How to Begin Your Fast
Fowarded By Rabbi Yochanan Mascaro
How
you begin and conduct your fast will largely determine your success. By
following these seven basic steps to fasting, you will make your
time
with Yahweh through Yahshua more meaningful and
spiritually rewarding.
STEP 1: Set Your Objective
Why are you fasting?
Is it for spiritual renewal, for guidance, for healing, for the resolution of
problems, for special grace to handle a difficult
situation?
Ask the Ruach HaKodesh/Holy
Spirit to clarify His leading and objectives for your prayer fast. This will enable
you to pray more
specifically and strategically.
Through fasting and prayer we humble ourselves before Yahweh so the Holy Spirit
will stir our souls, awaken our churches, and heal our land
according
to 2 Chronicles 7:14. Make this a priority in your fasting.
STEP
2: Make Your Commitment
Pray about the kind of fast you should
undertake. Yahshua implied that all of His followers
should fast (Matthew
was a
matter of when believers would fast, not
if they would do it. Before you fast, decide the following up front:
- How long you will
fast - one meal, one day, a week, several weeks, forty days (Beginners
should start slowly, building up to longer fasts.)
- The type of fast
Yahweh wants you to undertake (such as water only, or water and juices;
what kinds of juices you will drink and how often)
- What physical or
social activities you will restrict
- How much time each
day you will devote to prayer and Yahweh's Scriptures
- Making these
commitments ahead of time will help you sustain your fast when physical
temptations and life's pressures tempt you to
abandon it.
STEP 3: Prepare Yourself Spiritually
The very foundation of fasting and prayer is repentance.
Unconfessed sin will hinder your prayers. Here are several
things you can do to prepare
your
heart:
Ask Yahweh to help you make a
comprehensive list of your sins.
Confess every sin that the Ruach haKodesh/Holy Spirit calls
to your remembrance and accept Yahweh's forgiveness (1 John 1:9).
Seek forgiveness from all whom you have
offended, and forgive all who have hurt you (Mark
Make restitution as the Holy Spirit
leads you.
Ask Yahweh to fill you with His Holy Spirit according to His command in
Ephesians
Surrender your life fully to Yahshua HaMashiach as your Master and Savior; refuse to obey your
worldly nature (Romans 12:1,2).
Meditate on the attributes of Yahweh,
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).
Do not underestimate spiritual opposition. Satan sometimes intensifies the natural
battle between body and spirit (Galatians
STEP
4: Prepare Yourself Physically
Fasting requires reasonable precautions. Consult your
physician first, especially if you take prescription medication or have a
chronic ailment.
Some
persons 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 Yahweh in prayer.
Do not rush into your fast.
Prepare your body. Eat smaller meals
before starting a fast. Avoid high-fat and sugary foods.
Eat raw fruit and vegetables for two days
before starting a fast.
While You Fast
Your time of fasting and prayer has
come. You are abstaining from all solid foods and have begun to seek Yahweh
through Yahshua. Here are
some helpful
suggestions to consider:
Avoid
drugs, even natural herbal drugs and homeopathic remedies. Medication should be
withdrawn only with your physician's supervision.
Limit your activity.
Exercise only moderately.
Walk
one to three miles each day if convenient and comfortable.
Rest as much as your schedule will permit.
Prepare yourself for temporary mental discomforts, such as impatience,
crankiness, and anxiety.
Expect some physical discomforts, especially on the second day. You may have
fleeting hunger pains, dizziness, or the "blahs." Withdrawal from
Caffeine
and sugar may cause headaches.
Physical
annoyances may also include weakness, tiredness, or sleeplessness.
The first two or three days are usually the hardest. As you continue to fast,
you will likely experience a sense of well-being both physically and
spiritually. However, should you feel hunger pains, increase your liquid intake.
STEP 5: Put Yourself on a Schedule
For maximum spiritual benefit, set aside ample time to be alone with Yahweh.
Listen for His leading. The more time you spend with Him, the
more
meaningful your fast will be.
Morning
Begin your day in praise and worship.
Read
and meditate on Yahweh's Word, preferably on your knees.
Invite
the Ruach HaKodesh/Holy
Spirit to work in you to will and to do His good pleasure according to
Philippians 2:13.
Invite
Yahweh to use you. Ask Him to show you how to influence your world, your
family, your set apart assembly, your community, your country,
and
beyond.
Pray
for His vision for your life and empowerment to do His will.
Return to prayer and Yahweh's Word.
Take a short prayer walk.
Spend time in intercessory prayer for your community's and nation's leaders,
for the world's unreached millions, for your family
or special needs.
Evening
Get alone for an unhurried time of "seeking His face."
If
others are fasting with you, meet together for prayer.
Avoid
television or any other distraction that may dampen your spiritual focus.
When possible, begin and end each day on your knees with your spouse for a
brief time of praise and thanksgiving to Yahweh. Longer periods
of time
with Yahweh in prayer and study of His Word are often better spent alone.
A dietary routine is vital as well. Dr. Julio C. Ruibal
- a nutritionist, pastor, and specialist iin fasting and prayer - suggests a
daily schedule and list
of juices you may
find useful and satisfying. Modify this schedule and the drinks you take to
suit your circumstances and tastes.
Fruit juices, preferably freshly
squeezed or blended and diluted in 50 percent distilled water if the fruit is
acid. Apple, pear, grapefruit, papaya,
watermelon, or other
fruit juices are generally preferred. If you cannot do your own juicing, buy
juices without sugar or additives.
Fresh vegetable juice made from lettuce, celery, and carrots in three
equal parts.
Herb tea with a drop of honey. Avoid black tea or any tea with caffeine.
Broth made from boiling potatoes, celery, and carrots with no salt. After
boiling about half an hour, pour the water into a container and drink it.
Tips on Juice Fasting Drinking fruit juice will
decrease your hunger pains and give you some natural sugar energy. The taste
and lift will motivate
and strengthen you to
continue.
The
best juices are made from fresh watermelon, lemons, grapes, apples, cabbage, beets,
carrots, celery, or leafy green vegetables. In cold
weather, you may
enjoy a warm vegetable broth.
Mix
acidic juices (orange and tomato) with water for your stomach's sake.
Avoid
caffeinated drinks. And avoid chewing gum or mints, even if your breath is bad.
They stimulate digestive action in your stomach.
Breaking Your Fast
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When your designated time for fasting is finished, you will begin to eat again.
But how you break your fast is extremely important for your physical
and
spiritual well-being.
STEP 6: End Your Fast Gradually
Begin eating gradually. Do not eat solid foods immediately after your fast.
Suddenly reintroducing solid food to your stomach and digestive tract
will
likely have negative, even dangerous, consequences. Try several smaller meals
or snacks each day. If you end your fast gradually, the
beneficial physical
and spiritual effects will result in continued good health.
Here are some suggestions to help you end your fast
properly:
Break an extended water fast with fruit such as watermelon.
While continuing to drink fruit or vegetable juices, add the following:
First day: Add a raw salad.
Second
day: Add baked or boiled potato, no butter or seasoning.
Third
day: Add a steamed vegetable.
Thereafter:
Begin to reintroduce your normal diet.
Gradually
return to regular eating with several small snacks during the first few days.
Start with a little soup and fresh fruit such as watermelon and
Cantaloupe. Advance to a few tablespoons of solid foods such as raw fruits and
vegetables or a raw salad and baked potato.
A Final Word
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
STEP 7: Expect Results
If
you sincerely humble yourself before Yahweh, make teshuvah/repent,
pray, and seek Yahweh's face; if you consistently meditate on His Word,
you will experience a
heightened awareness of His presence (John
and
faith in Yahweh will be strengthened. You will feel mentally, spiritually, and
physically refreshed. You will see answers to your prayers.
A single fast, however, is not a spiritual cure-all. Just as we need fresh
infillings of the Holy Spirit daily, we also need new times of fasting before
Yahweh.
A 24-hour fast each week has been greatly rewarding to
many believers.
It takes time to build your spiritual fasting muscles. If you fail to make it
through your first fast, do not be discouraged. You may have tried to fast
too
long the first time out, or your may need to strengthen your understanding and
resolve. As soon as possible, undertake another fast until you
do
succeed. Yahweh will honor you for your faithfulness.
I encourage you to join us during this season of teshuvah/repentance
and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) in fasting and prayer again and again
until we truly
experience revival in our homes, our set apart assemblies, our beloved nation,
and throughout the world.
The above fasting guidance is just one example or suggestion among many.
Others are certainly possible. This one was actually culled from a
suggested
fasting schedule from the late Dr. Bill Bright of Campus Crusade for
Christ. While I clearly disagreed with Dr. Bright on some things
involving
doctrine, the man was doing the best with what Yahweh had showed him,
especially with our school children. May he rest in the shalom
of Yahshua. Hishe fasting
guidance is actually pretty tov. I will not be
able to respond as quickly from now on as I have many other emails to deal
with, but I will
continue to pray for you.
Shalom
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