Fasting Experiences

[David_AB]

Has anyone tried fasting to get closer to God, to hear him or to get something e.g. healing for a loved one.
What are your expeiences?

I have been fasting because I want to hear from God, but also some healing from my daughter for her OCD. Tuesdays and Saturdays.

The maximum I have managed to fast is just short of 48 hours.
I have had no success at all. No closer to God, no word from him, no healing or sign of healing for my daughter.

Then I came across Isaiah chapter 58, True and False Fasting.
Verse 3:
‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,
‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you have not noticed?’
Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please.

This struck a chord with me. Yes I fast but I continue to use the internet, watch TV, use my phone, WhatsApp, Twitter and so on.

Verse 4-5:
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
only a day for people to humble themselves?

Finally Verses 6-11:
“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness[a] will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.
11 The Lord will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.

What are the thoughts of those in particular who have fasted. Have you had success?

 

[Greg J.]

Oops, I was 2 minutes too late to only post this into this forum. Here is a copy from Christian Advice.

@David_AB, note the "healing will quickly appear" in your citation. You are insightful to note that a lifestyle change may be a part of what God seeks from us. He is looking for people devoted to him, and fasting twice a week is a powerful and priceless component of that. It is a part of what we can do to express our will that God's will be done on earth (ala Ephesians 6:10-18). All other kinds of obedience do the same thing. God's presence is life and healing. Getting more God is a great blessing for anyone, the results of which are up to God. (None of the the things you mentioned are inherently bad by themselves, but you and everyone would be best off if all your daily activities stem from devotion to the Lord.)

Fasting as a way to get God to do something reveals an element that may (or may not) be present in an attitude that could use some adjustment. God is not a machine. There is no such thing as, if I do A, B, C, then God will do D. God already wants to grant your request. Fasting is a way of humbling yourself before God and choosing to experience the recognition that you need God for all your needs (such as food). A better attitude will have a person being obedient to God as a way of expressing their decision to be devoted to him (and accept whatever the Lord gives or doesn't give), of which fasting is one method. Building your life on the rock (Luke 6:46-49) is the more general form of what we need to do for (many of) God's blessings. Along with the other spiritual disciplines, this is drawing closer to God, as in:

But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. (James 4:6-8, 1984 NIV)

But of course, also:

Ask and keep on asking and it will be given to you; seek and keep on seeking and you will find; knock and keep on knocking and the door will be opened to you. (Matthew 7:7, AMP). Also read through verse 12.

 

[brinny]

Has anyone tried fasting to get closer to God, to hear him or to get something e.g. healing for a loved one.
What are your expeiences?

I have been fasting because I want to hear from God, but also some healing from my daughter for her OCD. Tuesdays and Saturdays.

The maximum I have managed to fast is just short of 48 hours.
I have had no success at all. No closer to God, no word from him, no healing or sign of healing for my daughter.

Then I came across Isaiah chapter 58, True and False Fasting.
Verse 3:
‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,
‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you have not noticed?’
Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please.

This struck a chord with me. Yes I fast but I continue to use the internet, watch TV, use my phone, WhatsApp, Twitter and so on.

Verse 4-5:
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
only a day for people to humble themselves?

Finally Verses 6-11:
“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness[a] will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.
11 The Lord will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.

What are the thoughts of those in particular who have fasted. Have you had success?

This gives me a lot of "food for thought" so to speak.

Thank you and God bless you and your daughter. Praying for your precious daughter's healing. (((hug)))

 

[~Anastasia~]

Has anyone tried fasting to get closer to God, to hear him or to get something e.g. healing for a loved one.
What are your expeiences?

I have been fasting because I want to hear from God, but also some healing from my daughter for her OCD. Tuesdays and Saturdays.

The maximum I have managed to fast is just short of 48 hours.
I have had no success at all. No closer to God, no word from him, no healing or sign of healing for my daughter.

Then I came across Isaiah chapter 58, True and False Fasting.
Verse 3:
‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,
‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you have not noticed?’
Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please.

This struck a chord with me. Yes I fast but I continue to use the internet, watch TV, use my phone, WhatsApp, Twitter and so on.

Verse 4-5:
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
only a day for people to humble themselves?

Finally Verses 6-11:
“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness[a] will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.
11 The Lord will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.

What are the thoughts of those in particular who have fasted. Have you had success?

Hello, David.

We fast very frequently in the Orthodox Church, and I have had experiences in fasting before becoming Orthodox.

It has been a very great tool in helping to draw closer to God, yes. And to hear from God, in the sense that it reveals what God wants us to know - not in the sense that I'm asking Him to answer a particular question. And it should certainly be accompanied by other things as well in order to accomplish these as fully as possible. Yes, fasting from distractions, fasting from unkind thoughts if they are a tendency, or unkind words, or prideful indulgences, or whatever one might struggle with. Generally also meant to be accompanied by increased prayer, at some seasons we have more Church services to strengthen us, we expect ourselves to give more freely to others, and so on. Yes, the benefits in this way are tremendous, and I have found it very effective. They ARE fasts ordained by God in the sense that from the earliest days of Christianity these things began to develop, under the leadership of the Apostles and those they ordained.

Fasting serves another important purpose - disciplining the flesh, especially to weaken the will that asserts itself against the spirit. This is accomplished in longer fasts too, but I find it a bigger purpose in our regular Wednesday/Friday fasts. But you didn't ask about that.

As to fasting in order to "get something" from God, I have serious doubts about that. I was taught to do it in some denominations, and I heard a story from a church leader who said it worked for him. We have some precedent, slightly similar, in King David fasting for the life of Bathsheba's infant, but that was also a fast of repentance. And the infant died. But overall, that just "feels" to me like giving God an ultimatum, or throwing a bit of a tantrum, trying to extort God, or something along those lines. Whatever it happens to seem to me, it is never good. We ARE sacrificing for God, but not something He asked for, and we are doing it on our own terms and expecting to make Him do something in return. I just don't see it as a good thing, unless perhaps it is a fast of repentance.

I hope that doesn't sound harsh. I've done it myself, years ago. But my prayers always seem to be answered better by just asking in love and trust, not trying to offer God anything in return, manipulate Him, etc.

 

[Hidden In Him]

Fasting is a way of humbling yourself before God and choosing to experience the recognition that you need God for all your needs (such as food).

Correct.

I know this is a double-posted thread, but since this is the one listed under Fasting, thought I should repost my response here. I also caught an error in the verse quotation I used that have now I clarified below:

David, God was not condemning fasting in Isaiah 58, He was condemning their motives, and the fact that they were not fulfilling the primary purpose of fasting: humbling themselves, which should have been their primary motivation. The passage includes these words also:

If you fast for quarreling and strife, and to smite the lowly with your fists, why do you fast to Me as you do this day, so that your voice may be heard in crying?... If you turn your foot away because of the Sabbath, so as not to do your pleasure on the holy days, and shall call the Sabbaths delightful, holy unto God, if you shall not lift up your foot to do work, nor speak a word in anger out of your mouth, then shall you trust upon the Lord. (Isaiah 58:4, Isaiah 58:13 LXX)

Instead of letting fasting move them towards greater devotion to God and simultaneously distance themselves from their sins, they were just... fasting, thinking this would somehow move God to bless them. But no character change was happening. They were still beating and abusing servants, still getting ugly during religious debates, still going about pursuing their own earthly pleasures and working to make more money on the sabbaths instead of honoring God.

If you let fasting humble you, it is the humbling process that puts you in position to receive the blessings of God, in particular the spiritual blessings of wisdom, revelation, the gifts of the Spirit, authority in the word of God, etc. The object is to become a more righteous man, and get closer to God. Then, when you pray, your prayers get answered more frequently because you bring yourself in line more with His will, by becoming more perceptive to it.

Fast for the power to heal. That would be a good, godly objective (though don't expect it to come overnight. It may be years in coming, and only after extensive, consistent prayer, with great perseverance). But just fasting for the immediate healing of a loved one is kind of a misunderstanding and abuse if you will of fasting's true purpose (though I know you certainly didn't mean it to be that way. No condemnation intended).

For now, just keep praying for your daughter. As for getting closer to God, don't expect to receive the rewards during the fast. They usually come later, when God determines you're ready for it to be honored.

 

[dzheremi]

The glories and blessings of the fasts of the Church are innumerable. In the Coptic Orthodox Church, we fast the seven fasts which range from the weekly Wednesday/Friday fast throughout the entire year (with the exception of the fifty days after the resurrection) to the Great Fast/Lent, which is 55 days. So we as a Church are well acquainted with fasting and the blessings that come through this discipline.

Some of these are mentioned in the following prayer prayed during the Great Fast by the priest during the fraction of the Eucharistic bread (to be distributed to the servants and the people). I cannot answer questions specific to anyone's situation, but I can say that fasting is an integral part of the Christian life, as it has been since the beginning, so I hope that anyone reading this can gain insight into the practice of it from these words.

O Master, Lord God the Pantocrator, who sent His Only-Begotten Son into the world; He taught us the Law and commandments written in the Holy Gospel.

And He taught us that fasting and prayer cast out demons, when He said, "This kind cannot come out by anything, but by prayer and fasting."

Fasting and prayer are those which raised Elijah to heaven and saved Daniel from the lions´ den.

Fasting and prayer are those which Moses pursued until he received the Law and Commandments written with the finger of God.

Fasting and prayer are those which the people of Nineveh pursued until God had mercy on them and forgave them their sins, and lifted His wrath away from them.

Fasting and prayer are those which the prophets pursued, and prophesied concerning the advent of Christ many generations before His coming.

Fasting and prayer are those which the apostles pursued, until they preached to all nations and made them Christians, baptizing them in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Fasting and prayer are those which the martyrs pursued until they shed their blood for the Name of Christ, who confessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate.

Fasting and prayer are those which the righteous and the just and the cross-bearers pursued until they dwelt in the mountains and deserts and holes of the earth because of their great love for Christ the King.

And we too, let us fast from all evil, in purity and righteousness, and let us proceed forth to this Holy Sacrifice and partake of it with thanksgiving, so that with a pure heart, an enlightened soul, an unashamed face, a faith unfeigned, a perfect love, and a firm hope, we may dare with boldness, without fear, to pray to You, O God, the Holy Father, who are in the heavens, and say, "Our Father..."​

 

[brinny]

Has anyone tried fasting to get closer to God, to hear him or to get something e.g. healing for a loved one.
What are your expeiences?

I have been fasting because I want to hear from God, but also some healing from my daughter for her OCD. Tuesdays and Saturdays.

The maximum I have managed to fast is just short of 48 hours.
I have had no success at all. No closer to God, no word from him, no healing or sign of healing for my daughter.

Then I came across Isaiah chapter 58, True and False Fasting.
Verse 3:
‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,
‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you have not noticed?’
Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please.

This struck a chord with me. Yes I fast but I continue to use the internet, watch TV, use my phone, WhatsApp, Twitter and so on.

Verse 4-5:
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
only a day for people to humble themselves?

Finally Verses 6-11:
“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness[a] will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.
11 The Lord will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.

What are the thoughts of those in particular who have fasted. Have you had success?

Praying all is well with your daughter, and you too. And thank you again for your precious thoughts on fasting.

God bless you.