Sunday, June 7, 2015

Two Great Blessings for Fasting

Last Thursday night, at an institute class focussing on the teachings of the living prophets, we read several passages from President Henry B. Eyring's talk, "Is Not This the Fast That I Have Chosen?" Each student was asked to select a sentence or two from this talk or another one we were reading that evening, to share with the group. The sentence I selected from that talk was "He [who fasts] will have the spiritual blessing of power to receive inspiration and greater capacity to resist temptation." In essence, fasting strengthens our connection to God.

I'm not sure exactly what it is about fasting that brings about this effect. Perhaps it's the prayer, the sacrifice, the practice in self-control, or any combination of those things. Whatever it is, fasting helps us connect more deeply to God and our Savior, allowing us to draw on some of their wisdom and strength. This is a miraculous ability and a remarkable privilege. Regardless of the other good that fasting does, fasting once a month would be worth it, just for how it helps us draw upon the strength of the Lord. In our day, we need that strength. We need the strength to resist temptation and the wisdom to avoid it. We need the wisdom to know what to do and the strength of will to do it. In our daily lives, we need God's help. And God has promised that we can get it just by exercising a little bit of self-control.

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