Do you know how to fast and pray for a breakthrough? Have you been waiting for a breakthrough?
Do you know fasting and prayer is one of the most powerful spiritual tools you have at your disposal?
The Bible has many examples of people who fast and pray before a major victory, miracle, or answer to prayer.
God openly rewards those who truly seek him.
What is Fasting and Prayer?
To fast is to abstain partially or totally from food or certain foods. Daniel’s fast, for example, consisted of eating only fruits and vegetables.
Fasting is not a performance or mortification. It is a privileged moment when we will give more space to God and spend time with Him.
Fasting can also mean putting aside certain activities, such as television and social networks, for example. Indeed, our screens can be time-consuming and encroach significantly on our daily lives.
The goal is not abstinence. The goal is not to go without food or television. The real objective of fasting is to seek the heart of God.
When we fast, we take a break from our many occupations and the urgency of daily life. To place ourselves before God and listen to what He has to say to us.
Fasting is a spiritual practice that Jesus taught his disciples in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7).
In fasting, you experience more of God and his love. You get to know him more and align yourself with his purposes for your life.
Should we fast all week?
It all depends on your strengths and your activity. You can fast for a day or two or the whole week. Listen to your body. There is no point in putting yourself in a dangerous situation to fast.
Remember, this is fast AND prayer! Fasting is not the end. To stop eating is not what God expects of us. The goal is to spend time with God, to find out what He wants to tell us.
Also Related: 16 Steps for a More Powerful Prayer Life.
Some examples of fasts
Total Fast:
It consists of not eating or drinking anything at all. Some people called it supernatural because our body can withstand more or less long periods without food but not without water.
Moses practiced this fast: “So he was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights; he neither ate bread nor drank water.
And He wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the [a] Ten Commandments.” (Exodus 34:28: NLT). Other examples of this Fast:
Ezra (Ezra 10: 6),
The Jews in Esther’s time (Esther 4:16),
Moses (Deuteronomy 9: 9),
Paul (Acts 9: 9)
Partial Fast:
It consists of restricting food ingestion and has some variants, such as eating only one food.
Some call it the “Fast of Daniel”, in which only vegetables or fruits are eaten in the form of juices or salads.
Partial fasting is of great value, especially when circumstances make a natural fast impossible or inconvenient.
“So Daniel said to [a]the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs had set over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.
Please test your servants for ten days, and let them give us vegetables to eat and water to drink.
Then let our appearance be examined before you, and the appearance of the young men who eat the portion of the king’s delicacies; and as you see fit, so deal with your servants.” Daniel 1: 11-13
Natural Fast:
This fast involves abstaining from food but not from water.
This fast for one or two days does not have any problem. But if you want to do it for more days, you must take certain precautions to not harm the body.
Other fasts
Those who have never fasted can consider other fast to start training, work on being disciplined, and achieve the proposed goal. You can fast junk food, desserts, social media, red meat, etc.
Remember that by abstaining from food or what you fast from, you will seek to do God’s will and not yours. “But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4: 4).
When fasting, the most important thing is to have a humble and sincere attitude with God; accompany your fast with times of prayer, praise, and reading the Bible.
Check out this book by Elmer Towns for A Practical Guide to Nine Biblical Fasts. You will be introduced to nine biblical fasts that God can use for specific physical and spiritual outcomes.
Also Related: 13 Proven Ways to Strengthen Your Faith in God.
7 Steps to Fast and Pray for a Breakthrough
Photo by Naassom Azevedo on Unsplash
I believe that the power of fasting and prayer is the spiritual atomic bomb that our Lord has given us to destroy the strongholds of evil and usher us into our breakthrough.
This handy reference guide, 70 Seventy Days Prayer and Fasting Programme 2020 Edition: Prayer Battle, will help you make your time with the Lord more spiritually rewarding.
I encourage you to take it with you during your fast and refer back to it frequently.
It will give you easy-to-follow suggestions on how to start your fast. What to do while fasting, and how to end the fast correctly.
Before fasting, I encourage you to read this book, “Fasting for Breakthrough and Deliverance.” It will help equip you for the spiritual awakening that lies ahead.
HOW TO BEGIN YOUR FAST
How you start and conduct your fast will largely determine your success. The pathway to breakthrough is prayer and fasting.
By following these seven basic steps for fasting, you will understand how to fast and pray for a breakthrough.
Step 1: Set Your Goal
Why are you fasting? Is it for spiritual renewal, for guidance, for healing, for problem-solving, for the special grace of handling a difficult situation?
Ask the Holy Spirit to clarify His guidance and goals for your prayer fast. This will allow you to pray more specifically and strategically.
Through fasting and prayer, we humble ourselves before God so that the Holy Spirit awakens our souls. (2 Chronicles 7:14)
Make this a priority in your fast.
Step 2: Make Your Commitment
Pray for the type of fast you should do. Jesus hinted that all his followers should fast (Matthew 6: 16-18; 9: 14-15).
For him, it was a question of when believers would fast, not whether they would. Before fasting, decide the following in advance:
How long you will fast:
One day
One week
Several weeks
Forty days (Beginners should start slowly, all the way to longer fasts).
God wants you to undertake (such as water only, or water and juices; what types of juices will you drink and how often).
What physical or social activities it will restrict
How much time you will spend each day in prayer and God’s Word
Making these commitments in advance will help you maintain your fast when the physical temptations and pressures of life tempt you to give up.
Step 3: Prepare Yourself Spiritually
The very foundation of fasting and prayer is repentance. Unconfessed sin will hinder your prayers.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9).
Here are several things you can do to prepare your heart:
Ask God to help you make a complete list of your sins.
Confess every sin that the Holy Spirit calls to your memory and accept God’s forgiveness (1 John 1: 9).
Seek forgiveness from all those you have offended, and forgive all who have hurt you (Mark 11:25; Luke 11: 4; 17: 3,4).
Make restitution as the Holy Spirit guides you.
Ask God to fill you with His Holy Spirit according to His command in Ephesians 5:18 and His promise in 1 John 5: 14,15.
Surrender your life completely to Jesus Christ as your Lord and Master; refuse to obey your worldly nature (Romans 12: 1,2).
Meditate on the attributes of God, His love, sovereignty, power, wisdom, faithfulness, grace, compassion, and others (Psalm 48: 9,10; 103: 1-8, 11-13).
Begin your time of fasting and prayer with an expectant heart (Hebrews 11: 6).
Step 4: Get Physically Prepared
Fasting requires reasonable precautions.
Consult your doctor first, especially if you take prescription drugs or have a chronic illness. Some people should never fast without professional supervision.
Physical preparation makes the drastic change in your eating routine a little easier so that you can turn your full attention to the Lord in prayer.
Don’t rush your fast.
- Prepare your body. Eat smaller meals before starting a fast. Avoid foods high in fat and sugars.
- Eat raw fruits and vegetables for two days before starting a fast.
- Your time of fasting and prayer has come. You are abstaining from all solid foods and have started seeking the Lord. Here are some helpful suggestions to consider:
- Avoid drugs, even natural herbs, and homeopathic remedies. Medication should be withdrawn only with the supervision of your doctor.
- Limit your activity.
- Exercise only moderately. Walk one to three miles each day if it is convenient and comfortable.
- Get as much rest as your schedule allows.
- Prepare for temporary mental complaints such as impatience, irritability, and anxiety.
- Expect some physical discomfort, especially on the second day. You may have fleeting hunger pangs, dizziness. Withdrawal from caffeine and sugar can cause headaches. Physical discomfort can also include weakness, tiredness, or insomnia.
The first two or three days are usually the hardest.
As you continue to fast, you are likely to experience a sense of both physical and spiritual well-being. However, if you have hunger pangs, increase your fluid intake.
Step 5: Put Yourself On A Schedule
For maximum spiritual benefit, allow enough time to be alone with the Lord. Hear His guidance. The more time you spend with Him, the more meaningful your fast will be.
Morning
Start your day with praise and worship.
Read and meditate on God’s Word, preferably on your knees.
Invite the Holy Spirit to work in you to do His will and do His good will according to Philippians 2:13.
Pray for His vision for your life and your power to do His will.
Pray fervently for the kind of breakthrough you want.
Midday
- Go back to prayer and the Word of God.
- Take a little prayer walk.
- Spend time in intercessory prayer asking God for your desired breakthrough.
Night
- Alone for a time without rushing to seek His face
- If others are fasting with you, gather together to pray
- Avoid television or any other distractions that can dampen your spiritual focus.
Whenever possible, begin and end each day on your knees with your spouse for a brief time of praise and thanksgiving to God.
Longer periods with our Lord in prayer and study of His Word are often best spent alone.
Photo by Steve Halama on Unsplash
BREAKING YOUR FAST
When the designated fasting time is over, you will begin eating again. But how you break your fast is extremely important to your physical and spiritual well-being.
Step 6: End Your Fast Gradually
Start eating gradually. Do not eat solid foods immediately after your fast.
The sudden reintroduction of solid foods into the stomach and digestive tract will likely have negative, even dangerous consequences.
Try several smaller meals or snacks each day. If you gradually end your fast, the beneficial physical and spiritual effects will result in continued good health.
Here are some suggestions to help you end your fast correctly:
Break an extended water fast with fruits like watermelon.
While continuing to drink fruit or vegetable juices, add the following:
Day One: Add a raw salad.
Day Two: Add baked or boiled potatoes, no butter or seasonings.
Third day: Add a steamed vegetable.
After that: Begin to reintroduce your normal diet.
Gradually return to regular eating with several snacks for the first few days. Start with some soup and fresh fruit like watermelon and orange.
Skip to a few tablespoons of solid foods like raw fruits and vegetables or a raw salad and baked potatoes.
In conclusion
Fasting is a spiritual cleanser and strengthener. Don’t let your mind and appetite leer you.
Every time you are tempted to eat, pray! And remember, this time is for God, not food. You will eat later.
Those who seek God through fasting and prayer can expect tremendous breakthroughs in their personal lives.
They will see breakthroughs in many areas such as healing, finances, unhealthy dependencies, and family relationships.
Jentezen Franklin in his book “Fasting: Opening the door to a deeper, more intimate, more powerful relationship with God” explains the spiritual power of fasting and offers a deeper understanding of God’s plan for fasting and the benefits available to those who participate.