• solemn assemblies
• weeping
• confessing
• repenting
• appointing leaders

It is possible that the absence of fasting in many churches in the 21st century has also caused the absence of weeping, confessing, and repenting. These activities help redirect our focus and attention back on our heavenly Father and on His purposes.

Jesus’ Thoughts on Fasting
Jesus fasted. Jesus answered questions about fasting. Jesus taught about fasting. Here are a couple of Jesus’ thoughts about fasting: “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” (Mt. 6:16-18).

Here Jesus is not condemning the activity of fasting, He is simply condemning the wrong motives by which proud people fasted. Isaiah did the same in Isaiah 58. “Then they said to Him, ‘Why do the disciples of John fast often and make prayers, and likewise those of the Pharisees, but Yours eat and drink?’ And He said to them, ‘Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them; then they will fast in those days’” (Lk. 5:33-35). The Bridegroom was taken away almost 2,000 years ago. I have to conclude that He expects His present day disciples to fast.

What is a fast and its different types?
Biblically, a fast is abstaining from food, either entirely or partially. Can we benefit from fasting from other things such as television, sports, dating, etc.?  Absolutely! In the Bible though, fasting dealt with food. From my reading about fasting and my personal experience with fasting, I would have to conclude that there are at least five different types of fasts.

1. The Liquid Fast: This type of fast is either water and/or juices only. I have found this fast to be the most beneficial to me. Many people who  utilize this type of fast, have fasted for up to 40 days.

2. The Absolute Fast: An individual on an absolute fast will consume no food and no liquids. Our bodies need water and cannot go beyond 72 hours without it.

3. The Partial Fast: Eliminating certain foods or certain meals would be a partial fast. People who are hypoglycemic or who have sugar diabetes can make a partial fast work well. They should consult their physician, however.

A couple years ago, God prompted me to fast from desserts for a while because my consumption of them seemed to be out of control. After a few months I concluded this partial fast and the additional self-control (even in other areas) was extremely evident in my life.

4. The Wesley Fast: John Wesley used to fast by consuming whole wheat bread and water only. Apparently this type of fast was a great benefit to him.

5. The Rotational Fast: People utilizing a rotational fast would rotate certain foods and meals in and out of their diets. An example would be to rotate meats, pasta, breads at different times out of my diet or maybe rotate fast a different meal each day out of the diet.

Why do most Christians not fast?
There are three main reasons why most Christians today do not fast. Most Christians are not taught about fasting. I have attended Sunday morning worship services for more than fifty years and I have never heard a sermon on fasting. My exposure to teachings on fasting has come in the context of seminars or retreats. That is sad. Satan loves to keep us in ignorance about fasting because he knows how fasting can be used to limit his
activities and/or defeat him.

Many Christians do not fast because they are addicted to food. This is especially true of Christians in America. We do not do well at handling hunger or other discomforts. If we have a headache, we immediately take something for it. If we experience pain elsewhere, we immediately take something for it. Likewise, we normally follow that pattern when we experience hunger. We “fix” the discomfort right away.

I also believe that many present day Christians do not fast because of spiritual laziness. It is always easier not to go the second mile with God or not to be a passionate pursuer of Him. We allow ourselves to be trapped in our busy lifestyles and, as a result, God receives our “leftovers” instead of our “best.”

The Spiritual Benefits of Fasting
There are many spiritual benefits to fasting. Unfortunately we often figure out how to live for God without these benefits. Here are four benefits that I have experienced in my life and in the lives of others who fast:

Humility before God: As mentioned before, David and Ezra stated that they humbled themselves with fasting. Fasting is certainly not the only way to humble ourselves before God, but it is one way. Why should we be interested in humbling ourselves before God? Proverbs 3:34, James 4:6, and 1 Peter 5:5 say the same thing: “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Fasting done with correct motives will produce humility in our lives. Humility in us gives God the freedom to give us grace. I love God’s grace. We all receive it to some extent. I wholeheartedly believe that properly motivated fasting increases His grace.

Joy and Gladness before God: “Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘The fast of the fourth month, the fast of the fifth, the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be joy and gladness and cheerful feasts for the house of Judah. Therefore love truth and peace’” (Zech. 8:18-19). I have had people approach me during a seminar and confess depression. They typically want to know what they should do. I often recommend fasting. They often get this look on their face that says, “You are an idiot. I am depressed and you want me to go without food?” God has a way of injecting more joy and gladness into our lives through fasting. How God does this is not significant. The fact that He does it is significant.

We will be rewarded by God: Jesus makes this perfectly clear. Matthew 6:18 says, “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.” Our Father desires to reward us through properly motivated fasting.

I personally believe that this reward that Jesus speaks of is a spiritual reward. God certainly knows how to draw us into closer intimacy with Him. We will have a heightened sensitivity to God: This appears to be evident for the leaders at the church in Antioch in Acts 13:2-3. “As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ Then, having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away.” Why is this so significant? Up until this time in Acts, no one had been sent out with the express purpose of taking the gospel somewhere else. Some had been scattered by persecution but no one had been sent on a mission trip. The Holy Spirit directed these church leaders to do something new in order to spread the gospel and He spoke to them during a time of worshipping and fasting.

In 2004, when Impact Ministries (our ministry) sensed God was heading us in a particular direction concerning a retreat center, our staff fasted for direction and God spoke with great clarity. We obeyed and He magnificently blessed us. Sometimes we need a greater sensitivity to the Holy Spirit that God has placed in us. Fasting and worshipping increase that sensitivity.

Can God answer prayer without us fasting? Absolutely! I appreciate my experience with fasting in that it seems to bring my thoughts in line with God’s thoughts. For me, prayer alone sometimes attempts to bring God’s thoughts in line with my thoughts. I have concluded for my life that I have a greater opportunity to connect with God in prayer and a greater opportunity to pray in a God-centered way when I combine prayer with fasting.
--Dean Trune is the Executive Director of Impact Ministries International located in Okemos, Michigan. This article is a chapter in Giving Ourselves to Prayer: An Acts 6:4 Primer for Ministry (PrayerShop Publishing 2008).