Numbers 11:4-5 The rabble(crowd) with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat!”.
The top three essentials for survival are air, water and sleep. Permanent damage can be caused to the brain if there is no oxygen supply for 4 minutes and death occurs within 6 minutes. Survival span without water is about 3 days. A death is evident if a person goes without sleep for 11 continuous days. Medical News Today confirmed that a healthy and fit person can go on a food fast for about 45 to 61 days! So most times we don’t need all the food we eat. There are no hard and fast rules in the scriptures regarding the number of days we must fast. Jesus, Moses and Elijah fasted for 40 days. Daniel fasted for 21 days; David fasted for 7 days, Esther fasted for 3 days and all the saints who operated in the power of God fasted for a dedicated period of time to tap into the power of God.
The Lord coined a “low-calorie diet fast” for the travelling horde of the Hebrew slaves. He fed them with manna and water. The manna was like coriander seed and looked like resin. (Numbers 11:7). They crushed it in mortar and cooked it as bread. The journey from Egypt to Canaan by foot was about 1 ½ weeks, however, the rebellious crowd remained in the desert on low-calorie Daniel Fast for 40 years! They complained about the divine provision of manna. Hence their belly became their god and the grave of their soul. Complaining during fasting will turn the fast into famine but worship during fasting will turn the fast into the festival of favour.
Three rules for fasting:
- Forced: Forced religious fast ends up in spiritual famine. The Pharisee in his loud prayer at the temple quoted I fast twice a week (Luke 18:12a) but the Tax Collector (sinner) stood at a distance and cried, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner’ (Luke 18:13b). Obligatory ritualistic fast avails no results. Fasting is a time of humbling, repenting, reconciling and renewing our covenant with God. Fasting that does not fumigate fallacies, unforgiveness and spiritual misconceptions is worthless. Don’t fast under compulsion.
- Flaunt: Flaunting about the fast is prohibited. “Moreover when you fast, don’t be like the hypocrites, with sad faces. For they disfigure their faces, that they may be seen by men to be fasting” (Matthew 6:16). Don’t announce to the world that you are fasting. We don’t have to put on a fasting face to seek special attention or applause. Fasting is between us and God. Don’t flaunt about the fast.
- Frazzle: Fasting without praying will frazzle us spiritually, emotionally and physically. ”Fasting is dedicated to a period of time to devote oneself to spiritual priorities of prayer without food”. Fasting from pleasurable food, imprudent words, impure thoughts, entertainment and social media is a fast that unlocks the favour of God.Imprudent fasting will fatigue and frazzle the body.
Forced religious fasting and flaunting during fasting will frazzle us physically and emotionally.
Matthew 6:17-18a But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Prayer: Pappa God, no one can fool you with religious or ritualistic fasting. Give me the grace to humble myself to the Biblical fasting without flaunting or frazzling. Amen.
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