"Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?"

Here's what I see in this passage. Every single thing God describes about a true fast is about releasing, giving, and extending. Loosing bonds. Sharing bread. Covering the naked. Welcoming the homeless. The fast God honors is the one that forms you into a giver rather than a grasper.

So what I'm seeing is this. Fasting trains you to live with open hands. When you fast to gain, you clutch. You hold tight. You say, "God, I gave something up, now You owe me something back." But that is just religious commerce. That is spiritual transaction. That is being a money changer whose tables are about to get flipped.

Now watch this. When you fast to become, you practice release. You train your hands to open. You discipline your heart away from grasping and toward giving. And an open hand is the posture of the kingdom.

Can I just ask you a question right now? Are your hands clenched or open?

A grasper asks how long until I can eat again. A giver asks who can I bless while I am going without. A grasper counts the days until the fast is over. A giver counts the opportunities while the fast is happening. A grasper fasts and looks for those he can benefit from. A giver fasts and looks for the widow, the orphan, the one who has nothing.

Here's what I need you to know. This is incredible kingdom math that does not make sense to the world. You pour out and God fills up. You empty yourself and God satisfies you. You give away and God makes you a spring whose waters do not fail. The world says hoard to have enough. The kingdom says release to receive abundance.

In Leviticus 25, God gave Israel the Year of Jubilee. Every debt was forgiven. Slaves were set free. Fields were returned. Those who could not sustain themselves were helped by their neighbors. Why? Because God said, "You are here because I freed you. You eat because I feed you. You are secure because I protect you. Everything you have is because of me."

Jubilee was grace received. The true fast was supposed to be grace extended. But Israel received grace and refused to extend it. They enjoyed freedom and kept others in bondage. They ate from God's hand and let their neighbor starve.

So the fast that forms is not just about what you give up. It is about what you give away. It is denying yourself what you possess in order to give others what they do not deserve.

Tomorrow we will see how this kind of living actually reflects the character of Christ Himself.

Find one practical way today to give something away. It could be your time, your money, your attention, or your help. Practice the posture of open hands by actually opening them.