We're well into day four of our 21 Days of Fasting and Prayer... can you feel a difference yet? I don't mean when your tummy rumbles as you drive past Chick-Fil-A or the tiredness you're feeling as you're pull up to church at 6:30 a.m. I mean the difference you can feel SPIRITUALLY! Don't you feel closer to God already? If not, you just wait for it! This fasting process will change your whole relationship with God, I guarantee it!

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The Hebrew word for fast means “to cover the mouth.” The Greek word for fast means “to abstain from food.” While we do need to get away from every day distractions of our lives and spend time alone with God, fasting is always about restricting food! Everything else is self-discipline and dying to our flesh. So, to truly benefit from the fast one would have to restrict or change their normal food intake.

 

Fasting is a spiritual discipline. It is done not so we can change God’s mind, but rather to get quiet before Him, so we can hear what He is speaking. When we satisfy our flesh with everything that it demands we tend to drown out God’s voice because we become very preoccupied with self-gratification. During fasting we take charge of our flesh, making it a servant to our spirit, and thus we are able to get in tune with what the Holy Spirit is speaking to us.

 

Fasting is not to be done to show off to others so they might perceive you as having more spirituality. This is what the Bible says in Matthew:

“Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.” (Matthew 6:16-18)

 

So, when you fast, don’t be boastful about what you are doing and how you are “sacrificing” something for God—let the Lord be your Rewarder, not men! However, if you are taking part in a congregational fast, feel free to invite others to join, with humility. You might find having the support and accountability helps you to be more diligent. You can even get together to enjoy one of my Daniel Fast Recipes!