Is fasting a part of your life? How important is fasting to you?

Question

Isaiah 40:31 " But they that wait upon the Lord
shall renew their strength; they shall mount up
with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be
weary; and they shall walk , and not faint"
Wait in the Hebrew original means " to bind together,
tangle, entwine, or tarry expectantly." Renew in the
original means," To change".
An old eagle's feathers in the latter years of his life grow
old and mottled and eventually begin to fall out. His beak
grows dull and his talons blunt. He cannot fly as high as
he used to , nor can he tear the prey with his beak or grip
the prey with his talons as before. Instinct within an
eagle tells him to fly high into the mountians and to find a
cave where he can be all alone. There in that cave he
will begin scraping his feathers, beak, and talons on a
rock until he completely scrapes them away. He also
does not eat , but rather fasts. It is a very painful and
homely experience. The eagle simply waits, for he knows
through instinct that his feathers, beak, and talons will
eventually grow back to normality. When the eagle
emerges from his time of waiting and stretches his wings
for all the world to see, he looks like a brand new young
eagle. He then mounts up on wings and flies again to the
heights he once knew!
Isaiah and David both wrote under the anointed under-
standing about the Way of the Eagle. When we choose to
wait upon the Lord in Fasting, we are stripping away the
weaknesses of our flesh that weigh us down, just as the
eagle strips away his feathers, beak, and talons.
Hebrews 12:1 " Wherefore, seeing we also are
compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let
us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so
easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that
is set before us.
Somewhere during the sixth or seventh day of fasting, we
begin to sense the works of the flesh being replaced by
the fruit of the Spirit. Our spiritual strength, vision, and
desire become renewed, and once again, we step over
into the dimensions of the spiritual things. For fasting to
be fully effective , it is important to remember to keep our
motives for fasting pure.
Isaiah 58:6-7 contains excellent motives for fasting:
" Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the
bands of wickedness (works of the flesh), to undo the
heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free
(spiritual bondage) , and that ye break every yoke
(sickness,disease,ect.) Is it not to deal thy bread to the
hungry ( the ministry of the Word) , and that thou bring
the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest
the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not
thyself from thine own flesh?( a true burden to reach all
souls)
When we choose to fast, both our flesh and those around
us will many times do all they can do to discourage us.
We may feel like we're dying when in fact we are really
gaining new life.
Luke 9:23-24
And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let
him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow
me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but
whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall
save it.
We may feel the pain and struggle while waiting upon the
Lord in fasting, but once the fasting is over, renewed
strength, both physical and spiritual, returns in double
portion.
Fasting does not twist God's arm and get Him to see
things our way. Fasting changes us, it transforms us, and
gives us freedom from the law of sin.
When we fast one to three days, we are breaking the
powers of the kos-mok-ratos, meaning "world rulers"
or "lords of the age" such as the spirits of lust,
depression, bondage, and fear that may be plaguing you
personally.
In a seven to ten day fast there are powers of authority
which can influence an entire city.
When we fast from ten to twenty days, we will break the
ruling principalites and bring them to their knees.
(Daniel 10:13) Daniel fasted for 21 days, and it caused
Gabriel to come and give him a message. But Gabriel
could not break through the channel that the prince of
Persia held over Daniel's head- the area where the spirits
dwelt. So Michael had to come and defeat the prince. It
was Daniel's 21-day fast that brought all this on.
The most effective way to fast is to follow the guidelines
found in the Word of God. You cannot find anywhere in
the Word where anybody ever went over 21 days (unless)
God was the one that instructed him or compelled him to.
Its important to be consistant in fasting just as in prayer.
I have found that an effective way to fast is to fast
seven days , twice a year
three days, about every two months
one day, every week
out of all the one day a week was most effective for
putting flesh down.

A Swiss physician Dr. Barsilus noted that: The advantages of hunger as a remedy exceed those ingesting medicine several times.

As readers are well aware, several physicians advise patients to skip meals, sometimes for a few days, before prescribing them a controlled diet.

Generally speaking, fasting hastens the destruction of the decaying tissues of the body by means of hunger, and then builds new tissues through nutrition. This is why some scientists suggest that fasting should be regarded as an effective means of restoring youthfulness and longevity. However, Islam exempts from fasting sick and old people whose health is bound to deter.
http://www.crescentlife.com/spirituality/fasting_key_to_good_health.htm

Answer 1

My husband just did a 40 day fast from all food, only juices. We were praying about a call to be church planters and move across the U.S. The Lord laid on my heart that I would fast in that time, and that I would know when. The last 11 days temptation started to come for him from all the food that was at home. The Lord then laid it on my heart to go with my husband until the end of the fast.

He later told me that it encouraged him so much the sacrifice I was willing to make, that it rejuvinated him. God spoke to my husbands heart that once he finished the fast that he was going to preach a sermon God had prepared for him. This was a unique situation because the church we were going to had a pastor, and that church was who the message was for.

Well, don't you know that the pastor called my husband last minute and said he had to go out of town and couldn't find anyone else to preach for him so he asked my husband.

This was the 2nd week before we were leaving that church to move to another state to plant a church. God honored and blessed out of our obedience. Fasting can be such a rewarding time, but you have to consistenly be in God's word. The normal food you would normally eat needs to be replace with spiritual food. The time you would spend eating needs to be spent with God.

And don't be suprised when temptation comes. Satan did the same to Jesus in the wilderness when He fasted. But you will be able to resist, and there is one stronger than Satan, who has already conquered him.

Answer 2

Mi commitment to social justice has led to work full time combating hunger. In the face of injustices and the oppression perpetrated by the transnational capital I think it's time to review the whole issue of fasting so as to recover the full meaning of a text in Isaiah you didn't mention: that fasting is working for the poor denouncing oppression.

Answer 3

I have fasted and prayed many times in the past, but not recently. I have only done it in times of great tribulation and when I really needed to know God's will and purpose for a particular problem or issue. It is truly amazing the things God has showed me as a result of fasting for short periods of time and focusing only on Him.

Answer 4

Wow, although that's not a question, that is a great suggestion. I believe that God wanted you to share this, so thank you for being faithful to him.

But you are right; fasting does break down walls and barriers, especially when it is coupled with prayers. But they have to be done in a way that no one knows you are doing them as well.

THank you once again for sharing this important concept.

Answer 5

i fast maybe once or twice a year and strange you mentioned it because i've been planning too for 2 weeks now i will start this weekend fasting is very important normally i fast when i don't know which road to take like now
i really need to fast more often i feel more in touch when I fast and my prayers answered more speedy

Answer 6

I fast I think it is important to hace that time with God. God Bless!

Answer 7

Fasting is very important Ramadan is coming up!

Answer 8

Hmm too long. Anyway fasting does nothing but get you dangerously close to an eating disorder. Don't be anorexic. And don't let some guys who wrote the Bible 2000 years ago to control you force you to develop an eating disorder over this alien God myth.

Answer 9

I fast everynight and break it every morning.