during this fast, our bodies are cleansed from toxins and stuff that we have harbored in our bodies physically. One person said, “Oh, I cleaned my pantry out and I have given the Oreos to the pets. I have thrown away the Cheetos and I have burned some Doritos and I have turned over a new dietary leaf.” That is what people say. And that is good and great to think about. But think about your spiritual diet.
Have you allowed God to clean out your pantry? Have you allowed him to clean out the toxins of anger, greed and lust? Have you been thinking about food and appetite and have you been redirecting that to God? That is what a fast is all about. Yes, we feel good physically. But spiritually we go to the next level and live larger than life.
Matthew 6:33 (NCV) says, “The thing you should want most is God’s kingdom and doing what God wants. Then all these other things you need will be given to you.”
1 Corinthians 2:9, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him.”
God’s wants for you and me are greater than any want that we could come up with on our own. You may think that you can make a list of cool stuff you could do and achieve. That list does not even come close to God’s list for your life and mine.
We delight in him and we follow him. We will understand and live out that amazing agenda that God has prepared.
Even in the fast, already, I have had several breakthroughs in my life. Two days ago, I was able to share Christ with someone and it was amazing how quickly the conversation came up. My mind was clear and I was alert to the promptings of God. I was sharing Christ with this person who was totally away from God. He was from New York City, and it was incredible what happened.
The other day I was working out and my workouts have not been as intense on the fast. But I am working out. I love to jump rope and was jumping and thinking about the fast and I started thinking about California and speaking there. I have done a lot of speaking in California and my mind went back to two years ago at a conference. I said something publicly about a friend of mine that was not well-liked. I should not have said it, and I felt convicted and God telling me to make it right. We are having a conversation this week so that I can ask him to forgive me and then I can make it right. So already, the fasting is cleaning the toxins and stuff from my life.
Well, I have mentioned Matthew 6 already. I have talked about the three things that God talked about. Let’s read it again, because I think that a better word for fast is a picture of slow. I think that a fast slows things down and time stands still. When will it be over? Fourteen days left.
Mathew 6:16-18 says, “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”
We are going to get rewarded because of the fast. It is the principle of the firsts. Just like in Matthew 6:33, we give God the first part of the year as a fast because for 21 days we are worshiping God. It is like a continual 21-day prayer festival for God. God is redirecting our appetite heavenward. We have great clarity and decision making capabilities.
When we fast we will get rewarded.
“What do you mean, Ed? Like money?”
Well, it could be money. But it could also be greater and deeper than money. We will get rewarded. God never asks us to sacrifice without a breakthrough or blessing right around the corner. Never, ever. So, when I fast, I don’t get God to give me what I want. I end up wanting what God wants.
The stomach is a stadium. Because when I start thinking about fasting, several months ago, and doing a series on fasting my stomach was saying “No!” Yours is doing that now.
The stomach can mess us up. Adam and Eve—you want to talk about your stomach? They had the Garden to manage. That was their job. And that lays to rest the oldest profession—it’s landscaping.
God said, “Don’t touch the tree in the middle of the garden; it has the fruit of good and evil.”
The evil one came in and said, “Just try this happy meal. It will make you happy and you will be like God. That is why God does not want you to eat.”
So, what does Eve do? She eats it. And the happy meal turned into an unhappy meal as it settled into her stomach. She shared some with Adam and they moved from enjoying the presence of God to hiding from God. They ate themselves out of God’s plan and provision.
The stomach is a stadium, friends. It represents so many things in our lives. It is the epicenter of desires.
Esau. He is in Genesis 25; he was a man’s man. He was a hunter. How many hunters do we have? Lift your hand. Esau had been out hunting one day and his father liked him because he would bring the meat and put it on the table. And everyone loved the big burly guy. He had red hair and was really hairy. He loved the outdoors. He also had the birthright on his life.
Back in that day, if you were first born, you had the birthright on your life and you had a double portion of blessing on your life. So, he came home from this hunt and had not killed anything. And he saw his brother eating beans and bread. He said, “I am hungry. Please, man, this dude needs food.” And he ended up selling his birthright away to his brother. His stomach ruled; his stomach caused him to botch the blessings and birthright that was given to him. The stomach can mess you up.
The children of Israel, in Numbers 11, were being lead from Egyptian slavery to the Promise Land and it took them 40 years to get there. They were led by Moses, and God had done all this miraculous stuff. He parted the red sea, guided them at night with a fire in the sky, and during the day with a cloud. What did they eat? God sent them manna from Heaven. In the Hebrew, manna means “what is it?” It was a bread-like substance that completely nourished the people. They could not even find a sick person for 40 years. God was feeding them from Heaven. How amazing is that?
You know what happened? They entered the moan zone. “Oh Lord, I wish we were back in Egypt eating garlic and fish and that diet there. I want meat, Lord. I am tired of manna.”
I learned a long time ago, don’t make a cook mad. Especially don’t make God made.
So God said, “You want meat? I have taken care of you for all of this time and all of these years and now you want meat?” And God rained down so many quail on them that you could stack the quail two and a half feet deep. Read the Bible in Numbers 11. They had quail coming out of their eyes and ears. It was a feeding frenzy, like a bunch of sharks.
Then Scripture says that thousands keeled over dead with the meat in their mouths. And even today, where they died, is a valley called the “Place of Lusters.” They ate themselves out of the Promise Land.
See the pattern? Adam and Eve wanted what they wanted, not what God wanted and they lost the provision of God. Esau wanted what Esau wanted and it caused him to botch the blessings and prosperity that God wanted to pour on his life. The children of Israel wanted what they wanted, not what God wanted, and it caused them to miss the blessings of the Promise Land.
I ask you, what kind of provision does God have for you? I ask you, what kind of plan does God have for you? I ask you, what kind of birthright does God have in store for you? I ask you, what kind of blessings does God have for you? I ask you, what kind of Promise Land does God have for you? What kind of perk does he want you to take in your marriage, with your friends, in a career move, in a decision?
Fast. Redirect your appetite heavenward. Even if you are not a believer, I will challenge you, just like I did last time. I challenge you to fast if you are outside the family of God, because the issue is too important to hydroplane over.
In Matthew 5:6 Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”
In Matthew 4:4 “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
And Psalm 50:12 says, “If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for the world is mine, and all its fullness.”
What if our worship fed God? What if? What if it satisfied him? My wife is a phenomenal cook, but what if she cooked with Brussels sprouts every night? That would get old, wouldn’t it? Lisa is creative and she changes what she cooks all of the time. I am looking forward to the next meal, because I wonder, “What is going to happen next?”
How about your life with God? Are you giving him Brussels sprouts? God does not want my leftovers or your leftovers. He wants the best. He does not want our wants. He says, “Fall in love with me and I will show you what I want for you.” And then we will have a switch. Our wants and God’s wants will collide and sync up. Then, we will discover God’s provision, plan and birthright and blessing and Promise Land. Do what you ought to do so that you can do what you want to do. Fast and pray, because Jesus said, then we will live larger than life.
At this time, I want to bring out my wife and I want her to share about fasting and what God is doing in our family, because it has been an adventure.
Lisa: Yes, when someone tells me that I am going to get to experience an adventure, I mean that’s exciting. But there is a bit of uncertainty and a bit of fear. But knowing that there is going to be something new and refreshing to me and that is what this fast has truly been for us. Ed mentioned that we do eat pretty healthy, but I have noticed that over the past year we have been eating out more. I have been working at the church more and our schedule and routine have slipped into this convenience of the foods.
So, for us, it has been a change. We are eating a lot at home. I am washing more dishes than I have ever washed before. I am cooking more. And it has been great.
Another thing that I have noticed is that prior to the fast, and Ed and I had insider information because we knew that it was coming, but I had already gotten a list of things to pray for our family. One of the things I realized is that the back biting and fighting amongst the kids was just not good. I know a lot of it was normal teenager stuff, there was strife, and it was just not godly. That has been our prayer—that the relationship with the kids, as brothers and sisters, would be more in line with each other; because of the fast. That during this fast God would clean up words, and that words would be uplifting and encouragement rather than biting words. That was one of the things that I had prayed for.
For me, I have prayed that God would show me how to redirect my life. I grew up in the South, too, and I love food. And I enjoy the pleasure of it. For me, this has been a cleansing time and challenging to feed on the word of God.
We have also been journaling. I gave the girls journals when we began and Ed has his and he gave EJ one. And we have been journaling. And to share with you of the struggles, I would like to read an excerpt form yesterday’s entry.
January 13th – I can’t believe the first emotion that I had this first morning was disappointment. I woke up thinking of sitting by the fire with coffee, what pleasure I gain from food and beverage. Today I am weary of my week of fasting. I am still counting the days until it is over. But that isn’t what my true desire is; my true desire is for God to reveal himself to me in big ways. I want to pursue God more than food or beverage. I want to be transformed by the renewing of my mind so that I can become a living sacrifice; acceptable and pleasing to my heavenly Father. And that is from Romans 12:1.
Lord, I am not going to wait expectantly for food, but I will wait expectantly for you. Lord, forgive me for my weakness, forgive me for my distraction. I want to focus on you, Lord. I want to live larger than life.
And then, this is what I have been reading this week, Psalm 5. I just randomly went there and it is incredible encouragement. In verse 3 of Psalm 5, “In the morning, oh Lord,” And that’s when I need to get focused on the fast is in the morning. “In the morning, oh Lord, you hear my voice. In the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.”
And that last phrase is what has meant so much to me. “I wait in expectation.” I don’t know if God is going to just reveal himself in grander ways to me in the next 21 days or if it’s gonna be in the next 21 years. But I am willing to wait in expectation, because God has never failed me.
I have followed Christ since I was 9 years old. He has never failed me. I could give you story after story after story of how he has worked in my life, in our family’s life and in our relationship with our children. All of that. And I am telling you that he will show up. Wait expectantly for him. And do this fast. For me, it is not a magic kit, just like you were saying, Ed. It’ not trying to get God to perform in some certain manner. It is about me getting in tune and in touch with my heavenly father, because I have been so distracted.
Ed: Yeah, because, Lisa, when I talk about prayer next week, I don’t pray to change God’s mind. I pray so that God will change my mind. And all about those wants that we have been talking about
Lisa: Right. And on a practical note, we have posted recipes on the website. And our children are doing the fast, although they are eating chicken and they are eating yogurt. But we are drinking the soy milk, the raw vegetables and fruits. And then I’ve cooked…, but we are eating fresh. Do the best that you can. If you travel and need to, you know, make some exceptions—the point is not the legalism of it. The point is the transformation of it and how you can see God work in your life and make you think consciously about what he’s expecting of you.
Ed: People ask us, “What is the Daniel diet.” Because that is what we are doing. We’re doing a partial fast. Basically it is fruits, vegetables and water and fruit juice.
Lisa: And oats, barely and brown rice. When I found that out, I was like, “Oh, honey, we are home free.” Because that is very generous. That’s not restrictive.
Ed: Are you sure that Daniel did not drink espresso in the morning? Surely he did. I tried to find that in my study of the Hebrew but I can’t find it.
Lisa: Someone did bring up to us that if there is a book in the Bible called He-brews that it should be allowed! I wanted to say that, in the bookstore, a lot of people have been asking about suggestions for cooking and meals. And there is a great book. I have not read it cover to cover. And believe me, when you go into certain cook books of this nature, you can find some “out there” things. And this one, to the best of our knowledge, seems to be the best. It is called “Living in the Raw.” It sounds weird, but it is all about fresh fruits and vegetables. There are some copies in the bookstore.
Ed: The author kind of looks like someone who lives in the raw.
Lisa: There skin looks very good and very healthy. You know Ed, I was sitting on the front row and your skin looks really good. I mean, I thought, your eyes and skin looked good! You are detoxing your body.
Ed: You know, I told Lisa, that the whites of her eyes are whiter.
Lisa: And that was random, because they were not looking bad, so I don’t know.
Ed: I don’t have as many bumps on my face as normal.
Lisa: But we, this week, a couple days into it, everyone was so sluggish. So we kept encouraging everyone to drink water because that is how you get the toxins out of your skin.
Ed: Water is your best friend. But this is great and if you have not joined into this fast, then we would suggest that this be the day that you begin. Go to lunch, go home and start the 24-hour liquid fast. Then, begin the Daniel fast. We have information at the kiosk and the ushers will be handing things out as you leave. Begin today.
Lisa: Right. And there is an announcement that will come, I am kind of preempting Pace, but there is an announcement on the 24th of January we will be spurring the horse to the barn, so to speak. Our praise team, you know we have so many voices and new faces, will be doing a live recording here on Wednesday, the 24th. You are all invited and it will be an outstanding time of worship and celebration. And for me, I am looking forward to that because I know that it will be a special time because of the fast. Pace will tell you more but, it is going to be a way for our church as a whole to end the fast together. I am excited!
Ed: Fasting is fun, and it is an adventure. Sometimes you have a low period, just like you said.
Lisa: You do have low periods. But just like I told you, I pray and journal and I asked God to transform my mind. I did a liquid fast yesterday. Just fruit juice and water until the evening and it was probably the best day that I have had yet. So, when you wake up with disappointment, God can totally change it to something different and he will.
Ed: What have you had today so far, as far as eating?
Lisa: Juice.
Ed: I have had soy milk and that cereal that you made with a banana on it. Then I had another bowl of the same cereal, and I found some raspberries and put that on it. Then I had an apple. I eat constantly.
Lisa: For lunch, we are having an Asian thing—brown rice and edamame, tofu and sprouts. It is good, I am telling you. I make that a lot.
Ed: Last night we had brown rice, black beans and guacamole from Anamia’s.
Lisa: Anamia’s makes table side guacamole that is fantastic. Don’t all call them at once or they may not be able to handle it. But they make great guacamole and we had that for dinner.
Ed: Let me have a prayer and we will continue the worship.