Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning.
—Joel 2:12

Are you believing God for a mate? Do you need healing? Are there habits, strongholds, or oppression that cannot be broken in your life? Does it seem that no matter what, you can't get a financial breakthrough? Do feel far from God?

So have you tried everything with no results? There are some things that cannot be broken but by prayer and fasting. The Bible gives 28 examples of the powerful rewards of fasting in believers' lives. The biblical Greek word for fasting is nesteia, which means "to not eat." Fasting can involve abstaining from food, drink, sleep, or marital sexual relations to focus on spiritual growth for a period of time.

If we fast with the right motives, God describes the amazing benefits of fasting that we can expect (Isaiah 58:3–12). Fasting releases answers. Biblical fasting was almost always related to a situation, often an immediate one, which was a great concern to an individual or to a group of people. The Old Testament includes many examples of the Israelites' fasting when seeking the Lord's blessing or direction, followed by God's remarkable interventions. Jesus fasted for 40 days and nights before His temptation by Satan and before beginning His public ministry (Matthew 4:2). Paul and Barnabas spent time in prayer and fasting for the appointment of elders in the newly established churches (Acts 14:23).

Biblical fasting was always accompanied by prayer. Fasting is not so much about abstaining from food as much as it is about focusing our complete concentration on seeking God through prayer—this is the secret to the power of fasting. Led by the Holy Spirit, we voluntarily separate ourselves from our usual activities as well as from certain foods and liquids, and we focus on God and His will alone for a specific period of time.

Years ago, I became desperate to receive healing regarding the sexual and physical abuse I suffered as a child. As an adult, I found that certain things would trigger emotions in me, and I would ball up in a fetal position in a closet as I did formerly after abuse. Nothing had broken the cycle, and then God told me to go on a fast. So Randy and I fasted and prayed, and during our fast God inspired us to sow a thousand-dollar seed, which was like a million dollars to us at the time. After we gave that money sacrificially, the stronghold over my life was broken. Fasting and obedience are powerful beyond the imagination!

Related Texts: Exodus 34:28; Leviticus 16:29; 2 Samuel 1:12; 2 Chronicles 20:3, 14–17; Psalm 35:13; Daniel 1:12; Matthew 6:18; Acts 13:2–3