Private Religious Fasting and Abstinence: When, Why and How to Fast

S

Sam Jer

Puritan Board Sophomore
17 But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,
18 so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. (Matthew 6)
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What is the place for a day of religious fasting held by a single individual, hosehold, or other arrangement outside of a public fast of the church? What reasons would warrant such a fast — and are any of them ones that always apply (such as general repentance)?
Are any of these warranted reasons:
- Before a major descision
- Praying for someone, or regarding some great disaster
- To prepare for worship
- Just because
- Habitual fasting at set intervals (such as the fasts on certain days of the week that were common in certain times)

Does a partial fast (fasting from certain foods or luxuries) have warrant in God's word?

Other than praying and skipping meals, what would one do on a fast day?
 
Hey there, sorry, I have to rush to work; but if it is of interest to you; I put together this Puritan Study on Fasting. Its kind of in a rough draft, but it may be of use to you in answering some of your questions. I know the parts I have read have been to me.

A Puritan Study on Fasting -.pdf

drive.google.com drive.google.com
 
Hello Samuel,

I have heavy loads to carry, figuratively speaking, and at almost 82 years of age am somewhat frail of constitution, and mentally my elevator doesn't always go to the top floor. Yet folks depend on me to feed them the bread of heaven given me by the LORD.

Sometimes my faith is weak / faint, that is, I do not have a sense of His presence, and find it hard to pray. I will often disregard the lack of His presence and go simply by the promises He has given in His word – sheer faith. To compound the difficulty I often am deeply involved in worldly matters, not sinful, but as in having to move from one apartment to another and all the minute logistical matters I must be on top of and think on constantly, these distract me in prayer.

Then there are the sweet foods I like very much – and need to be very careful of as triglycerides can convert to plaque and clog my arteries and end my life "prematurely" – which the devil loves to tell me I am in sin regarding when I do eat such (a lot of such food around this season); this also is a distraction in praying.

I am very grateful that the Lord is pleased that I pray notwithstanding all the above, yet, I have a great love for a clear sense of His presence which makes prayer much easier. Fasting, as much as Pig Self hates it, I find a source of joy and spiritual / mental energy, as my heart is glad and strong.

Often just fasting one meal is a great help. Sometimes two meals is even better. A lot more rarely one or two days (gotta be careful as I take critical meds, and some need to be taken with foods).

Over the last 55-plus years of being Christ's, fasting has been both a bane and blessing to me. A bane, as the devil seeks to make it a compulsion and a great sin if I don't do it (bad teaching on this early on did not help), but the Lord has helped me get clearer on His guidance, and how His Spirit works in getting me "both to will and to do of His good pleasure" (Phil 2:13) – which is very important and nuanced / fine-tuned, a tonic to this thick head.

A year or so ago, one new to the congregation was in serious bondage to an addiction, with demonic activity attending, and it was a "natural reflex" to fortify my spiritual strength and discernment by fasting two days, in an attempt to help this person.

The bottom line is that my faith needs to be strong – faith in His word. When I pray it needs to be in spiritual reality. Lives, souls, depend on it. Plus I am a needy character, spiritually – a spiritual desperado coming out of great darkness half a century back – and need to be near my Saviour to be spiritually alive. Fasting is an organic help in this.

I hope these thoughts are helpful.
 
Sam Jer said:
What is the place for a day of religious fasting held by a single individual, hosehold, or other arrangement outside of a public fast of the church? What reasons would warrant such a fast — and are any of them ones that always apply (such as general repentance)?
Are any of these warranted reasons:
- Before a major decision
- Praying for someone, or regarding some great disaster
- To prepare for worship
- Just because
- Habitual fasting at set intervals (such as the fasts on certain days of the week that were common in certain times)

[Q1] Does a partial fast (fasting from certain foods or luxuries) have warrant in God's word?

[Q2] Other than praying and skipping meals, what would one do on a fast day?
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All good.

Answer 1 – Sure. Daniels's 21-day partial fast. (Daniel 10:2 ff.)

Answer – This question has many possible answers. Some days, I work all day. And when need be, that next night, too. On the other extreme, I've spent whole days -- even weeks alone in the woods with a Bible and God.

Here's a link to a repost I made a short time ago from a 2016 post.

Following are two excerpts to whet your appetite.
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Fasting can be fun.

I'll be 72 in November, or perhaps I have just exhaled my last breath.
But, "I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able." (2 Timothy 1:12)

Before this year, I kept all my fasting as private as possible. It just seemed stupid to tell anyone at all. Who wants to go through all that trouble and risk doing it for the praise of man? But I decided to share some of what I learned. So, here goes just a bit.
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Over the years, I have fasted hundreds of days. And most of those fasts were for multiple days.
It seemed natural for a Christian to fast. When you hear Jesus speak of fasting with His friends, you get the idea that (fasting) comes with the turf.

I know a little about the physiology and mental challenges of private, secret fasting and prayer. I've made mistakes. One time, in zeal for my marriage, I thought the occasion warranted a fast. So... I'd been reading and meditating on Paul's three-day fast following the vision he saw on Damascus Road.
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skip lines
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Actually, for all my experience with fasting, I know more about fasting than I have experienced.
That's enough of me. Here's a link to a thread I started on Feb 3, 2016. But, recognizing my weakness, I copied the following excerpt from Author Wallis's book on fasting.

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God's Chosen Fast - Isa. 58:6

Below is an excerpt from God's Chosen Fast by Arthur Wallis
Google Books (partial only): https://goo.gl/WR4nZU

"Arthur Wallis offers this balanced study on fasting and seeks to give to the subject the weight that Scripture gives it while also avoiding exaggeration and over-emphasis. This book includes a biblical index and an appendix dealing with the textual problems surrounding four references to fasting in the New Testament."

Some of you may think that the information by Wallis is extreme or unrealistic and, in at least one place, in error. I.e., "promised healing."
I do not agree. Certainly there are health reasons that prevent some from fasting. But for most of us, fasting could be an important addition to our spiritual lives.
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There's lots more.
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Sam Jer said:
What is the place for a day of religious fasting held by a single individual, hosehold, or other arrangement outside of a public fast of the church? What reasons would warrant such a fast — and are any of them ones that always apply (such as general repentance)?
Are any of these warranted reasons:
- Before a major descision
- Praying for someone, or regarding some great disaster
- To prepare for worship
- Just because
- Habitual fasting at set intervals (such as the fasts on certain days of the week that were common in certain times)

Does a partial fast (fasting from certain foods or luxuries) have warrant in God's word?

Other than praying and skipping meals, what would one do on a fast day?
Click to expand...
Before a major decision(s), for corporate repentance, to draw nigh unto God, to call upon the Lord for specific prayer needs, and for repentance (Jesus said some sins only came out by prayer and fasting) are all reasons I would suggest for fasting. Here is a most helpful guide from a'Brakel: https://purelypresbyterian.com/2016/04/26/wilhelmus-a-brakel-on-fasting/
 
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