A Complete Fast

The duration of a complete fast could range from part of a day to an entire
day to several days or weeks. It abstains from all food for a time. This was the
most common in the scripture.

A Partial Fast
A partial fast can also vary in duration from part of a day to weeks. While the
complete fast abstains from all food for a time, a partial fast abstains from
certain foods or drinks for the time. The most common partial fasting is
often called a 3 day spiritual fast while others fast 10 days, 14 days, 21 days, 30
days or even 40 days.

In Daniel, we see believers who ate only fruit, veggies and drank water for 10
days to honor God while in captivity.

The Daniel Fast is a partial fast

What is the Daniel fast according to the Bible? The basic idea behind this fast
is to have no meat, no tasty bread, no wine, no oils for his skin, for 21 days.
Daniel 10:3

These would have been things that satisfied Daniel. If oils, sweets, or meats
are not what you turn to for satisfaction, this type of fasting will fall flat. The
Daniel fast was not powerful because of what Daniel gave up, but rather
because of the humility of Daniel’s life.

A humble Christian who fasts will see answers and feel refreshed regularly.

Search your heart. Spend time asking God to reveal to you the things that
you seek for satisfaction. It could be Facebook or Candy Crush instead of
food. Be open to fasting from the things that will really drive you to pray.
21 days of fasting and prayer can change your life if you choose the right
things to fast from.

A Non-Food Fast
For those of us with a medical condition, the non-food fast is the safest way
to practice this spiritual discipline.

In Scripture, we see several examples of non-food fasts.

Some examples:
● Oils (Daniel 10:3)
● Sex (1 Corinthians 7:5; Exodus 19:15)
● Unholy things such as foods, items, people, places, practices, etc. –
(Joshua 3:5)

Isolation Fast
While Jesus does not give us a detailed outline of things to abstain from
during a fast He does show us how effective isolation is for fasting. Jesus
often withdrew from His disciples to spend time alone with God (Luke 5:16).

Time alone with God is hard to find but it is one of the most effective of all
the different types of Biblical fasting.

In the 21st Century, time alone with God could look like:
● No other people around
● Your Bible (no Bible app with ads to distract you)
● Zero Internet
● A notebook (no tablet to distract you)
● No Radio
● Possibly device-free
● No social media
Alone. In solitude. No distractions from hearing God’s voice. This type of
fasting takes practice and great planning to achieve. Time alone with God is
powerful for reaching Spiritual Breakthrough! Try it. Plan to drive to work
tomorrow without the radio on. Spend that time talking and listening to God
and see how it feels.

First, we see that Jesus fasted but we don’t see examples. Jesus' lack of
explanation is beautiful because it reinforces the point that fasting is
between you and God.

The truth is, you know what you seek for satisfaction. What of that is often
apart from God? That thing, or those things, are probably what you need to
set aside for a time to re-engage with God.

Esther Fast for Breakthrough

Have you heard of the Esther fast for a breakthrough in difficult situations?

This type of fasting is a combination of the complete 3-day fast and a group
fast. The group prays and fasts over a specific issue together. This is powerful
and effective and is seen repeatedly in Scripture. Esther 4:16

While fasting for spiritual growth you want to intentionally plan times of
prayer and scripture meditation into your day.
1. Prayer – talking to God
2. Scripture Meditation – God talking to you

Both are key to the breakthrough you are seeking.