If you have thought about fasting recently, you have probably thought about the physical benefits this could provide. Even though it is true that fasting provides a litany of physical benefits, as long as you do it safely, there are spiritual benefits as well.
I think you will agree with me when I say that focusing on health and wellness includes not only your physical health but your spiritual well-being as well.
What are some of the spiritual benefits of fasting? In this article, we will cover five ways fasting can help you find deeper meaning in life.
First, let’s start with a quick definition.
What is Fasting?
First, it is important to cover what fasting is. Fasting is the process of refraining from eating or drinking for a certain amount of time. Some people allow themselves to drink water when they fast. Other people do not.
In addition, some people try to fast for 24 hours. Other people may engage in something called intermittent fasting, where they may fast for 16 hours and then try to eat all of their calories in a day and a span of 8 hours.
There are different types of fasting and it is important for you to find a type of fasting that works best for your needs.
Now, let’s talk about the five spiritual benefits you can get from fasting.
1. Fasting can help you cleanse your soul.
One of the first spiritual benefits of fasting is that this can help you cleanse your soul. If you eat a lot of junk food, there is a chance that you may not feel your best. You could feel slow, tired, and dragged down.
One of the first benefits of fasting is that this is going to help you cleanse these toxins from your body. When these toxins leave your body, you are cleansing not only your physical organs but your soul as well.
It is easy to forget that your body is a representation of the collective work of a higher power. In a lot of ways, we desecrate this temple when we eat a lot of unhealthy, processed foods.
Fasting is a great opportunity for us to remember that our bodies have a spiritual connection to a higher power. When we fast, we give our bodies a break from the digestive process, allowing our souls to go through a detox session.
Therefore, fasting can be viewed not only as a physical health decision but also as a faith-based decision. When we fast, we meditate. This helps us cleanse ourselves, allowing us to receive that higher power into us once again.
After you are done fasting, you should feel fresh, restored, and reborn. These feelings come to life because of the spiritual cleansing that we go through during the fasting process.
In order to get the most out of the fasting process, focus on cleansing your soul. You can do this by sitting quietly in prayer, meditating, or focusing on the toxins that your body is getting rid of it during this process.
2. Fasting can create a new desire to commune with a higher power.
Another benefit of fasting is that this can create a desire within you to commune with a higher power. When we don't fast, we go through our daily routine.
We have so much to think about that we do not take a lot of time to pause and this about what our bodies truly are.
When you go through the fasting process, you will realize that you need to commune with a higher power much more than you need to eat. As the hours go by, you realize that you can actually do this.
You don't actually need food immediately if you want to live. What you do need is to speak with a higher power to figure out what life means, how you are able to live without food, and what you should do in the future.
Keep in mind that as long as you have your faith, you can do anything and everything you desire. You will get a greater appreciation for this when you go through the fasting process.
3. Fasting creates helps you appreciate your body that much more.
When you fast, you will also gain a greater appreciation for your body. You probably have a lot to do during the day. You don't get a chance to think about everything you are putting in your body. It is easy to overlook how hard your body works during the day.
You probably don't eat the healthiest diet. You may not exercise on a regular basis, yet, your body keeps on ticking. Somehow, it is able to process all of the toxins and processed food that you put into it without missing a beat.
When you fast, you flip to the complete opposite side of this equation. Instead of eating a bunch of food, you are putting absolutely nothing in your body.
Unless you are drinking water, your body is not receiving any vitamins, minerals, nutrients, or hydration as you complete your fast.
Despite this deprivation, your body is still able to survive. It keeps on ticking. You keep breathing. How is your body able to do this?
This is another one of the main spiritual benefits of fasting. When you realize that your body is able to survive when it is completely deprived of all food and beverage, you gain a greater appreciation for it.
You realize that your body has been designed in an exceptional way, allowing it to continue to function for an extended amount of time even when it has no nutrition at all. Then, you take a minute and reflect on why this is the case.
Why is your body able to function find even as you go for close to a day, or more, without any food or beverage at all? This helps you appreciate everything that your body is able to do. Your body is able to do this thanks to the higher power that designed it.
This is the spirituality that comes with fasting. When you gain a greater appreciation for everything your body is able to handle, you get in touch with your spirituality.
4. Fasting provides you with time to think and pray.
If you are complaining a fast, you probably are not going to be doing much else. Because you are not eating or drinking anything, you are not going to have the energy to engage in the activities that you usually complete.
Even though you may run a few errands during the day, you aren't going to be able to exert yourself that much. Therefore, fasting is going to provide you with plenty of quality time that you can reserve for yourself.
Specifically, fasting will provide you with the opportunity to think and pray. You will have a chance to reflect on everything that has happened recently. You can think about your successes, your failures, and where do you want your life to go from here.
You will be able to think about your relationships with other people. This includes your family members, your friends, and your colleagues. This type of reflective opportunity does not come along very often. Therefore, you need to take full advantage of it.
In addition, this time of fasting will also provide you with a chance to pray. Because of the way we live our lives today, we met not have a lot of time to commune with a higher power. We may not have a chance to provide praise, give thanks, and ask for help.
Fasting provides you with an opportunity to do that. As you sit there quietly, you should take this opportunity to pray. If you pray regularly, your spirituality will increase. You may even get access to the answers that you have been looking for.
If you fast regularly, you will get the chance to think and pray. Because you probably do not get a lot of quiet time, make sure that you take full advantage of this.
5. Fasting can foster a new sense of satisfaction.
Finally, fasting can also foster a new sense of satisfaction. The world we live in today has more pressure than ever before.
You probably have the drive to compare yourself to other people. You may compare yourself to other people at work. You may look at social media compare yourself to other people and this manner.
You may even be comparing yourself to siblings, friends, and other people who you think might be more or less successful than you. You don’t have a lot of time to actually sit there and be satisfied with everything you have done so far.
Fasting provides you with an opportunity to gain this sense of satisfaction.
When you complete your fast, you are going to feel renewed. You will be filled with energy like you haven't been in a long time. You will have completed the detox process. You will have given praise to the higher power that has allowed you to come so far.
You will also realize that the small absence of food was nothing in comparison to what you have gained.
Your spirituality has increased, you had a chance to speak with a higher power, and you got to experience everything that your body is able to handle. Even though you have not eaten for a day or more, your body kept on ticking.
The entire point is to realize that physical food is nothing when compared to your spirituality. Physical food never fully satisfies you. In a few hours, you feel hungry and have to eat again. In contrast, your spirituality should satisfy you completely.
By providing you with the comfort of knowing that there is a higher power looking out for you, particularly when you are fasting, you will have the satisfaction and energy to move forward with your life.
Clearly, there is a litany of benefits that you will enjoy if you fast on a regular basis. Do not overlook the spiritual benefits, as they go hand-in-hand with the physical benefits of fasting.
6. Fasting suppresses our personal desires and elevates our awareness of God’s desires.
Fasting for spiritual reasons is the same as eating for natural reasons. When we eat food, it gives our bodies the nutrients it needs to run and function properly.
And the better quality of food we eat, the better our bodies feel. Similarly, when we feed our spirits through fasting, we build up our spirits to function and operate in better form.
The more quality the fast is that we undertake, the greater awareness of God we have.
For instance, if we fast, but it's not accompanied by other matters that draw us closer to the Lord, such as reading bible verses, prayer, and listening to Christian content; it's the same as a person living off food that may taste good but not the healthiest quality for our bodies.
On the contrary, when fasting accompanies reading, meditation, and prayer, it is like feeding the body organic, high-quality foods that keep it operating at its best.
7. Spiritually, fasting allows you to find peace, stability, and strength no matter the circumstances.
Philippians 4:6-9 says, “Don’t be pulled in different directions or worried about a thing.”
Be saturated in prayer throughout each day, offering your faith-filled requests before God with overflowing gratitude. Tell him every detail of your life, then God's wonderful peace that transcends human understanding will guard your heart and mind through Jesus Christ.
Keep your thoughts continually fixed on all that is authentic and real, honorable, and admirable, beautiful, and respectful, pure and holy, merciful and kind.
And fasten your thoughts on every glorious work of God, praising him always. Put into practice the example of all that you have heard from me or seen in my life, and the God of peace will be with you in all things.”
Worry will pull us in every direction. One day up, the next down. Tossed to and fro.
When worry sets in, we become unstable. Like a person sitting down, but their leg is shaking uncontrollably. So likewise, if the worrier sits at a table with a shaky leg, everyone will feel it.
Similarly, if untreated by prayer and fasting, our anxiety will adversely affect our lives and those around us. Therefore, spiritual fasting is a spiritual sacrifice all believers should participate in to conquer fears.
James 1:7-8 says, “When you are half-hearted and wavering, it leaves you unstable. Can you really expect to receive anything from the Lord when you’re in that condition?”
God's peace that passes all understanding will secure our hearts and minds. The peace we receive from spiritual fasting serves as security that stands guard so that fear, worry, and anxiety from the impossible things we face don't enter in and make us unstable in our thinking.
People often say they feel they are losing their minds. But God’s peace, stability, and strength to persevere come through spiritual fasting. It will securely keep and guard it, so it's not lost amid the hardest of trials.
Final Thoughts on the Spiritual Benefits of Fasting
Ultimately, these are just a few of the many spiritual benefits that you will enjoy if you fast on a regular basis. It is important for you to get in a routine if you are thinking about fasting regularly. At first, it will be a challenge to get out of your regular eating schedule.
As you fast regularly, this process should get easier. Then, you should notice not only physical benefits but spiritual and emotional benefits as well. If you want to maximize your health and wellness, you should consider fasting on a regular basis.
And if you're looking for more resources on spirituality, be sure to check out these blog posts:
- 9 Best Books on Spiritual Awakening & Enlightenment
- 17 Top Spiritual Blogs to Follow
- 17 Signs You Have a Spiritual Connection with a Person
