Prayer and fasting is a wonderful way to “humble ourselves before our God” (Ezra 8:21). It is a chance to grow spiritually and see God move in our lives. The Daniel Fast is one of many ways to fast, avoiding “choice food; no meat or wine” (Dan 10:3). Fasting is between you and God, so let Him guide you on the best method, and let Him show you what to pray for.
Why Prayer?
God calls us to pray and He answers prayers. “Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people” (Ephesians 6:18, NIV). “So we fasted and earnestly prayed that our God would take care of us, and he heard our prayer” (Ezra 8:23).
Why Fasting?
Fasting is an opportunity to draw closer to God. Instead of giving in to our every craving, we focus our time and energy on Him.
Fasting usually falls into one of three categories: partial fasting (eliminating a specific food or activity), intermittent fasting (such as not eating from sundown to sunup), and liquid fast (water only or water and juice). On rare occasions, God may call his people to eliminate all food and liquid, but this must be done very carefully and under medical supervision.
In the past, I’ve fasted one category of food or an activity, such as dairy or TV. This January, I felt called to dig deeper and step out in faith with a Daniel fast.
What is a Daniel Fast?
Image from sarascarpa.com
Kristen at ultimatedanielfast.com does a great job explaining:
“The Daniel Fast was first observed by the prophet Daniel in the Bible. Scripture gives us some insight (such as in Dan. 10:3) into what Daniel ate and didn’t eat; however, we don’t know his complete menu. On one occasion, Daniel was greatly concerned for his people and sought the Lord’s wisdom during a time of prayer and fasting.
“At that time I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks. I ate no choice food; no meat or wine touched my lips” (Dan. 10:2-3).
Most commentaries believe “choice food” would have been bread and sweets. The Message paraphrase sums up Daniel’s eating habits during that time: “I ate only plain and simple food.””
Personally, I ate fruits, vegetables, beans, whole grains (brown rice, freshly milled wheat flour), nuts, seeds, olive/coconut oil, and spices. I chose to incorporate fermented foods and drinks (vinegar, kombucha, sauerkraut). If I wasn’t sure about something, I asked God before taking a bite.
As someone who loves bread, meat, sweets, and dairy, it was a challenge!
Here’s what I discovered:
I always feel closer to God with a focused fasting and prayer. Much of the spiritual side will be so special and unique to the person praying and where each of us are in our journey. I want to highlight some of discoveries I made on the fasting side to help guide you if you are considering a fast, especially if you have a family that will be impacted by your food changes.
- I had to plan ahead to have foods/snacks I could eat (no last minute chicken nuggets or nachos!).
- I didn’t actually crave the no-no list very much.
- I didn’t snack as much, especially at night.
- I was less bloated.
- I discovered I love brown and wild rice.
- When I didn’t know what to eat, I asked God to help, and He gave me ideas.
- The fast gave me talking points with my kids. They were very intrigued and supportive.
- It was a challenge to eat differently than the rest of my family. I will definitely encourage them to fast with me next time. Most meals were the same or similar, but it took enough extra thought and planning to make it challenging.
- My body had a minor detox process adjusting to the diet, so I had to consciously eat a variety of foods to get the nutrients I needed.
- When I wanted to grab something I was fasting, it gave me a chance to talk to God.
- I was very grateful for the food I had.
- I eat a lot of sugar/bread items for breakfast when not fasting.
- Coming out of the fast, I am choosing healthier foods (most of the time).
- I love meat. I like dairy, but I don’t need it as much as I sometimes think I do.
- I need to incorporate more freshly milled flour in my homemade breads. I can feel the difference eating all-purpose flour.
All in all, I am extremely grateful I did the Daniel fast, and I am grateful for God guiding me through it. I will be making some changes in how I eat and prepare food for my family moving forward, like more whole grains and less dairy. I hope to share some of my favorite recipes from my fast soon!
I’m curious, have you ever fasted? What was your experience?
Get Involved!
Church of the Highlands has a corporate 21 days of prayer and fasting every January and August, and believers stream from all over the world. If you’d like to join in next time, click here for details and be sure to check out the archives for recent messages!
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