Fasting From Sugar, Feasting On God's Wordনমুনা

Day Two

Crowding the Sugar Out

Scripture: John 15:5

Diet experts encourage us to “crowd out sugar” by eating plenty of delicious and nutritious foods. I love that idea and have used the same technique in my own eating habits. But I want more than physical detox; I want spiritual transformation. I want to “crowd out sugar” by intentionally turning to the Lord and consuming His living Word instead. 

Are you a binge eater? A secret eater? An emotional eater? Tell the Lord all the reasons why you can’t resist food and let Him show you that with Him it’s possible (Matthew 19:26). 

I’ve discovered that as I stop cramming food and other fillers into the hurts and holes of my life, the power of Christ fills each empty place with His peace. He makes me whole in a way that food never can.

We suffer spiritually each time we reach for a sugar high rather than the Most High. Our sugar fixation stops us from fixing our eyes on Jesus, and hungering for sweet treats gets in the way of our hunger and thirst for Him.

If you’re like me, you’ve tried to muscle through and grab hold of self-control—and all the other fruits of God’s Spirit—on your own, but it doesn’t work that way. If you want Christ’s peace, love, joy, and gentleness, and you’re desperate for His self-control, turn to Him. Abide with Him. “Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5, nlt). 

The more we ingest of Christ—through His Word, through spiritual community, through prayer—the less hungry we will be for the things we once craved. We can’t force His fruit to grow in our lives. It grows when we abide in Him. This is how we crowd the sugar out.

Dear Lord, I long to long for You. You alone can satisfy my thirsty soul and fill my hungry heart. Lord, I’m asking You to help me with Your Spirit—help me to hunger and thirst for Your righteousness more than anything else. In Jesus’s name I pray, Amen.