Does fasting have any real value? How can an empty stomach be of any advantage to you?

Fasting is an ancient practice that has enormous benefits but is often misunderstood. Shrouded in mystery, it has even been mistaken for dieting. In reality, fasting is so much more than depriving oneself of a few meals.

Joey Bonifacio’s The Mystery of the Empty Stomach will help you discover, understand, appreciate, benefit from, and enjoy this ancient practice. This little book discusses fasting in short, easily digestible chapters. Among them are:

• From Duty to Delight
• From Deprivation to Desire
• From Desperation to Devotion
• From Diet to Deposit

A few of the highlights from The Mystery of the Empty Stomach include:

• “Fasting is associated with desperate situations. Through the centuries, people fasted mostly when they found themselves in tight spots. Jesus, on the other hand, was espousing a new and higher motivation to fast – not one borne of desperation, but out of devotion.”
•  “We fast not to twist God’s arm so he will pay attention to us. We already have his undivided attention. We don’t fast in order to make ourselves worthy of his acceptance. We already have his unconditional love.”
•  “We fast not so he will hear us, but for us to hear him.”
•  “The Pharisees’ idea of fasting was to deprive the flesh in order to strengthen the spirit. They were focusing on the wrong thing. Jesus was telling them that fasting was not about depriving yourself. Rather, its about desiring the Bridegroom.”

As we start our Mid-year Prayer and Fasting, we recommend you prepare by picking up and reading a copy of The Mystery of the Empty Stomach by Joey Bonifacio, available at Life by the Book bookstores (including the branch at the Every Nation Building) and selected National Bookstore and House of Praise outlets.