Christian Fasting: What is it and How to Do It

Sometimes people will skip a meal because they're too busy or they're on some kind of diet and trying to lose some weight. But usually if you hear that someone's been skipping all their meals all week long, you'll tell them that they need to seek help, and you may be right. However, there may be a perfectly good reason behind it, having nothing to do with low self-esteem, time constraints, or diet - it could be Christian fasting.

The History Behind Christian Fasting

Christian fasting and other forms of asceticism have really been around for a very long time, even before Jesus Christ himself. Though no one knows when or where fasting first began, the Old Testament reports its prophets engaging in fasts even further back than King David's time. The earliest Biblical reference may be during Moses's meeting with God on the mountain, where he is said to have abstained from food and water for forty days and forty nights, though the word "fasting" doesn't specifically appear (Exodus 34:28). Other portions of the Old Testament declare times of national fasting for special occasions or hard-hitting crises in the nation of Israel.

So when Jesus came along, it's no surprise that he fasted for forty days before beginning his ministry that would eventually change the world. For the same reason, it's no surprise that his followers also practiced Christian fasting or that it continues today among modern Christians. But what exactly is the point behind it?

There are a few Old Testament references to regularly practiced fasts (Zechariah 8:19), but most fasting seems to be in response to certain situations. In many parts of the Old Testament, fasting went hand-in-hand with grief and repentance. Even today it can be observed that people suffering intense grief often lose most of their appetite. However, there was more to penitent fasting in the Old Testament than just loss of appetite.

Accompanying the condemnation of King David's adultery with Bathsheba and the subsequent illness of his child, David's fasting accompanies his pleading with the Lord to heal his child (2 Samuel 12:16). Ezra fasts and prays to God for a safe journey for herself and her family (Ezra 8:21). The entire Israeli nation often fasted when confronted with impending invasion or as an attempt to end their exile. Even the people of pagan Ninevah declared a time of fasting and penitence after hearing Jonah's warning of the impending wrath of God (Jonah 3).

In the New Testament, Christian fasting often seems to have a different context. Jesus began his ministry after a long period of fasting in the wilderness (Matthew 4:2) and it sets the stage for his first recorded temptation. At one point, Jesus's disciples are unable to cast out a demon from a boy, and after asking him why, Jesus explains that, "This kind can come out only through prayer and fasting" (Mark 9:29, though some manuscripts don't include "and fasting"). In Acts, fasting is recorded as a frequent practice among the early church and disciples. In one occasion, the Holy Spirit spoke to them as they were fasting (Acts 13:2) and in many others, the disciples fasted before choosing church leaders or sending people off on missionary journeys.

In modern times, most Christian churches view fasting as a strictly private event, occurring only when one Christian decides to or believes God is urging them to do so. However, some churches, like the Eastern Orthodox and the Roman Catholic church still have regularly scheduled fasts. The most well known scheduled Christian fasting is the season of Lent, the forty days leading up to Easter. Most seasonal fasts only ask for people to abstain from one food item, such as red meat, fish, alcohol, or chocolate, and the modern Catholic church leaves the choice up to the individual believer.

Reasons for Christian Fasting

As you've seen in the Biblical references, there are a great variety of reasons for Christian fasting, but each example has one main thing in common: each example involves communication with God, and prayer is usually mentioned directly alongside it. When fasting, a believer is usually asking God about something specific, such as direction, safety, or even just acceptance of repentance. However, as stated above, there are also several mentions of regular fasts being a part of believers' lives. Both of these situations are the two main reasons why modern Christians still practice fasting.

If you're considering Christian fasting, you may want God to specifically answer some question you have or you may want a specific way to draw closer to God. However, Christian fasting, like most other spiritual practices, is no guarantee.

If you read the full stories behind the references above, you'll see that God sometimes honored the petitioners' requests and sometimes didn't. One of the most heart-breaking examples is when King David's fasting and pleading with God was to no avail and his child still died. So let it be said again: Christian fasting is not some sure-fire tool you can use to get things you want from God when easier measures don't work; it's not some kind of guarantee.

Nonetheless, a stronger communication with God is a perfectly good reason to fast. Denying yourself the physical pleasures and needs that you normally take for granted can go a long ways towards revealing to you what you really need and who really meets all your needs. You pretty much have to rely on God when fasting becomes difficult.

I think it would be wrong to say that God listens any more to someone who is praying and fasting than he does to someone who is only praying. But, your abstinence from physical needs or comforts may make it easier for you to listen to God, and that may make all the difference. At the very least, when your stomach is growling or your taste buds are less than pleased, it may simply remind you to pray and communicate more with God.

Finally, some people may believe fasting seems like a convenient way to draw closer to God and lose weight or stay fit at the same time. I'm only saying this because I've encountered some people with that idea before. Fasting is not the same thing as a diet; any results in terms of physical fitness or weight loss should not be the focus of your fasting. Only God should be the focus of your fasting and other considerations should be ignored - after all, you're temporarily ignoring your physical needs, so ignore the physical results in the meantime, too.

Methods for Christian Fasting

Many may assume that you can only fast if you don't eat or drink anything for the duration of the fast. But as previously mentioned with seasonal fasts, there are actually many different ways to engage in Christian fasting. Abstaining from all food and drink is just one of them. Some people even consider that just abstaining from sexual relations can be a fast and there is Biblical precedent for that (1 Corinthians 7:5), but this article will concern itself only with dietary Christian fasting.

To start with, there are health considerations when it comes to Christian fasting. If you know you have some kind of chronic health problem, especially a dietary one, you probably want to first consult your doctor about what kind of fast is likely not to be a terminal decision for you, even if it means only fasting from your favorite food or for shorter periods of time than you'd like.

If you've never missed a day of food before, it's also probably a good idea not to start your Christian fasting experience with a forty-day (or longer) fast. As far as I know, starving to death has never received God's seal of approval.

So, it's a good idea to start practicing Christian fasting with something that you'll be able to feasibly do. You may just start off by abstaining for a period of time from alcohol or soft drinks, chocolate or meat; something you enjoy and consume often. A fast of this type would be good to do in longer periods, such as a week or more. Make sure that you spend extra time praying and communicating with God in conjunction with your fast.

But maybe you're a casual person, not prone to fits of passion or strong cravings, and abstaining from eating one food type doesn't really affect you at all. Certainly, you can fast from all food and drink.

You've probably all missed a meal at some point in life, either because you were too busy, woke up too late, were stuck on the road and didn't want to stop, or just forgot your lunch and didn't want to buy it. Therefore, if you want your fast to simply be from one meal, you should pick a meal that you usually relish - maybe Friday evening or Saturday's brunch. In place of eating, you should find a private place where you can pray and maybe read your Bible also. Ignore your stomach's rumblings and focus on God and what he may be communicating to you, whether it's something specific or a general truth.

On the other hand, anyone without specific dietary illnesses can probably easily fast for at least a day, even their first time. Personally, I'd recommend no more than three days maximum if it's your first time to fast.

Technically, you should be alright without any food or drink for three days, but if you can't avoid engaging in a fair amount of activity during that time period, you should drink something, at least water. Standard Christian fasting usually includes drinking water throughout the duration of the fast, so don't misbelieve that you can't put anything to your lips and into your body.

If you're going to do Christian fasting any longer than three days, you need to be drinking at least water. Your body needs it or you could have serious medical complications. Some people do just a liquid fast for several weeks or a month and only drink water or fruit and vegetable juices. I know a couple of people who've fasted for forty days with only water. However, you shouldn't be doing any strenuous activity if you're fasting for more than a couple of days, and if you'll be fasting for weeks or more, you shouldn't be engaging in much activity at all other than praying and reading the Bible.

During a prolonged period of fasting, you'll experience things you've never felt before. The first day, you'll simply feel hungry, which I'm sure you've felt before. Psychologically, you're addicted to food, and chances are good that you're even addicted to a schedule of eating food, so your feeling of hunger will peak at your regular mealtimes. But... it's all mental. So, even if you don't fast for more than a day at a time, but you do it regularly (like every week or so), you can break yourself of your mental addiction to food.

If you're engaging in Christian fasting for a few days, then probably by the end of the second day, you'll begin to feel what real hunger is like. Sometimes though, even three days may not be enough. It may feel like physical pain to you and it can be psychologically tormenting (especially your first experience with it), just like chemical withdrawal. However, it's not extreme and as long as you ignore it and spend your time in prayer and communicating with God, you'll be just fine and it will gradually subside.

If you've never done it before (or even if you have), it can be hard to get through the second day of Christian fasting, but it's definitely not impossible. Once you're through the second or third day, it actually gets a bit easier.

At some point between the fourth and seventh day of fasting (if you're only drinking water) your body switches metabolisms and begins to digest stored fat. This can also be a very tough and sometimes physically painful experience. Again, the whole point of fasting for prolonged periods of time is to learn to rely on God and better communicate with him. The point of fasting is the same no matter what you feel like. And again, once you're through this, which can sometimes last a day or two, it gets easier.

Personally, I've never fasted for more than eleven days. After my metabolism-switching experience during my sixth day of Christian fasting, it wasn't all that difficult - I mainly dealt with the residual psychological desire for food. But, I was a teenager at the time and my parents began to get worried. So, on the eleventh day, I felt like God saying it was a good time to end the fast.

And that's the final aspect of Christian fasting: it's not supposed to create a public stir. You're not supposed to be fasting to get attention or show how holy or spiritual you are. Other than the reference to its necessity with "this kind [of demon]", Jesus really only mentioned fasting when warning how not to do it. He warned his disciples not to do it like the hypocritical religious leaders of his day, who wanted to demonstrate to everyone how holy they were by fasting and making it obvious. He advised his disciples to try to look normal while fasting so that they couldn't be doing it for public attention, but that it would be between them and God (Matthew 6:16-18).

After all, that's what Christian fasting is all about: a communication between you and God. Christian fasting is not about forcing God to do what you want, it's not about proving how strong or tough you are, and it's definitely not about showing other people how holy or spiritual you are.

Christian fasting is about developing a deeper communication with God, denying yourself and your own natural desires, and learning to rely upon and listen to God. Focus on him, seek him out, and you may find that a few missed meals reveals to you the difference between you and the infinite God of everything. And if you do encounter him during a time of fasting, I'm sure you wouldn't want to take it back for all the food and delicacies in the world.