Elder Sofian: Live Simply
Learn to eat simply, to have only what is necessary for your survival. Excess of anything is a sin; luxury which you do not need is a sin.
Life does not require too much understanding. What does it require: to love others in a Christian spirit, putting others’ interests above our own, to pray to God with all of our heart, to work with love. Doing these things, we realize that we understand very much.
(Fr. Sofian’s Journal)
In the first place, fasting means continuous moderation, brothers and sisters in Christ—moderation. I, for example, learned from a horse how to fast from drinking [water]. I filled the bucket multiple times and I put his head in the bucket, asking him to drink, and he did not want to drink even a bit more. That is, saturation beyond measure is a sin. Learn to eat simply, to have only what is necessary for your survival. Excess of anything is a sin; luxury which you do not need is a sin. That is, your satiation should not surpass the appropriate measure. This is what Jesus wants to tell us.
No one should go hungry for your satiation. I eat and gorge myself, but another person starves. We must always think of others, because if we all pray “Our Father,” then we consider all people our brothers, each person loving and caring for his brother with the care of a father for each of his family members. The Savior Christ dwells on this exaggerated care for our existence in the Gospels. We need very few things for our earthly existence. And we need moderation in our life; this was the wisdom of the ancients: to get up from the table a little hungry so that there is room for you to eat more.
Saint Eutymios the Great ate every day, but he ate very little. He did not fast like Saint Macarius, but he had the same deep humility. He said this: “If you fast a lot, especially without a blessing, then the self-righteous Pharisee whom God despises can hide within you, and pride will swallow your reward.” That is, you must go on the middle road in all things. You must have this discernment at all times. For example, don’t give everything to the poor if your children cry out of hunger, but don’t overstuff them of course. Or, you fast until you are ready to die of hunger, but you judge the other person who does not fast. This is very mistaken. Fasting is very good, but only if it is humble, otherwise you can die of hunger, for no reason. The devil does not eat at all, but he is the devil because he does not have humility. Humility is greater than fasting.
(Excerpt from a Homily on Fasting)
this is so insanely helpful. Fasting/eating can be so confusing when it gets to extremes: if I just skip multiple meals a day or make my (future) kids go without lunch so they can provide lunch to someone in need, that seems "especially holy and generous" but it is probably not a healthy sacrifice because you are neglecting yourself or your own children to feed others. "Fasting is very good, but only if it is humble; otherwise you can die of hunger for no reason."