God calls upon His people to call upon Him in times of trouble, not turn to the world for answers. That is what a Daniel Fast is all about.
People voting in the most significant primary to come in one of the least populace states are choosing between the party that stands for nothing and the one that only stands against things. That is an oversimplification to be sure, but one that someone is justified in concluding.
The Democrats claim to fight for education, women's rights, health care and the environment. Yet the Obama Administration and Congress did little for three of those things in over a year as the majority party.
The Republicans are against gay marriage, tax increases on the wealthy, abortion and pushing clean energy alternatives to oil. But more than anything, they are against President Obama.
God is for truth, righteousness and mercy. He is for everyone, and if God be for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31).
As with anyone in difficult times, we as His people must do more. But what we do cannot come of the world, but of the spirit. Fasting and praying is a way His people have sought Him in a deeper way for millennia. It is a great way to seek a breakthrough in your life and spirit, and if done corporately can bring those breakthroughs on a large scale.
That is why Shiloh Church of Oakland, CA, is joining many churches around the country in this Daniel Fast over the next three weeks. The more people who take part, the better.
A true Daniel Fast means giving up many of the foods we are accustomed to eating. It would be a strict vegan diet—no meat or dairy—but also no yeast, sweeteners, or solid fats. Considering the unhealthy diets of many Americans, this kind of cleanse might do them good.
However, at Shiloh the restrictions have been limited to no meat, no sweets, no bread. That is enough of a sacrifice for a predominantly African American congregation that has a large amount of all three in a standard diet. The most important thing in any fast is that it involves giving up something for God, but it means nothing if it is more than one can handle.
One cannot be oblivious to the emotional and physical health affects of depriving oneself of certain foods. But these sacrifices not as severe as a woman overheard at our church suggested—"our bodies need things like sugar and protein they are asking us to give up."
We do not need sugar, only carbohydrates that come from many foods. We do need protein, but meat is hardly the only source of that—replace them with nuts, beans and (if not doing the strict Daniel Fast) dairy.
If giving up foods is more than one can bear, there are other options. Many people are giving up certain activities on the internet, television or elsewhere.
For my part, I will be doing the full Daniel Fast every Sabbath within these three weeks, and the lesser one of my church brethren the other six days of each week. Giving up meat is no big deal—I eat an average of about three meals per week with meat—but bread is a huge sacrifice. But I also know from experience it gets easier as one gets more accustomed to the changes.
It is also important to note that fasting without prayer is a diet—it has its uses, but lacks the spiritual component. Make a more concerted effort to pray, read the Bible and meditate and your fast will have a better return.
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