The Benefits of Fasting and Prayer

Witnessing the benefits of fasting and prayer is simply incredible! Fasting paired with prayer can remove strongholds and produce miracles that only God can provide. Let’s explore more about the benefits of fasting and prayer.

Fasting paired with prayer is powerful! It moves God in ways that prayer alone cannot. I know this to be true because I’m a witness to the incredible power of fasting and prayer myself.

If you’ve been praying for the same thing day after day and year after year, then it may be time to add fasting with your prayer. Jesus clearly states in the Gospel of Mark that some demonic spirits can only come out with fasting and prayer.

Jesus’ disciples thought they had enough power to cast out demons with prayer alone, and they were sadly mistaken. They learned that they also needed to fast to have the type of power to cast out certain demons.

In this post, you are going to learn four benefits of fasting and prayer and why fasting is so powerful.

After reading this post, you’ll have a biblical example about fasting and prayer and learn how an entire city was saved when all its citizens fasted and prayed to God.

This post is all about the benefits of fasting and prayer.

Benefits of Fasting and Prayer

Miracles through fasting and prayer

The story of Jonah clearly demonstrates how powerful fasting and prayer is. It shows us believers that a positive change of events can happen when we fast and pray to God. In the book of Jonah, God sent Jonah to the city of Nineveh to declare that the city would be destroyed, in forty days, because of their wickedness. God is so good because He gave them a warning before destruction. God’s warning caused them to listen, and they decided to do something about it. What did they do? They fasted and prayed.

The entire city, young and old, male and female, human and animal went on a fast. Their action of fasting and calling on God moved Him with so much compassion. He saw the effort they put in to fast, pray, repent, and turn from their sinful ways. And, their efforts paid off. God did not bring destruction to the city like He declared through Jonah, because of the actions that everyone took to seek Him through prayer and fasting. God could’ve easily destroyed that city without telling them, but He didn’t. He was the good God that He is, and instead He gave them a chance to change before He moved forward with His decision. In doing that, He’s showing us that there’s still a chance at redemption when we seek Him and change our ways for the better.

At the end of Jonah chapter four, the Lord gives us a glimpse into why He warned Nineveh first, as He talks to Jonah. It reads, “… Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?”

God truly loved His people even when they did wrong.

Why is fasting so powerful

There are quite a few reasons why fasting is so powerful. One reason is, you show God that you want to connect with Him on a deeper level by giving up the basic necessity of food. Believe it or not, but God honors that. You place yourself in a position to where you place God first and fully rely on Him. You’re letting him know that He’s so important that you’d rather have Him over a necessity that is important to living. You essentially place God above a vital need that sustains life, because without food you can’t survive long.

Fasting also lets God know that you believe that only He can fix whatever situation you are going through. You’re telling Him that you believe in Him and His power so much, and you trust in Him. So, you indulge in prayer, praise, worship, reading His word, etc. which are all things that God loves.

Imagine someone spending all their time with you, for days, and doing activities that they know brings great joy to you. That would most certainly catch your attention. Imagine how God feels, when we shift our entire focus on Him and doing the things that He loves while giving up our desires and an important necessity. I’m sure that makes Him feel loved, valued, respected, and special. All of which He is worthy of.

What type of fasting pleases God

In Isaiah 58, the Lord tells His people what they were doing wrong as they fasted and prayed without any results. They did the act of fasting, which is abstaining from food, but their words, behavior, actions, and lifestyle didn’t reflect the proper etiquette while fasting. When they fasted, they engaged in fighting, malicious words, arguments, exploiting workers, and doing whatever they wanted to do. And that’s not what God wants from us when we seek Him in fasting and prayer.

Of course, He wants us to give up food, because that’s what fasting is. However, we also need to give up evil and negativity in all forms, when we fast and pray. He desires for us to do good to others and show compassion and mercy. To also help others who are in need and not speak profane words nor fight. He wants us to fully submit ourselves to Him in every way possible, not just physically. His desire for us is to repent from unrepented sin, and abstain from things that our flesh desires. That means everything our flesh desires. An example is: you want to go shopping for clothes that you don’t need, you just want them. It’s not a good idea to give into that fleshly desire while you’re fasting. Your attention should be on God and not on your own worldly desires. Fasting requires sacrificing our wants and desires and replacing that with putting God first and above all things. It’s truly a humbling experience when we seek God in prayer and fasting.

In Isaiah 58:6-9, the Lord tells us the effects of fasting when done correctly. It reads:

“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?

Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe him, and to not turn away from your own flesh and blood?

Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.

Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help and He will say: Here am I.”

4 benefits of fasting and prayer

It brings change. Just like with Jonah and the city of Nineveh, fasting brought along positive changes. When they humbled themselves before God, turned to Him in prayer, gave up food, and repented, it showed God that His people were serious. As a result, their fasting and prayer saved them and the entire city from ruin.
It brings mental clarity. When I say it brings mental clarity, OMG it really does! It becomes effortless for you to think clearly, plan, create, and problem solve. It’s like the answers just come to you without much thought. Things and situations that seemed like they were hard to figure out, will easily get figured out when you fast. It also gives you a more accurate perception of the truth of about a person or matter.
You can easily hear God speak to you. God’s word will become easier for you to hear when you’re fasting, when He decides to speak to you. It’s easier to hear Him because you’re fully tuning into Him by engaging in things that brings you closer to Him, and giving up the things that does not. God notices that and will honor that.
You get closer to God. When you fast and pray you get the chance to completely immerse yourself in Him. You let go and ignore the things in and of this world, while you shift your focus entirely unto God. Things that you’d normally engage in and make time for stops, as you focus on connecting with God. An example is changing the type of music or podcast you listen to during your fast. You would want to change those things to something that isn’t secular, like listening to gospel music over other kinds of music. Or… only listening to Christian sermons/podcast over what you’d normally listen to on a day-to-day basis.

Scriptures

James 4:7-8, “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and He will come near to you.”

James 4:10, “Humble yourselves before the Lord and He will lift you up.”

Proverbs 22:4, “Humility and the fear of the LORD bring wealth and honor and life.”

2 Chronicles 34:27, “Because your heart was responsive and you humbled yourself before God when you heard what he spoke against this place and its people, and because you humbled yourself before me and tore your robes and wept in my presence, I have heard you, declares the LORD.”

Jonah 1:7, “When my life was ebbing away, I remembered you, LORD, and my prayer rose to you, to your holy temple.”

Thanks for reading this post about the benefits of fasting and prayer. Hopefully, it helped you. Your comments are greatly appreciated!