Why I believe that beginning a new year with a fast is beneficial for you. Fasting brings you closer to God. Fasting makes you more sensitive to God’s voice and helps break bad habits or even addictions. Fasting also shows us our weakness and allows us to rely on God’s strength.
“When you fast and pray — two words that go hand-in-hand in scripture — you pursue God in your life and open yourself up to experiencing a renewed dependence on God.” Dr. Axe
What is fasting? FASTING is the willing abstinence or reduction from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time.
In this article I am going to present some Biblical examples and reasons for fasting as well as what was done during a fast. The information I am sharing is not meant to be legalistic, but it is meant to be useful for those who desire to fast with a solid foundation of the word of God as a guide.
Lets begin by reading this first passage of Scripture:
Nehemiah 9:1-3 Good News Translation (GNT) -The People Confess Their Sins1-2) On the twenty-fourth day of the same month the people of Israel gathered to fast in order to show sorrow for their sins. They had already separated themselves from all foreigners. They wore sackcloth and put dust on their heads as signs of grief. Then they stood and began to confess the sins that they and their ancestors had committed. 3) For about three hours the Law of the Lord their God was read to them, and for the next three hours they confessed their sins and worshiped the Lord their God.
From that text alone we can derive the following:
1) The people came together in a time of corporate fasting!
2) They listened to or read the word of God during the time of fasting.
3) They confessed their sins during the time of fasting.
4) They worshiped the Lord during the time of fasting.
If your church has called a fast, know that it is scriptural for people to fast corporately as well as individually.
Worship is an important component that should be incorporated during a period of fasting, so let’s look at it closer.
John 4:24 King James Version (KJV) says, God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
WORSHIP means to adore; to pay divine honors to; to reverence with supreme respect and veneration.
Acts 13:2 (NIV) says while they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”
Luke 2:36-37 (NIV) says there was also a prophet, Anna, the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, 37 and then was a widow until she was eighty-four.[a] She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.
You can see from the above passages that worship was often included during a time of fasting. One of things I do when I enter into a time of personal worship is to listen to worship music that helps me focus my heart on the Lord. Another thing I do is read passages from the Book of Psalms that focus on worship. I encourage you to do the same. Worship is a way to take your mind off of yourself and put your attention to the Lord.
Fasting is also a way to humble ourselves before the Lord: Let’s look at Psalm 35:13 New International Version (NIV) which says, Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth and humbled myself with fasting.
2 Chronicles 7:14 New International Version (NIV) says if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
Humbling ourselves before the Lord will bring deliverance into our lives! Humbling ourselves before the Lord will activate His grace, mercy and forgiveness in our lives! I need those things.
When God sees us humble ourselves before Him through prayer and fasting He begins to speak to us. We begin to hear his voice more clearly! I need to hear God in this new year more clearly how about you?
How many of you are willing to be honest, sometimes we allow pride to rise up within us; pride hardens our hearts. Sometimes we become self-reliant and we stop seeking God. Perhaps we are not walking uprightly before God and we are not doing what we know we should be doing as Christians.
The BIBLE says God resists the proud. Prayer, fasting, worship, and confession of sins are how we humble ourselves before the Lord. (Not people)
Joel 2:12 (NIV) says, “Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.”
2 Chronicles 32:26 (KJV) says, Notwithstanding Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the Lord came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah.
Follow Hezekiah’s example and humble yourself of the pride. The benefit of humbling yourself before the Lord is that it will cause him to help you and to lift you.
Proverbs 3:34 Living Bible (TLB) says, The Lord mocks at mockers, but helps the humble.
James 4:10 King James Version (KJV) Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
As a Christian Jesus is always our greatest examples in all things and not only did Jesus himself fast, but he also taught about fasting.
He fasted before he began His earthly ministry. Matthew 4:1-3 (NIV) says, Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted[a] by the devil. 2) After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3) The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
Matthew 6:17-18 (NIV) says, 17) But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18) 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.
Some additional New Testament examples of reveals that prayer and fasting precedes committing yourself to God for a work or an assignment.
Acts 14:23 (NIV) says, Paul and Barnabas appointed elders[a] for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust.
The final thing I want to touch on briefly are the types of fasts.
*****There are several types of fasts, which include:
Standard Fast (water only)
Absolute Fast (no water or food)
Partial Fast (restrict certain food and drink categories)
The length of your fast is up to you.
Fast 1 day , Fast 3 days, Fast 7 days, Fast 21 days, Fast 40 days
The Daniel Fast is specifically referenced in the Bible in two sections of the Book of Daniel: Daniel 1:12, which states, “Please test your servants for ten days, and let them give us vegetables [pulses] to eat and water to drink.” … Daniel 10: 2-3, which says, “In those days I, Daniel, was mourning three full weeks.
I believe you now have a solid foundation and understanding of the purpose and benefits of a going on Biblical Fast. I pray that as you commit yourself to fast you will reap all of them.
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Until next time, may God continue to bless you richly, Equilla Miller.
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