Go starving

[enoob57]

15 minutes ago, Vine Abider said:

Amen!  And there is, of course, something of a balance in various verses like: "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;"  "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;"  "His mercy extends to those who fear Him;"  "Live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear."  (Prov 9:10, Phil 2:12, Luke 1:50, 1 Pet 1:17)

But I'm inclined to think that fear is more about the beginning of our relationship with Him, however the final intention is perfect love.

Yes, I would agree with your thoughts on this... as we learn what sin truly is 'a self centered desiring of the pleasure over all else' and the fruit from that .... we begin to understand why God would never allow it into Himselves and in this place our love begins to blossom and bear fruit in Him... It is one thing to obey blindly by fear of recompense it is another out of agreement and true desire...

[Luther]

On 11/30/2024 at 5:40 PM, BornAgain490 said:

Without water you'll be dead in less than a week.

By day two, your dehydration will cause sever headaches and blurred vision. By the third day, add severe muscle cramps and wild hallucinations to the other effects. If you're still alive at day four, every body part will be extremely painful from dehydration and you won't have any strength to open your eyes.  If you're still alive at day five, you'll be comatose. By day six, if you're not dead, you are just a moment from death. 

Now I would change it up a bit. I would plan a week in the woods by myself  (preferably near Mt Katahdin M.E.) Pack lots of munchies and plenty of water. And a Bible. No phone. Seriously, No phone. 

[other one]

On 11/30/2024 at 4:29 PM, slave said:

Yes, go starving. Go to a desert, or go to a forest.

And the only thing you take with you is the Bible. Stay 1 year there.

Read and obey the Bible and pray to God every day.

With no internet, with no smartphone, with no laptop.

Just you, the Bible and God.

God willing, you will get food somehow.

After 1 year your spiritual wisdom will be high.

God willing, I will do this soon. I've been planning this for a long time.

If I die, I praise God. If I survive, I praise God.

Deuteronomy 8:1-6

Have a nice trip.

[LaMonte]

“Some want to live within the sound
Of church or chapel bell;
I want to run a rescue shop,
Within a yard of hell.”

Edited December 2, 2024 by LaMonte

[ayin jade]

I am all for spending time apart from media and phone and having time focusing on the Lord, on study of the bible. 

But I cannot recommend going into the desert without preparation ... that is carrying water. 

I live in the hot desert of the southwest. I have lost friends to the heat and lack of water. It is far too easy to get seriously ill if not fatally ill from dehydration and heat. That is even when you know how to live in the desert.

[Gracejj]

As a Christ follower. We really don't have to go to forest or starve to learn humility or spiritual growth. You just need to exist in this world and choose Jesus every day, really! that's all you need! Jesus said there will be troubles anyway if we are followers of Him. Because the world hated Him so it most likely would hate us too and there comes the "struggle". We need to be alone with Jesus thats all we need. Every day there will be many opportunity to deny our flesh, humble ourselves, obey God, resist the devil, persevere and eventually Spiritual growth. 

My two cents

[Marathoner]

Neither starving nor isolation in the wilderness brings us "closer" to the Lord. Those experiences don't impart greater spiritual understanding; surely not when both (or either one) are pursued by the ascetic. As others have pointed out, this is typical of pagan belief systems such as Gnosticism. 

I traveled to a remote wilderness to help someone else, not myself. I have starved on more than one occasion, though this wasn't done intentionally by any means. I starved because I didn't have food to eat (or I couldn't keep food down because of illness). I wasn't brought any "closer" to the Lord than I already was on account of those experiences, but then I'm confident that the reader won't be deceived by the asceticism of the OP. Asceticism accomplishes nothing worthwhile. 

Edited December 2, 2024 by Marathoner

[Vine Abider]

On 11/30/2024 at 3:29 PM, slave said:

Yes, go starving. Go to a desert, or go to a forest.

And the only thing you take with you is the Bible. Stay 1 year there.

Read and obey the Bible and pray to God every day.

With no internet, with no smartphone, with no laptop.

Just you, the Bible and God.

God willing, you will get food somehow.

After 1 year your spiritual wisdom will be high.

God willing, I will do this soon. I've been planning this for a long time.

If I die, I praise God. If I survive, I praise God.

Deuteronomy 8:1-6

The one big issue I see with doing this is that God's purpose is with the ekklesia, His called-out gathering.  And that's because He lives in His body.  This is the way He designed it, and we are attached, by one Spirit, with other members of His one body.

So if a member gets detached from the body, what happens?  It dies.

And upon returning from this year long sabbatical, I suspect a person might be such a "spiritual giant," filled with so much "high godly wisdom" (at least in their own mind), that probably no other member of the body would have room to live in the same space with that one's giant, puffed-up head.

No, His purpose is with bringing "many sons to glory," not just one.  And in that way, many of those sharp edges are constantly get ground down, little by little . . .

[1to3]

Being alone with no other human help and in isolation is not easy.  The situation can sure be a test of faith. Most importantly its how we handle that test of faith when placed willingly or unwillingly in such conditions.

[1to3]

The word ascetic was brought up in this post and was refereed to being gnostic.

Gnosticism goes contrary to Gods Word. Grnostic worship Lucifer as god.

 

It it fair to place and pair the word ascetic only with gnosticism?

 

Meaning of the word ascetic: adjective,

characterized by or suggesting the practice of severe self-discipline and abstention from all forms of indulgence, typically for religious reasons.

"an ascetic life of prayer, fasting, and manual labor"

 

Can a christian lead an ascetic life?

 

Yes, a Christian can lead an ascetic life, which is a way of life that involves self-denial for a spiritual purpose. Asceticism has been a part of Christianity since its beginning, and is prominent in Christian monastic settings.

 

It means denying yourself physical pleasures and conveniences even when you don't need to. Christians do not practice asceticism because we see physical goods as evil. On the contrary, asceticism guards against valuing the goods of Creation so much that we disdain the Creator.

 

Practitioners abandon sensual pleasures and lead an abstinent lifestyle, in the pursuit of redemption, salvation, and/or spirituality. Many ascetics believe the action of purifying the body helps to purify the soul, and that in doing so, they will obtain a greater connection with the Divine or find inner peace.

 

Why did
Christ Jesus fast?

Why did Christ Jesus deny himself?

 

What examples did Christ Jesus teach us to follow and obey?

 

Why does the Word of God teach and as did Christ Jesus teach such need fasting and prayer  for the evil to come out?