Fasting
The goal of fasting is to draw near to God.
It hits the reset button of our soul and renews us from the inside out.
Why Fasting?
Fasting enables us to celebrate the goodness and mercy of God. It prepares our hearts for all the good things God desires to bring into our lives. When deciding on a fast, we encourage you to seek God in prayer and follow what the Holy Spirit leads you to do. Keep reading below for types of fasting, what the Bible has to say about fasting, and further resources on the topic.
Types of Fasts
This type of fast involves removing certain elements from your diet. One example of a selective fast is the Daniel Fast, during which you remove meat, sweets, and bread from your diet and consume water and juice for fluids and fruits and vegetables for food.
This fast is sometimes called the “Jewish Fast” and involves abstaining from eating any type of food in the morning and afternoon. This can either correlate to specific times of the day, such as 6:00 am to 3:00 pm, or from sunup to sundown.
In this type of fast, you drink only liquids, typically water with light juices as an option.
This fast is a great option if you do not have much experience fasting food, have health issues that prevent you from fasting food, or if you wish to refocus certain areas of your life that are out of balance.
Matthew 9:14-15
One day the disciples of John the Baptist came to Jesus and asked him, “Why don’t your disciples fast like we do and the Pharisees do?” Jesus replied, “Do wedding guests mourn while celebrating with the groom? Of course not. But someday the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.
Nehemiah 9:1-3
On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and putting dust on their heads. Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the sins of their ancestors. They stood where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the Lord their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the Lord their God.
Matthew 6:16-18
When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
The timing of your fast is not as important as the strength of your focus on God as you fast.
We encourage fasting for 21 days each year in the month of January. This is part of our 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting season. You may also choose to fast at other times during the year for your own spiritual development. It’s very typical to fast a single meal, a whole day, or three days or more.