It is a way to identify with Jesus' declaration that "Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God." (Matthew 4:4)
But is "not eating" the only way we can fast?
Not eating, and only drinking water, is one way to fast, but it is certainly not the only way. When Daniel, the Old Testament prophet, "fasted" in Daniel 10, he "ate no choice food; no meat or wine touched [his] lips." (Daniel 10:3)
I thinking missing a meal, (or three), to pray and declare dependance upon God is still an important Christian discipline, but I also want you to consider some additional ways to fast.
You may consider fasting:
- Television - Pray, read your Bible, spend time playing with your children instead.
- Social Media - Pray, read your Bible, and write someone a hand-written letter instead.
- Secular Music - Listen only to Christian radio.
- Smoking, Drugs, or Alcohol. - If you're normally inclined to do any of these...
These are all ideas with one goal in mind. Quiet your carnal, "fleshly" desires and distractions, and open your eyes and ears to what the Spirit of God is wanting to say to you through prayer and the Word of God.
So perhaps you should consider doing a 24 hour food fast, drinking only water, (or only water and juice). Start at 6PM one day, and finish at 6PM the next. Try doing that one day a week during our 21 Days of Prayer and Fasting.
Or you may want to do several days of fasting food, only drinking fruit or vegatable juices for two to three days, (or more).
Or you may decide to do a "Daniel fast" and only eat fruits and vegatables for one or more weeks of the fast.
Go ahead, challenge yourself! (This is really between you and Jesus!)
But if you can't finish a food fast, and need to break the fast before you wanted to, don't beat yourself up! At least you tried, and hopefully you'll learn something about yourself.
And certainly, if you have health issues, you can still participate in the fast by doing some of the "non-food" fasting we mentioned.
What are some other ideas you have when it comes to fasting?
