x

x

http://www.wordandspirit.co.uk/blog/i... ( )

I've never read a book on fasting before, so I guess I don't have anything to compare this with. Yet, it seems to me that Piper has done a wonderful job with this book. I can testify that this book has given me an increased interest in the spiritual discipline of fasting.

Piper does a wonderful job of communicating basic truths about fasting and also instilling in readers a hunger for God. This book is very emotional, and yet also provides a very solid Biblical basis for what it communicates. Of particular significance is the fact that the book doesn't present fasting not as a way to sway God, or as a mere Old Covenant ceremony, or as an "ordinace" to be routinely followed, but rather as a heartfelt expression of our hunger for God. He presents it as a hunger which we are willing to pursue to such a degree that we occasionally will set aside the things that "fill" us, whether they be food or some other gift from God. The book also separates Christian fasting from mere ascetism and also handles a number of the common objections to the practice of fasting.

Also, in the Appendix there is an index of quotes on fasting from Christain leaders ranging form Ignatius to modern day people. What a nice touch!

I suppose that this book will be the standard by which I evaluate other books on fasting that I may read in the future. ( )

A good one to read during Lent. Really brought me up short in a few places. ( )