Reflections on a 10-day Fast

I do not usually talk about my fasting experiences, but I feel led to write a reflection about a 10-day fast I completed last month. The goal of this reflection is to encourage the body of Christ to the practice of fasting, which has largely been lost and forgotten in the West, and to bring glory to Jesus through this work of grace. Journey with me as I recount this fast.

During the quarter break December of 2014, I read two books on fasting. The books were Fasting for Spiritual Breakthrough and Knowing God through Fasting. These two books brought me to a deeper understanding of fasting and the benefits of fasting to know God more intimately. Also during this time, I was reading through the New Testament. I came across Matthew 22:29 in which Jesus says to the Sadducees, "You are wrong because you don't know either the scriptures or God's power." When I read this particular Scripture, it nailed my heart and I felt God convey that I did not know the Scriptures well enough for what I was called to do.

So at the end of the quarter break, after reading the books on fasting and this Scripture, I felt God calling me to a year of intentional and intensified fasting. I generally fast once per week for 24 hours, but I felt God calling me to longer fasts. So for the first fast, which I will recount, I felt called to fast for 10 days from food, only drinking water and allowing me to also drink Gatorade. The purpose of this fast was for a greater knowledge of God's Word. I felt called to create a space in my life through fasting to pursue a great knowledge in quantity of Scripture. So during this fast, I would intentionally read through the New Testament for quantity. And the interpretation I received about this fast is that I would not "master" God's Word in the ten days, but rather receive a new wine skin, or means of grace, to be able to read God's Word in a new way.

On that note, I came across an interesting Scripture. I never understood it until I was just about to undertake this fast. I read Matthew 9:14-17: "At that time John's disciples came and asked Jesus, "Why do we and the Pharisees frequently fast, but your disciples never fast?" Jesus responded, "The wedding guests can't mourn while the groom is still with them, can they? But the days will come when the groom will be taken away from them, and then they'll fast. No one sews a piece of new, unshrunk cloth on old clothes because the patch tears away the cloth and makes a worse tear. No one pours new wine into old wineskins. If they did, the wineskins would burst, the wine would spill, and the wineskins would be ruined. Instead, people pour the new wine into new wineskins so that both are kept safe."

So notice the connection between fasting, new wineskins and new wine. An interpretation I offer reveals a connection between fasting and new works of God being sewn together. This means that there are certain works of God in our lives and in the kingdom which can only be produced, i.e. new wineskin and wine, through fasting. As we fast, God knits a new wineskin so that new wine, i.e. the new grace, can be poured in. If we do not receive a new wineskin for whatever God's new work is, then it won't work. So this 10-day fast was creating a new wineskin to grow in knowledge (quantity) of God's Word.

Here are some reflections on the fast...

Pre-fast
About a week from beginning the fast, I began to prepare internally for the venture of fasting that was ahead. I began to pray and prepare myself for the strenuous difficulty I would encounter as my body withdraws from food and begins to draw upon reserves and God's grace in a different way. Honestly, I did not prepare very well physically for this fast. Usually, I take about a week to eat more food, specifically healthy food, combined with exercise. But I only began this about two days before, which was not the best idea.

Day 1
I chose to begin my fast on Thursday morning after breakfast and break the fast with communion at community worship (aka "church") on Sunday morning. I ate a healthy breakfast of a bagel, smoothie and chocolate milk to help my body transition well as I started the fast. The day was pretty normal for a first day of fasting, meaning my body had hunger pains and a slight headache. The key to pass the headache quicker is to drink lots of water. Clear urine = enough water. Yellow urine = need more water.

That night, I had extreme pain, much more than average for a first night. I had so much pain I wanted to cry and throw up. I had thoughts of quitting the fast because if this is how hard it is just 10 hours later, what about 10 days later? Even more, my wife was out of town so I did not have any human assistance to push through. Just me and God... That night when I prayed over my house, self and absent wife, I felt a demonic presence(s) leave my home. I made the connection that the extreme pain and all that ensued was probably the enemy trying to get me to give up. Yet I pressed on...

Day 2
I woke up this morning with a really strong headache behind my eyes. And not to mention, extremely hungry. I had to lay in bed with my eyes closed hard, covered by a shirt to keep the light away and praying to push through. That day was filled with headaches and dizziness; which is normal while fasting, especially the first couple days. I monitored my urine color and tried to drink an appropriate amount of water. I used the hunger pains as a reminder and an opportunity to pray for a greater knowledge of God's Word. Throughout the fast, I used the time when I would normally have a meal to pray and read Scripture.

Day 3
I woke up from a vivid dream. I was at a party and there was a lot of pizza. I ate the pizza not remembering I was fasting. I woke up freaking out! I thought I had eaten pizza and broke the fast prematurely, but then realized it was a dream and settled down. Guess I like pizza! Again, I woke up with a strong headache. This time just a general one. I also stopped pooping this day. Since I had not eaten any food for a couple days, my body no longer needed to send anything out. I went to Target in the late afternoon to buy a cake mix for Meredith's birthday celebration. Caution! Careful shopping at food stores during a fast! You get the point. I had headaches and was dizzy at various points throughout the day, not to mention extremely hungry.

Day 4
Our worshiping community (aka "church") had a big lunch after worship. I had to endure not eating all the amazing food everyone else ate. So I held tight to my Gatorade, trying to not be concerned with physical food, but spiritual food from God. I hesitantly played a game of ping pong, knowing that my body my respond adversely afterward. I only played at about 60% to be safe. My body did okay. This is for marrieds now, so read this next line at your own discretion. And I include it because it is part of life as a human when fasting. Basically, married guys... let's just say it was painful afterwards because my body had no nutrients to replenish God's gift of sex. I need to do more medical research about having sex while fasting, but not sure I would recommend it during the longer fasts.

Day 5
Believe it or not, I woke up clear-headed and feeling pretty "normal." I have heard that after the first four or so days, your body begins to adjust to not eating and becomes more "normal." I found this to be the case. And for those of you who may partake in a longer fast, the first three days are generally the most difficult. Just push through by God's grace.

Day 6
I did not sleep well this night and woke up feeling horrible. I am pretty sure this was due to spiritual warfare. And the spiritual warfare continued throughout the day (I did not realize this until after the fact). I really struggled with not eating and really wrestled with whether the fast was worth it or not. I had to text my wife for encouragement and remember that God called me to this fast, which means God is the one responsible for authoring it, giving me grace to persevere and deciding the spiritual outcome.

Day 7
I learned a helpful lesson this day. I basically learned to stop thinking what day it was and how many days had passed. I also became more disciplined in my mind in regards to not thinking about food. I really had to put in the extra effort mentally in these areas. I also continued to read through the New Testament and pray for a greater knowledge of God's Word during meal times, as I had been doing each day.

Day 8
I encountered something I had never encountered in a fast before. I became extremely bored! I was so hungry that I wanted to do nothing but eat. I realized how much I rely on food as an "activity" to give me something to do. I reflected how I can just go to the fridge or pantry to give my taste buds a little jolt. I never realized I rely so much on food for entertainment.

Brush your teeth. While fasting, our body begins to produce weird smells in our mouth when we don't eat. I also used mouth wash each morning to help with this. I felt like my conscience and the Holy Spirit gave me permission to use mouthwash. But for others, this might not be permitted possibly because of having an added "taste" in your mouth, etc. Pray and discern what God permits in your fast or not. Remember, it is all about a relationship with God. We are not trying to prove anything, but be obedient to every Christian's call to fast (Matthew 6:16) and create a space for God to sew a new wine skin.

Day 9
This day I felt pretty "normal" holistically, but a little tired. I learned a good lesson this day too. Never, I repeat again, never plan a fast on your spouse's birthday! I made the mistake and miscalculation of fasting during my wife's birthday. She was actually upset (which is quite rare for my wife) that I would fast on her birthday and not be able to participate in eating a special meal with her. I had apologize and tell her I would do my best to never have this that happen again! On this note, we went out to pizza with her family. Obviously they asked me why I wasn't eating. So I explained that first, I made a mistake and miscalculation! And then described how God called me to the fast and why. When we fast, we don't need to make a big deal about telling other people or not, but if we are in a situation where we need to inform someone we are fasting, that is totally okay.

Day 10
I broke the fast in the morning with communion. Oh how a little piece of bread and juice never taste so good! When I returned home, I heated up some organic tomato soup. I made a mistake and ate too much soup. Remember, our stomachs shrink up because they have not been eating and our digestive organs basically shut down. It is shock to them when they receive food again after a fast, not to mention too much food or the wrong type of food to break a fast with. All this to say, I had a whole bowl of soup, when I should have only had half a bowl. A couple hours later, I ate a little more food. And later that night I had some solid food - a couple pieces of bread and one ravioli.

Post Fast
There were no crazy spiritual experiences in this fast. I did not expect any and I knew God was not going to do anything like that for some reason. I just fasted. Stayed faithful to completing the time and date of when I would start and finish the fast. I took the time each day to intentionally read Scripture and pray for a greater knowledge of God's Word. And now something has changed... I have a new and deep desire to read God's Word. This desire is apart from me, it is a work of grace. I believe through the fast God created a new wine skin that is being filled with new wine as I read Scripture. So now I am reading a chapter per day, starting in Matthew. I read the chapter through three times and then pray through each verse. This takes me about half an hour, but I can tell you that something is different. A hunger for God's Word is now in me that was not there before. In addition, another desire to read through the Old Testament has emerged. I have started in Genesis and am reading my way through the OT. Simply, I am reading for knowledge quantity and praying I grow in knowledge of God's Word.


I hope this reflection on a 10-day fast encourages you to pursue Jesus more fully, and even consider implementing the practice of fasting in your own life. Please remember, God called me to this longer fast. I believe God calls us to fasting as a regular spiritual disciple such as prayer or giving (Matthew 6:2, 5, 16). But if you are considering a longer fast, seek God as to the specifics of your fast (Isaiah 58:6-8). I generally only fast for longer periods when God places a specific call on my heart. And if you have any type of medical condition or struggle with food (i.e. anorexia, etc), fasting is not the best practice at this point.


Jesus, to you be all the praise, glory and honor. Amen.