Fasting is a practice that endured throughout biblical history and beyond, involving individuals, nations, and the church. Interestingly, it is rarely practiced today – individually or collectively in the body of Christ.

For clarification purposes, let’s define fasting.

According to the 1828 version of Webster’s Dictionary, fasting is “abstaining from food; the act of abstaining from food.” The next entry in the 1828 dictionary is “fasting-day, n. A day of fasting; a fast-day; a day of religious mortification and humiliation.”

Lent (The quadragesimal fast, or fast of forty days observed by the Christian church before Easter, the festival of our Savior’s resurrection. It begins at Ash Wednesday, and continues till Easter) [1] is the closest form of fasting in the Christian church today, though many denominations do not adhere to the practice. A Lenten fast does not involve abstaining from food altogether, but rather only certain foods or luxuries. [2]

While fasting has its primary roots in religious applications, fasting can have amazing results in improving the health of the blood, which results in the improved health of the body: the life of the flesh is in the blood.

I personally know a woman who was prescribed (by a medical doctor) a 40 day fast to heal a condition in her digestive tract. This was a final option for her because she refused all other treatments he prescribed, but desperately wanted relief. Her main concern with fasting was the prospect of starving to death. The doctor assured her she had enough fat stored on her body to keep her healthy for at least forty days, if not longer. As a result, she successfully fasted the full 40 days, and her condition reversed itself.

This is not something I would recommend to anyone unless under the treatment of a doctor. However, it is an option to consider if all other treatments have failed. In this series on fasting, we will not be advocating long term fasts (though we are not opposed to the idea), rather we will explore short term fasts, from perhaps a single meal to three days maximum.

Over the course of the next several posts, I will be sharing not only the biblical references to fasting, but also the physiological benefits of fasting. We will explore the digestive system, how it becomes damaged, and how fasting is the best way to restore it to health. We will see the connection between body weight and toxin storage in fat cells and how fasting can retrain the body to lose weight as in our youth. In addition, we will discuss how fasting can help one regain the vigor of youth and aid in a restful night sleep.

You may be opposed to fasting for fear of being hungry or perhaps you have medical conditions that require constant food intake – we will address those issues as well and provide a step by step guide to fasting with minimal to no discomfort.

This and much more will be addressed in this series.

Next: Principle #2: Healthy Blood Through Fasting: A Biblical Survey of Fasting.

Return To: Biblical Health Study

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[1]  Webster, Noah 1828 Webster’s Dictionary

[2] en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lent

Disclaimer:

Reformed Health exists so you can take control of your own health and be all that God has designed you to be. The information shared on Reformed Health is the sole opinion of the author and is not meant to diagnose or treat any illness. None or our claims have been evaluated by the FDA or any other government organization. We are not medical doctors, nor do we have any medical doctors on staff. If you are having a health emergency, please call 911, contact your doctor, or visit a local emergency room. Always consult your doctor before engaging in any new exercise regime.

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Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.

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© 2017 Mischelle Sandowich
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