Prayer And Fasting - Why Do It

How much do you know about the spiritual benefit of prayer and fasting? Have you ever done it or studied it seriously? What exactly are the benefits, if any?

Truth is, there are huge benefits in combining prayer and fasting, and God’s Word has quite a bit to say about it.

This might surprise you a little based on how much I trust, believe, and write about the Bible, but I do not fast. And yet, I think I want to. For some reason, I am desiring it, but I want to understand it first.

Our church does prayer and fasting at the beginning of every year. So why? Can it be done anytime? And when should you do it? When it comes to prayer, I think most people believe in it, yet we tend to save it for real times of need, or at a meal, or bedtime with the kids.

We all have a way of living, eating, and praying. Most people do not pray or fast. Why is that? I think it is because we are not aware of the power, strength, and intensity it could bring into our lives.

Fasting appears early and often in Scripture, long before it became a spiritual discipline. In the New Testament, the Greek word for fasting literally means not eating. No metaphor. No workaround. It is real deprivation. Food is basic to life, which is exactly why fasting speaks so loudly.

In the ancient world, fasting was a visible way to say, I need God more than food. Israel fasted in grief, repentance, desperation, and longing. Prophets fasted before speaking hard truth. Kings fasted when they realized their power had limits. And Jesus fasted before public ministry, a turning point moment in His life.

By the time of Jesus, fasting was common, but it had become distorted. Some used it to appear spiritual. So what exactly is it, and why fast?

Today, fasting is popular for health reasons. Historically, it has been practiced across cultures. Modern teaching points to physical benefits like giving the digestive system rest, improving insulin response, reducing inflammation, and increasing mental clarity. Even physically, restraint resets the body. That alone tells me something.

At its core, fasting is voluntary abstinence from food, sometimes from other comforts, for a spiritual purpose. But why spiritually, and what is the benefit?

David puts it plainly. “I humbled myself by fasting” (Psalm 35:13, NCV).

When Jesus fasted, it was deliberate. “Jesus fasted for forty days and nights” (Matthew 4:2, NCV). This was not accidental hunger. It was chosen dependence.

Biblical fasting is always paired with prayer. “That kind does not come out except by prayer and fasting” (Matthew 17:21, NCV). Fasting without prayer is just dieting. Prayer without fasting can still be powerful, but fasting sharpens awareness and brings more honesty into prayer.

Jesus also warned about motive. “When you fast, don’t be sad like the hypocrites… Your Father sees what is done in secret” (Matthew 6:16–18, NCV). If fasting makes you feel proud or super spiritual, it has already failed.

In Scripture, fasting is tied to lowering oneself. Not harming the body, but emptying it. You intentionally weaken the flesh so the heart can speak clearly.

It may sound strange, but your inner posture changes when you fast. Your prayers change. Your awareness changes. There is no real way to understand that unless you actually try it. That is what I want to experience.

Fasting is not punishment. It is not earning. It does not impress God. God is not moved by our hunger. We are.

When fasting is paired with prayer, it exposes impatience, entitlement, irritability, and how quickly we reach for comfort instead of God. It interrupts that reflex. In a strange way, it does not increase God’s power. It reduces ours. Less flesh. Less satisfying desire. More listening. It quickly teaches the difference between what we want and what we need.

So how do you actually fast? You decide a time to begin. You abstain from food, and sometimes from things like devices, alcohol, TV, or anything crowding out God. The goal is to replace eating with prayer. Listen. Watch what happens to your humility and attentiveness. Even a short fast matters. God values sincerity over length.

Prayer connects us to the Source of life. It removes the normal posture we live with before God. It positions us for more of Him and less of us. As the flesh dulls through fasting, the spirit sharpens through prayer. It is not a spiritual intensifier, even though it intensifies. It is surrender. We empty so God fills.

Jesus fasted. There is a reason. We need to approach serious things with a radical change. That kind of seriousness looks like prayer and fasting.

Jesus said, “People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4, NCV).

God promises, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13, NCV).

Here is one of the key benefits. Peace can arrive even when circumstances do not change. Surrender stops feeling like loss and starts building trust. Wisdom deepens. Often the miracle of prayer is that we change before anything around us does.

Fasting empties us. Prayer fills us. And maybe some things have never changed because we did not take dependence seriously enough.

So if you have never tried it, consider a real fast. Pray more deeply and honestly than you ever have. Then watch. Listen. And see what Jesus does.

LORD, please help me pray like never before and fast like it is real. IJNIP amen ♥️