By Apostle Irawo Ogo
There are times we need explanation about what we do else, we’ll just be a ZOMBIE. Fast is what we observe but with little or without understanding about it. Some people mix-up fast and starve. Starve is to make someone suffer or die because there’s no enough food to eat. Fast is the period of eating little or going without food especially for religious or health reasons.
We read about fasting in the Bible.
Nehemiah 9:1 Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them.
There are types of fasting
1. A 40-Day Complete Fast (No Food or Water)
Moses, Elijah and Jesus both gave us examples of a 40 day complete fast. Note please that they give extreme examples by having no food or water for 40 days. Consult your doctor before fasting from all food and water for more than 24 hours. Exodus 34:28; I Kings 19:8; Matthew 4:2
2. 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. This was the most common in the scripture. Ezra 8:21-28
3. 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. Daniel 1:12; 10:3
5. 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)
6. Group Fasting
A time of group fasting can be powerful on a personal and corporate level. This type of fasting can be a variation of any of the different types of Biblical fasting. The point is not that everyone is fasting from the same thing, but that they are fasting about the same thing.
Lent is a 40-day fast that believers join in together preceding Easter every year. Christians all over the world fast to prepare their hearts to celebrate the resurrection of Christ. At other times, a group may fast over a need in their church or the salvation of a loved one. Others may fast together over their marriage or children. Esther 4:3; 9:31
7. 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
