The Daniel Fast is a 21-day fasting period where one abstains from meat, dairy, processed sugar and processed carbs in an effort to get closer to God through prayer and worship

I went into this fasting period with a completely different mindset compared to other fasts I’ve done in the past. The only expectation I had was gaining clarity: clarity in life, clarity with what path I should be on, clarity about my relationships, and above all, clarity with my relationship with God.

Not going to lie, the thought of having to restrict all the GOOD food out of my diet was not necessarily appeasing. But, I knew that dying to my flesh desires for donuts and ice cream and McDonald’s fries and candy, was the best way that I could train my mind to focus on God. Without being filled with all those things, the purpose was to fill myself with the word and spirit of God.

What I Learned from the Daniel Fast

My flesh is weak

By Day 4, I was breaking down. I was irritable at work, I wanted to quit 5 different times, and I cried to God. I realized that, now a a days, I don’t like when things are hard for me. I feel like my life has already been hard, so the thought of things being difficult gets me irritated. So, the night of Day 4, I listened to a Transformation Church podcast and regrouped. The fast was going to be a journey, but above all, I wanted to seek God and get clarity about my purpose. And that overpowered my hunger pains (like, actual stomach pains y’all).

Fasting is an Essential Part to my Faith Walk

Filling myself up with His word and spirit fills me up to pour out to others. As I pour out, I eventually become empty, so I need to fill up again. And fasting is a great way to do that. The fast can be a day, 3 days, a week, or longer depending on your own personal conviction. And it doesn’t have to be strictly related to food. There are many things we can fast from in order to gain clarity.

My Walk with God is Mine Only

I realized I needed to stop comparing my Christian life to someone else’s. Being motivated to do more in our faith walk based on what we see exemplified in someone else can be a good thing. The misstep occurs when we try to emulate and copy someone else’s life in hopes that we’ll get what they get. This walk is yours and yours only. That person you’re trying so hard to be like will not speak on your behalf to God, only you will.

Self-control is a Commodity

Restricting myself from certain foods opened my eyes to how easily I could be swayed. With this fast, there were many times where I knew for a fact that I was being tested. I can say that I probably passed those tests with a solid C. But, I was very much aware of my emotions and took control of them, instead of allowing them to take complete control of me.

A few things that I was hoping to start the release from as I ended the Daniel Fast, including:

• Anger
• Envy
• Feeling Inadequate
• Imposter Syndrome
• Feeling Unloved
• Financial Worries

So, as I completed this fast, I prayed that God would release these things from my life. Because I know that once these are released, I can truly live my best life at the capacity that God wants me to. I know this may take some time. Some may be released faster than others or the release might be a constant journey..

But, my goal for this Daniel Fast was my way of saying, “Here I am Lord, ready to rebuild this relationship”.

A relationship requires effort on both parties. God has continuously shown effort into the relationship He has with us. But, that effort can only be manifested once we decide to show up. So here I am, showing up.

If you are at a crossroads with your faith, I understand completely. God is patient, faithful, and loving. He is waiting for you to come back to Him. I encourage you to attempt a fast, even if you start with one day out of the month, and you’ll be surprised what can happen.

Until next time…

All Photography by Claire Huntsberger