A TCU Sticker Directly Above My Head
The week leading up to starting this website I fasted. Fasting is a spiritual discipline used by many people throughout the Bible as a way of growing closer to God, strengthening self-control, and appealing to God for the needs of others and oneself. During this time of fasting, God began to lay a prayer on my heart, which I have prayed with such repetition, the words are as the heart of this blog itself:
“Lord, please bless those you lead to read the words you lead me to write.”
So a lesson God showed me through this time of going without food is that this blog, much like our love, can be for ourselves, but is best when it is for Him and others. (see Matt. 7:12, 22:36-40) I didn’t know how long my fast was going to last, but it has since drawn to an end and this blog has since begun.
Appropriately, God did allow something to happen on day one that I feel led to share, and I hope this story blesses you, my dear reader. Oh, and you do need to know that in my classroom above my desk on my ceiling there is a TCU sticker directly above my head. It’ll make sense why I told you this in a minute. Enjoy!
Just a Random Question
During my 8th period, a fun and more relaxed class that keeps my wit on its toes, God decided to pop in and give me an encouraging and very unexpected wink. I had made it through most of my first full day of fasting since deciding to begin the night before at re:generation. After getting the kids started on brainstorming and writing their essays, I was typing on my computer when mid key stroke the following dialogue ensued:
Student: Mr. Fletcher, how do you spell the word “fast?”
Mr. Fletcher (pausing and making a face like Brittney here): You mean like “running” fast?
Student: No, like when you don’t eat.
Mr. Fletcher (greatly bewildered): The normal way: f-a-s-t.
(Mr. Fletcher then looks curiously over at the student’s desk to see what essay he’s working on. No student has ever asked him how to spell this word, and he would never imagine it would happen while he was actually fasting).
Mr. Fletcher (after his pause while thinking): Are you using an example in your essay of somebody in a movie who fasts or something?
Student (almost interrupts first question with second question and points towards sticker on ceiling): No, just a random question, OH, what’s that?
Total God Thing
This my friends, is a total God thing, a God Wink, where God pops up in a mysterious, fun and playful way. It wasn’t the first time he’s done this for me and it won’t be the last in my life, or yours.
Now back to the fasting portion of this story. You see, as I felt led to fast the night before, I realized it was about time I gave my heart another tattoo (Psalm 119:11), finally one on fasting. Of the many in scripture, this one said by our Lord I found to be most appropriate:
“But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father in secret. Then your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” ~ Matthew 6:17-18
When you fast, you don’t really stop thinking about your fast, or God, so you pray to Him a lot more; that’s kind of the point. You also don’t go around announcing it for all to know (see the previous verse of Matt 6:16). Only my wife knew for practicality’s sake on how much dinner to make. I wasn’t announcing it to the world, let alone to my students, so what in the wide world of sports led this boy to ask me such a question?
Again: total God thing. If we find ourselves as Saint Thomas, let’s take a moment and look at this logically:
- At no other point in my time teaching can I recall a student asking me how to spell “fast” or any other relatively simple four letter word, although given that I teach ninth graders, I’m sure that there are plenty of other four letter words they would get a hoot out of hearing me spell.
- He’s a bright boy.
- The timing of him asking me to spell this word, “fast,” given that I just begun a fast regarding a very important event I am beginning to pursue in my life is far beyond mere coincidence.
- It was the first time I had fasted in a while, possibly since the beginning of the year.
- He himself said it was random. Homie even said it had nothing to do with his essay.
When it comes down to it, the most logical answer, for a believer, is that God did encourage that boy to ask me that question, as a means to encourage me in this endeavor of writing a blog, fasting for it and most especially for you reading these words. If you feel these words bless you, God was successful in what He did.
This also shows how God is playful, and loving, like how my Granddaddy used to roll. Read this very important verse God led Mark to end his gospel with:
“And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.” ~ Mark 16:20
“By accompanying signs.” What a God we worship! That’s the last verse of the Gospel of Mark, a place many people are bound to look. God wants us to be aware of the mysterious and wonderful nature of his character, and from it to have peace.
A Truth You can Set Your Watch to
I hope that we see from this story and lesson, that we worship a mysterious, mighty, wonderful, and loving God who winks at us in mysterious, mighty, wonderful, and loving ways. He will let us know this along the journey of our life. “Commit your ways to the Lord; trust in Him, and He will act,” Psalm 37:5 says. He doesn’t leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5), so do not dismiss things that appear random, odd, but are possibly the work of a mysterious and playful God in our lives. God uses us, to speak into each others’ lives and we (you, Him and I), find joy in this. God’s love is ridiculously well-timed and that’s a truth you can set your watch to.
Lord, thank You for the unique, mysterious, wonderful, and seemingly random ways you speak into our lives. We love you. Please speak mysteriously into our lives, all of our days, so we may have stories to tell others of a wonderful God, whose majesty is as great as his love for us. A Father, who is playful, and kind, and altogether wonderful, You are. Thank you for the one reading this blog, for that boy you led to ask me that question so I might have a story to share and thank You more especially for Your Son and His finished work on the cross. It is in His Name, by the power of the Holy Spirit we pray, amen.
~ There are many wonderful resources on the topic, but for a more in depth yet concise discussion on the spiritual discipline of fasting, see this blog post by my Campus Pastor, Jonathan Pokluda.
~ For a fun book on God Winks, check out When God Winks at You by Squire Rushnell wherever books are sold.
