Thursday
July 29, 2010
North and Shatford halls fast in February
According to Lauren Melser (fr), “We try so hard to impress somebody but our lives are for God and God will love us for who we are … We spend so much time focusing on ourselves instead of focusing on God.” This is why the young women of Shatford and North residence halls on campus are taking the concept of fasting to their own personal levels. They have accustomed fasting to this generation.
North Hall is taking each week in February and fasting something different. For the first week of February, the young women lived by the verses 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, which talk about focusing on others rather than yourself. During this week they paid close attention to humbling themselves and staying away from boastful or prideful actions. The second week, he young women were encouraged to fast from something that took up a large amount of their time on a daily basis.
According to freshman Emily Larson (fr), “For the personal fast, girls fasted from sweets and snacking. Texting and Facebook were big ones for a lot of girls too. Facebook was the hardest one.”
For the third week of February, the young women of North Hall took part in an image fast. Young women fasted from certain types of clothes or makeup. Freshmen from Shatford also took part in an image fast for the month of February. With this particular fast, each week the intensity of the fast heightened. Young women were encouraged not to wear eye makeup for the first week and then they were encouraged not to wear any makeup at all on their faces for the following weeks.
“I think that especially for girls nowadays everyone is so focused on their image and the way they look. The amount of time we spend getting ready in the morning is ridiculous. It’s a part of our generation and what our generation has developed into,” Larson said. “Fasting from it helps us emphasize that our outer beauty is the same as our inner beauty and others will see you how God sees you.”
The fast was available for any girl to participate in. A few young women from other halls around campus also participated after they heard what their friends were doing. The majority of young women that were hesitant to participate found comfort in having their entire hall of girls to lean on.
“There is more accountability and support than when you’re fasting individually,” Larson said. “We would remind each other, ‘Hey it’s just Facebook or it’s just makeup, it’s not a big deal,’ you can all do it together, which is rewarding when you can celebrate at the end of it together.”
On the last day of the image fast in North Hall, all mirrors will be covered. Following this, they will participate in a 36-hour famine to end their February fast.
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