For many people, fasting means no food. At all. And the thought of doing that for 30 days — or even one day — is overwhelming.
Perhaps you have a health condition, or you’ve tried fasting before and failed to follow through for whatever reason. Maybe you’ve never even tried. Your mind has just decided, “I can’t fast.” So you don’t.
I’d like to challenge some of those ideas today, because there are times when fasting from earthly comforts can make all the difference, especially when God is the One calling you to that fast.
As we deny ourselves and purpose to seek the Lord, He brings our thoughts and purposes into alignment with His, and amazing things happen, either in that situation or in our own hearts, but most of the time in both.
Examples of Biblical Fasts:
- Intercession during times of crisis: When the Jews faced imminent genocide, Esther called her people to a fast from food and water for three days. They were spared. Esther 4.
- Purity, anointing: When Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah were required to serve a pagan king, they refused his “defiled” food, asking for only vegetables and water. God anointed them with strength, knowledge and wisdom, and Daniel with the ability to interpret dreams. Daniel 1.
- Preparing the way for others to know Christ: John ate locusts and honey. In the wilderness, he fasted from stylish or comfortable clothing, as well as a comfortable place to sleep. Many people were drawn to his cry for repentance and were baptized. Matthew 3:1-6
- Beginning of ministry: Jesus fasted from food 40 days alone with His Father in the wilderness before He began His ministry. He overcame Satan. Luke 4:1-13.
Those are only a few of the reasons for fasting and ways God called His people to do it. In each situation, He answered in God-sized ways. You can also see in these passages that there are many different ways to fast, according to how God is leading you.
Reasons for Fasting
In this snippet from Isaiah 58 below (You really want to read the whole chapter!), you can see some of God’s reasons for us to fast, and His response to our obedience:
“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
Isaiah 58:6-9 NIV
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and He will say: Here am I.“
Here are a few more biblical reasons for fasting:
- To draw near to God (This should always be the reason for every fast, even if other reasons are also prevalent.) – Luke 2:36-37
- To seek God’s will or guidance – Acts 13:1-3
- Repentance – Nehemiah 9, Joel 2:12
- To overcome the enemy in temptation or spiritual warfare – Matthew 4:1-11
- To intercede for those who are lost, hurting, sick or otherwise in need – 2 Samuel 12:16
- To ask for God’s intervention in a dangerous or difficult situation – Esther 4, Daniel 9
- To seek His leadership and anointing, especially in a new position of ministry – Acts 14:21-23
- To ask for protection – Ezra 8:21-23
- To mourn or join with those who are mourning – 2 Samuel 1:12, Mark 2:19-20
- To celebrate in remembrance of what God has done (holy festivals) – Zechariah 8:19
- To pray for freedom from strongholds or demonic oppression – Mark 9:17-29
What you don’t see on that list is to lose weight. You may have a different experience, but I have found that if I enter a spiritual fast with the desire to lose weight, losing weight doesn’t happen, no matter how little I eat. My reason for fasting must be to draw near to God and seek Him for the things He’s placed on my heart. Otherwise, He is likely to topple that idol for me. On the other hand, there have been many fasts He has called me to that, as I stepped out in obedience to the things He asked of me, losing weight did actually happen.
I’ll share with you below some of the fasts God has led me on in my journey with Him, and what those fasts felt like. But the main key I have found since He first began leading me into what has now become a lifestyle of fasting is to seek Him and be open for whatever He leads to do.
I have found that if I call myself to a fast, it’s extremely difficult to follow through on, but when the Lord calls me, the joy of obedience kicks in and any temptation to gratify my own selfish desires fades away in the intoxicating beauty of His felt presence and the excitement of drawing near.
Some Ways You Can Fast
There are many ways to fast, but here are a few ideas below to get your conversation started with the Lord about what He might be leading you to do this time. You can also read some of my own fasting adventures with the Lord not listed here.
WARNING: Before you embark on any fast, make sure you have your doctor’s approval, especially if you are pregnant or have known health complications. (Not eating, or eating very little, can make you light-headed, faint, cause real danger to your health or make you irritable. Isaiah 58:4.)
The Parallel fast: For those joining us at PrayerWall.pw website for 30 Days of Prayer for Global Awakening, we use the same dates as the Islamic fast of Ramadan. For 30 days each year, Muslims rise to eat breakfast before dawn and do not eat again until after sunset. They abstain from selfish pleasures, give to the poor and help those in need. As “holy” as that sounds, so much of the violence, terror and persecution of Christians worldwide is linked to Islamic extremism. For most Muslims, merely inquiring about Jesus can mean beatings, imprisonment or death. Because they are so cut off from the gospel, Christ often reveals Himself to them in miraculous encounters, dreams and visions, especially during Ramadan, the very month they have set aside to fast and seek a powerful encounter with God. As we pray for Muslims to know God’s love, why not lovingly engage in a fast that parallels theirs?
Fun Family* Fast for the Nations: (See warning* below.) This is particularly fun as you pray for each region of the world during the 30 Days of Prayer for Global Awakening. Fast as God leads in the daytime, and then for supper prepare a meal from one or more of the countries in that region. (We provide some suggestions in the Dinner and a Prayer section.) As you pray, use a globe or map, if you like, to lay hands on each country. You can also assign your children to do research on those countries during the day that they can share at the evening meal before you pray.
*WARNING: Fasting can be dangerous for children, so make sure they get the nutrients they need throughout the day. If they want to be involved in the fast, you can invite them to fast from sugar, digital devices, TV or something else that won’t harm their health.
Weekly Family* Fast for the Nations: (See warning above*) This is the same as the Fun Family Fast for the Nations, but it’s done once a week. For example, every Monday, choose a different country on the list of the 50 most difficult places to follow Christ. Have your children research what Christians go through in that country, how many unreached peoples there are, and special ways to pray for both Christians and the lost. Then fast throughout the day and cook a special meal from that country at night. You could also do this for certain regions of the world. For example, if Latin America is on your heart, you could pick a different country every week, then move on to another region of the world after that.
Liquid Fast: Most liquid fasts are not recommended for more than 1-3 days because they don’t provide the nutrients your body needs. But the way the Lord led me to do this for 3o days, especially while nursing my babies, was to grind up whatever vegetables and meat the family was eating that day, add broth to it, and make a soup out of it.
Daniel Fast: According to Daniel 1, this would be only water to drink and vegetables to eat. Please see the warning above.
Fasting 1-2 Meals: Only eating one or two meals a day, versus three or however many you normally would. For me, it helps to pick the hours I will not be eating so I don’t snack. For example, if I’m fasting from the evening meal, I might choose not to eat anything after 3 p.m. until breakfast the next morning.
Fast for the Needy: This would be the same as the Fasting 1-2 Meals above, but set aside the money you would normally spend on those meals to give to a hunger relief fund or to your church’s benevolence fund to help those in need.
Low Carb: This involves eating meat, vegetables and certain fats and oils, but no grains, sugars or other high-carb foods, such as potatoes, beans, certain fruits, etc. You can look up low carb, Keto, and Paleo diets online to research more. But again, the purpose of spiritual fasting is not to lose weight, but to draw near to God, so just check your motivation.
Traditional Fast: No food, just water, for 1-40 days. See warning.
Esther Fast: 3 days of no food or water (Esther 4:16). See warning.
Unplugged Fast: No internet, TV, social media, gaming, telephone, etc.
Other: What do you focus on most that steals your attention away from Christ? That might be the very thing you should fast from to draw near.
Preparing for Your Fast
Before you begin your fast, here are some things to consider:
- What is your reason for fasting? Ask the Lord.
- Which fast is God leading you to do? What do you need to buy or arrange for in order to do that? Ask Him.
- What time and place will you set aside for prayer? Do you need to get away for a few hours, an overnight or a few days to be alone with Him? Ask Him.
- Ask the Lord what He wants to teach you through His Word during this time. Is there a book of the Bible God wants you to read? Or a certain theme He wants you to look up in a concordance, so you can search what His Word has to say about that issue? (You might also want to look for worship music related to that theme, and prepare some playlists for your quiet times.)
- What other resources does the Lord want to use at this time to help you draw near to Him? Ask Him. If you want to tear down the barriers to oneness with Christ and others, and break free from anxiety and other strongholds, ask the Lord if He wants you to study Dare to Be a Mighty Warrior or Delight to Be a Woman of Wonder at MoreThanAConquerorBooks.com. Make sure to keep a journal on hand, so you can write down what God shows you. There are actually guided journals that go with those books at the More Than A Conqueror Books website.
My Fasting Journey
1. FASTING FOR THE UNREACHED
Our family has served the Lord several decades in a dark area of the world ranked among the most dangerous places for Christians. The unreached people group He led us to was quite resistant to the gospel when we first arrived. So we set aside special times of fasting each year and invited thousands of prayer warriors across the world to join. He built upon those prayers, often in quite miraculous ways, and many people were saved.
2. FASTING FOR MY OWN FREEDOM
My own heart needed a bit of work, as well. Painful experiences in my childhood had built within me a myriad of strongholds. The first one He set me free from had to do with a lifelong battle with dieting and then overeating. Food had become an idol for me, as had the scales. Through fasting, God taught me how to lay down those idols so that He became my one desire.
When I first began that journey, I wasn’t all that hungry for more of Him. What I really wanted was a panful of brownies! But I was hungry to hunger for Him, so I wrote on my hand, “I want You, Jesus.” Each time throughout the day, when I reached for “comfort” food I didn’t need, I saw that sentence, prayed it out loud and asked the Lord to satisfy me more than I thought that snack would. Then I dove into the Word or turned on worship music and danced or sang to Him. I pursued His felt presence, knowing He was the One I truly needed. By the end of the week, my heart had followed the decision I’d made with my mind and written on my hand. I was indeed all-out hungry for the Lord.
I would need that hunger in the months ahead, as He cleaned out stronghold after stronghold. Now, I can definitely say, the Bread of Life is way more satisfying than a brownie!
(For more information on strongholds and steps to freedom, see Dare to Be a Mighty Warrior and Delight to Be a Woman of Wonder, at MoreThanAConquerorBooks.com.)
3. FASTING TO TUNE IN TO GOD’S VOICE
Fasting was also one of the ways God trained me to recognize His voice. For about three months, He awakened me each morning with what He wanted me to fast from that day. I learned to tune my ear to Him first thing, so I could lean in for that day’s adventure in obedience. Isaiah 50:4.
I’ve found freedom and oneness with Christ a far greater adventure than whatever my own wants or thoughts might have been! In fact, when I purpose to listen to the Lord, and then step out in obedience, miraculous things happen. He releases gifts in me, opens up doors to share His love with others, and flows through me in powerful ways to say and do things I couldn’t on my own.
One day, about three months into that daily adventure of learning to recognize God’s voice, He awakened me with a new fast: words. He was calling me to say only what He was saying. As you can imagine, I’m still working on that one years later. But the closer I walk with Him, the easier it is to let His Spirit control my thoughts and words. 1 Corinthians 2:16, Philippians 4:7, John 5:19.
4. A LIFESTYLE OF FASTING
I have found that a lifestyle of surrendering to God, listening to His voice, walking out in His Word, and letting Him set me free from the mindsets that keep me from more of Him is the surest path to peace, joy and daily miracles. (For a free guide to knowing God’s voice, visit MoreThanAConquerorBooks.com.)
That leads me to a lifestyle of fasting, as well, which means I live with my heart wide open before the Lord. He can call me to whatever fast whenever He desires for as long as He wants. (Even as I write this, I am on a fast from evening meals, as I pray for Global Awakening.)
Because we have been living in a dark area of the world where few have heard of Christ and Christians are persecuted, the Lord called me to a very specific fast that I lived on constantly in that country, as we fought many spiritual battles, prayed for the lost, shared the Good News, trained leaders, and worked on Bible translation.
That fast was basically low carb, but He freed me to step away from it whenever we ate in a local’s home or traveled to another country. He also freed me to occasionally (about once a week) include a small portion of oats or a squirt of honey.
By this time, I’d been on enough fasts that I never craved any of the food I wasn’t eating. There was a certain God-given determination. Little did I know that we would soon have to flee that country due to a security breach. I’m so glad I listened to the Lord and didn’t put off His calling to fast. Those last few years we needed His special anointing to finish well and prepare local believers to carry on His work.
5. FASTING TO INTERCEDE FOR OTHERS
In the midst of that lifestyle fast I mentioned above, someone I love dearly faced a very targeted spiritual attack meant to take her life, and the Lord called me to another lifestyle fast on top of that one — not eating an evening meal. So, every day, after my low carb lunch, I didn’t eat again until breakfast. That went on for about a year, as I interceded and sought God’s instructions for how to help her. He moved in mighty ways, and now she is free!
Not long after He broke those chains, another person dear to my heart faced a different, but just as dangerous targeted spiritual attack. By this time, although we had fled the country where we had been living and I was no longer on the low carb fast, the Lord called me to an intermittent fast, only eating between certain hours of the day (around 10 a.m.-2 p.m.). I stayed on that fast, interceding and seeking the Lord for His instructions in how to counsel and help this person to freedom, for more than a year. And again, God set the would-be captive free!
Praise God! I love how His heart is, that He is Almighty and can do absolutely anything. He doesn’t need us; He can do anything and everything He wants without us. But in His infinite love and His grand design for relationship, He invites us to partner with Him in this great work He is doing in the hearts of people we love and others all throughout the world.
Let’s join Him! Let’s fast as He leads, and pray He will set every heart free from the things that hold us back from more of Him.
For deep devotional Bible studies and other books for all ages on drawing near to Christ and removing the barriers to oneness with Him and others, visit MoreThanAConquerorBooks.com:
Any proceeds this author receives from the sale of the deep devotional Bible studies and other MoreThanAConquerorBooks.com books mentioned in this post go to shining Christ’s light in the darkness and seeing the nations come to Him.
Thank you for your support! If you have any questions or want to help with this ministry, please contact Mikaela.
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