Look Good When Fasting

[S] Matthew 6:17 --
17  "But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face  18  so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

[O] Fasting was (and still is) a way to clear the mind to focus more on what God is speaking.  So this is an effort to control our physical body in order to draw closer to God.  And the purpose of drawing closer to God is to follow His ways better.  However, in this process it is so easy to shift the focus to the people around more than God so it can become an act to look good to others which is far from the original intention.  Verse 17 teaches how I should set my circumstance properly in the first place in order not to get set myself up to derail from my original intentions of drawing closer to God.

[A] All the actions I decide to follow to draw closer to Him have loopholes for me to shift my focus away from God to others around me.  So, as a part of my plan to "do" His will, I should also carefully put in place the safety measures for me to not detail my path away from God.  Just like how I should look "good" when I fast (and not boast about how weak I am without food), I should up front empty my own ambitions for taking part in His ministry so I will be putting in my efforts just for His Kingdom's sake and no one else.

[P] Dear Father, please preserve my heart's purity to serve You and You alone in all that I do for You.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.