Category Archives: Daniel Fast ebook

work for answered prayer

Fasting and Working for Answered Prayers

Have you ever been so desperate that you had to fast? You had to go to prayer? Your need was so critical that just saying you were praying about it wasn’t enough. A bedtime lay-me-down-to-sleep prayer wasn’t going to get it. You had to get down to business.

The question for the day is,

work for answered prayer

“Do we have to work for answered prayers? Do we have to fast continually, check off our Daily Bread chart and say so many “Our Father who art in heaven…” prayers?”

The answer is, “No.” We are the ones who need the changing, not God.

Fasting and prayer changes US, strengthens US, molds our character, changes our heart, mind and soul, gives US direction, wisdom, and clears up things that were muddy before!

The Bible tells us that the prophet Daniel fasted on a regular basis. It has even recorded three of those fasts for us to look at and observe. In one of them he goes completely without any food at all. “And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes…” Daniel 9:3 KJV.

In the other two fasts that are recorded in the book of Daniel, he participated in partial fasts where he ate some foods, but refrained from others.

Each time Daniel fasted, we can find one thing he was very consistent with; he never failed to pray!

Look at the verse above again in Daniel 9:3, to seek by prayer and supplications.”  Even when it doesn’t specifically mention prayer, we know Daniel prayed because he was a Hebrew prophet and a man of God. He would not have fasted without prayer! The Jewish people understood that the two went together.

God can speak to us because we have allowed Him to cleanse things from our minds when we fast. We have taken time to be with Him and pushed some things aside; things that we liked, maybe even loved, that were important to us. We laid them down in order to be with Him.

Our motives must be pure when we pray. “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.” James 4:3 ESV. We are praying for our needs, not necessarily our wants. Max Lucado said it so well, “You have to wonder if God’s most merciful act is His refusal to answer some of our prayers!”

Our heart must be right! “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me…” Psalm 66:18 KJV.

We must pray in faith, believing and we pray His will in all things.  “And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.” 1 John 5:14 ESV.  

Then we must pray with perseverance! “Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.” Luke 18:1 NIV.

And we must be thankful. “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!” 1 Chronicles 16:34 ESV.

When we fast, we show the Lord that we want to draw closer to Him and lay aside things that might hinder us in our walk. We aren’t bargaining with God and we are not begging God. We aren’t jumping through hoops or just checking off boxes. We just realize that if our flesh is submitted to Him, His wants and desires for us become OUR wants and desires. We begin to reflect His glory and not our own!

And even if the situation doesn’t change, WE have been changed, WE have been strengthened for whatever lies ahead.

The Daniel Fast Devotional

In The Daniel Fast Devotional, we talk about a different person in the Bible who sought God by fasting every day of the 21 day fast. Some of them were desperate like Hannah, she just HAD to fast too! Others did it out of selfishness as with Ahab and Jezebel. Each story is true, intriguing, and will teach us the good and the bad motives behind fasting. Also, at the end of each chapter, there are wonderful recipes that are Daniel Fast approved. Get your copy today!

When Ye Fast: Tighten that Belt!

When Ye Fast: Tighten that Belt! Today we are talking about putting on the Armor of God. We are posting every day in January for those that are beginning the New Year with fasting! You can read yesterday’s post here, here and here.

Jump here and read the scripture first! I will wait for you! It’s a little long but necessary.

Awesome, so now we know that putting on the armor of God gives us power to resist the enemy. Paul tells us the battle is not with people, it is “against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places”.

Spiritual warfare. This is serious stuff. In order to stand, in order to be effective in our own circle, to be a witness, to have the strength and wisdom to recognize an attack from the enemy and how to resist, we must put on that armor every day. A soldier wouldn’t think of going out to face his enemy without his suit!

Today’s average soldier carries at least 60 pounds of gear, including weaponry and body armor, which we will discuss later. If they are going on an extended mission, that weight could double! And their cold weather load could be over 100 pounds. Yikes!

They have to be strong, they have to be prepared to even suit up. The soldier will have spent hours upon hours in training and much practice on how to even get all of his gear on.

While on a fast of any kind, we must be aware every day of what we are putting on.

  • Is it godly?
  • Is it necessary?
  • Is it beneficial for the Kingdom’s sake?

Fasting is not just going without food; if we are not praying and asking God to reveal our shortcomings and ways to draw closer to Him, we are wasting our time. God will speak to you during your fast and begin to show you things that are not part of your necessary armor. And He will also reveal those things that you may have discarded that are crucial to your walk.

So, whether you have begun your fast or not, consider things that might be getting in the way of your armor. Remember, the armor of God will strengthen you, not drag you down! Ask God to show you things that have crept in and you might need to address.

As you can see, the first thing mentioned is the Belt of Truth. There is no point even trying to put on any of the other pieces of armor if we are not girded, completely wrapped in truth! Winning the battle, any and every battle of spiritual warfare, doesn’t require us to take on the devil alone, no, to win this battle we submit to our God, put on truth and all of the armor of God and the devil doesn’t stand a chance!

Jesus said, I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6. 

The Apostle Paul based his reference to the armor on the Roman soldier of his day. This was a soldier prepared for battle. Their belt was not like we wear today to hold up our pants or as a fashion accessory. This belt was a thick leather and metal band which also had a protective piece hanging down from it in the front. This belt held their sword and other weapons. Did you catch that? This first piece of armor that we are to put on, this Truth, holds the Sword, the Word of God! Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.” John 17:17. The Word is Truth!

Think of the power portrayed here. Think of the power given to us, to you, when you put on the belt of truth. This is the foundation for all other pieces of armor, this is the foundation of our faith. When we are rooted and grounded in Truth, we are unshakable and we are able to stand against the attacks of the enemy.

The best way to do that, to be on guard, is to fast and pray.

Temptation will come while you are fasting, expect it. Jesus, who was hungry the Bible says, responded to temptation with the Word of God. He declares that it isn’t the temporary things of this world that will sustain us in difficult times, it is the Word, that foundation, that Truth that comes directly from GOD, the Creator of the Universe, that will

  • Keep us
  • Protect us
  • Fulfill us
  • Convict us
  • Strengthen us
  • Provide for us
  • Watch over us
  • Save us and much, much more!

The Bible says to “gird your loins”, not a phrase you hear much of any more for sure. But the meaning is far reaching and pretty awesome. Gird means to tighten your belt, to get ready for a dangerous situation, prepare for a military attack, be ready for any confrontation!

Tomorrow we will look at the Breastplate of Righteousness. Be blessed as you fast unto the Lord, whether you are fasting now or later in the month, I pray you are encouraged to STAND.

Do you have your copy of my easy-to-read Fasting Devotional? Don’t let the title fool you! It is a 21 day devotion for ANY FAST. Each day is an example of someone in the Bible who fasted, some for the wrong reason as well, and what we can glean from them. There are also Daniel Fast recipes and instructions for following that fast as well. Available at Amazon.com in Kindle or paperback!

“I just hate Christmas, don’t you?”

I just hate Christmas, don't you?She was in the ladies room. The Cracker Barrel ladies room. Dolly Parton’s I’ll Be Home With Bells On was blaring from the speakers overhead. Washing her hands and trying to get the dust off her coat, without looking up, she said,

“I just hate Christmas, don’t you?”

My heart just sunk. This 70-something attractive woman was hurting badly. Reaching out as best I could, I stood in a busy bathroom and listened to her story:

“My husband died in 1998, I lost a son five years ago and then in November I lost my best friend, my miniature dachshund, Dottie Sue.” This little companion was the love of her life and constant friend and traveling buddy.

She talked on and on about how hard Christmas is when you are alone, how you wish it would just go away and didn’t I feel the same? “How am I going to get through it?”

We kept getting interrupted and moved around and out of the way but I continued listening, consoling, encouraging and reminding her of the wonderful memories she had of those she loved. I was so touched by her pain that I had tears in my eyes as well.

My phone was ringing from my purse, I was meeting up with someone to transfer a precious package, I answered it once and we continued talking and then it rang again. This time, although my call was less than ten seconds, she squeezed my arm, said, “Thank you” and took off. I tried to follow her but the crowd coming in prevented me from grabbing her and by the time I reached the dining room I didn’t see a sign of my hurting friend, nor in the parking lot.

What did it all mean? Why would the Lord send someone to me that I couldn’t help? And what else could I have said, before she bolted, that would have made a difference in her hurting heart?

I felt such failure, defeat and disappointment that day. I have pondered it ever since and I guess if anything, it has taught me a great lesson.

Christmas brings memories for everyone but they are not always happy ones. So what can we do in gatherings of friends and family? What do we say when someone is sad, lonely, missing a loved one or even a pet that is no longer by their side?

We just listen.

Someone who will sit and listen to those who are hurting is a rare thing. Most of the time people are too busy or they just don’t know what to say and avoid the uncomfortable. But the one with the broken heart may just want to share about their loss or their feelings, just as my friend in the ladies room wanted to talk about Dottie Sue. She knew I couldn’t fix it, she knew I couldn’t bring back her tiny friend and she knew I couldn’t make her pain go away.

But maybe, just maybe, in some small way, she was a little cheered up because she was able to share about the one she loved and missed so much this Christmas season. Her eyes would light up when she would tell me of her best friend’s puppy-like antics, even though Dottie Sue was 17 years old. She was even smiling a little while recalling the good times she had with the dog, her son and her husband. (Remember, the furry friend had only passed away three weeks ago.)

If you do nothing else at your holiday gatherings, seek out the one who is in the corner, watching the festivities. Or the one who is biting their lip to keep the tears from flowing. Perhaps it is the one who you know has suffered much this past year but is trying hard to not show it and “spoil” the day for everyone else. Go give them a hug, a squeeze on the hand, an “I love you”, and maybe even sit down beside them and ask, “How are you doing?”

There may be tears, but you have allowed them to share and you have shown you care. And the tears are healing balm to a hurting soul! If they don’t want to talk about it, respect that too and don’t push. Some people will not want to become emotional in public and some are just private. But many will appreciate you not ignoring their pain at this normally happy time.

“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” Psalm 34:18.

You are the hands and feet of Jesus at Christmas, the most wonderful, and to some the most stressful, time of the year. He reminds us that He didn’t stay a baby but He gave His life on a tree for all of us, redeeming all who would take on His name. It is then our responsibility, our mission, to reach out, to love, to comfort, encourage. Remind them of the hope beyond this “veil of tears” and that one day Jesus will wipe ALL of those tears away and we will be reunited with those we miss so much.

So, what would Jesus do?

Jesus would listen. Jesus would love those that say they hate Christmas…and they really don’t hate it, they are just hurting. Don’t ignore their hurt and don’t ignore them just because you don’t feel you can say the right things. Just be there, just listen and just love like Jesus.


Of course we don’t just fast in JANUARY, but it is a great start to your New Year. GET your copy of The Daniel Fast Devotional. Available in paperback and Kindle.

The Daniel Fast Devotional