Let’s not underestimate fasting.

The Pharisees and scribes said to Jesus, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, and yours eat and drink.” the days when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and in those days shall they fast. And he spake a parable unto them, saying, No man shall tear a patch of a new garment from it, nor sew it on his old garment; And no man poured new wine into old mosses, because the new wine will burst the skins,the wine will pour out, and the skins will be ruined. But new wine needs to be poured into fresh wineskins. And no wants  new  wine after  drinking  old wine. The old is better he  say.

Let us ask ourselves whether we have understood the true meaning of fasting? But how can renouncing food become a manifestation of Christian love? The answer to this question, and other than understanding the importance of fasting, fasting practice, fasting, is explained by Jesus with the question: “Can he ask the wedding guests to fast …? “(Luke 5:34). Jesus talks about filling old jars with new wine. New wine is the Holy Spirit, whom he wants to pour out on us out of love to heal, strengthen, and renew us. But Jesus will not force himself on us. He wants us to they turned to him and invited him over, and that means being a new vessel, waiting for us to put away all the “old” that separates us from him so that we can accept the “new.”

But it has a catch. If we want to experience Jesus’ presence, we must change. We must give up the bad habits that keep us away from him. Even so, we are never sure if we can make the necessary change ourselves. However, the good news, the Gospel, says that Jesus will not only help us on this path but will accept our little efforts and bless them a hundredfold. Sometimes they change us without us realizing it; it will make a personality out of us as a grinder grinds a diamond to shine and become a real gem. Jesus wants to help us, but he is waiting for the moment when we turn to him. He expects at least a small effort on our part so that the adoption of new wine does not tear old containers. Our decision to devote ourselves to prayer for at least fifteen minutes a day can be a great start. Let us give God a moment of time, and He will bless, heal, and lift us up because we have given up something. Let us ask Jesus today to show us what we can do to get closer to him. And then let’s take that little step and ask him to act.

An old Jewish story tells of Abraham, sitting in front of his tent one evening and saw an older man coming to him tired and dirty from the road. Abraham jumped up, went out to meet him, and invited him over. He washed his legs and then brought food and drink. The older man immediately began to eat without praying. So Abraham asked, “Will you not pray to the Lord?” The old man replied, “I only worship fire, no other gods!” Abraham became angry and threw the older man out into the cold and dark night. At night God spoke to his friend Abraham and asked where the stranger was. Abraham replied, “I threw him out because he did not want to pay homage to you.” But God reproachfully said to him, “I have been with this man for over eighty years.
People often have trouble accepting other people’s lifestyle differences, especially on religious issues.

We can find something similar in the remorse of the Pharisees, which they addressed to Jesus Christ: “Why do John’s disciples and disciples of the Pharisees fast, and your disciples fast not” (Luke 5:33.