Fast Talk - What I Have So Far

I'm giving a talk on Fasting next week in Sacrament Meeting, and the Bishop asked me to focus on gaining strength and power through fasting. Here's what I've got so far.

Fasting is, at the very least, a will-power exercise. The Gospel Principles manual, Chapter 25, tells us:

Fasting Teaches Self-Control
Fasting helps us gain strength of character. When we fast properly, we will learn to control our appetites and passions. We are a little stronger by having proved to ourselves that we have self-control. If we teach our children to fast, they will develop the spiritual strength to overcome greater temptations later in their lives.

And, I might add, if we teach ourselves to fast, we will develop the strength to overcome greater temptations.

Even if you don't fast with a purpose, even if you don't pray at all at the beginning, middle, or end of your fast, even if you're just "going hungry" (as many prophets have said fasting without praying is), you are still going hungry, and you are choosing to go hungry. This is not an easy choice to make. Our bodies like food and other sources of physical pleasure. It takes will-power to resist the urge to eat, or to sleep in, or to satisfy our desire for instant gratification. When we fast, we prove to ourselves that our mind is stronger than our body, and our minds become stronger through the exercise. That strength of will-power can help us to resist the temptation to eat and other temptations that we all face in life. We can gain strength and power from a full, 24-hour fast, even if all we do is not eat anything.
But a proper fast is even better. A proper fast includes prayer. Prayer draws our hearts nearer to God, and helps us to feel an increased measure of His Spirit. The Holy Spirit that comes into our hearts through prayer and fasting can help us recognize temptation and resist it. When we fast, we gain the Spirit more abundantly, and He increases our strength and power to resist temptation.

But that can be said for any spiritual event. When we fast, we usually pray for some blessing for ourselves or others. We show God that we really want the blessing that we're asking for, because we want it so badly that we're willing to go hungry for it. I also found this quote about that in a General Conference address.

When we fast, brethren and sisters, we feel hunger. And for a short time, we literally put ourselves in the position of the hungry and the needy. As we do so, we have greater understanding of the deprivations they might feel.
Joseph B. Wirthlin, Law of the Fast, April 2001

This will lead nicely into the principle of giving Fast Offerings, which I'll elaborate on more when I have time. Right now, I need to hurry up and get ready for church.