Daniel Fast Original source: "Fasting For Spiritual Breakthrough" by Elmer L. Towns

These pages about the Daniel Fast exist to help you better understand and apply the Daniel Fast. We believe that Daniel's Diet will help you experience healing and more of the power of prayer.

You will find Rev. Towns' version of Daniel's fast very helpful to you for physical and spiritual breakthrough. Some practical advantages to fasting like Daniel include: re-evaluating your life, identifying with those who are poor, losing weight, worshipping God, breaking bad habits, growing closer to God, family and friends, learning self-control, purifying your body and soul, and repenting of sin.

The Christian's body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. 1 Co 6:19 "Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit in you, whom you have of God? And you are not your own." Therefore, we must take good care of our bodies. Many common diseases are easily prevented with good nutrition and exercise.

Caution! The Daniel Fast Diet like any other fast can create problems for people with medical conditions, pregnant, nursing and/or taking medicine. Consult your doctors and/or pharmacist before starting any fast. Ask them about your medication while fasting.

Seven tips for observing
a Daniel Fast or Daniel's Diet in 2008

1. Be specific

Daniel was very clear in his objection to the Babylonian diet. He defined his objection immediately. Daniel 1:8

1. The king’s food was likely not kosher, against Jewish dietary laws.
2. Daniel and his friends had vowed against wine.
3. The king’s food could have been offered up to idols or demons.

Write out and sign a commitment that outlines

1. Why you are fasting.
2. How long you are fasting.
3. From what you are fasting.

2. Fast as a spiritual commitment

The Daniel Fast involves a spiritual commitment to God. "Daniel proposed in his heart that he would not defile himself." Daniel 1:8

Ask for the Holy Spirit’s guidance!

3. Reflect inner desire by external discipline

Most people desire better health, but don't discipline themselves to say no to junk food, and other unhealthy foods. Our physical health is more than answered prayer. Our physical health is normally linked to many of these factors:

1. Your food choices.
2. The level of your spiritual commitment, as reflected in constant prayer during the diet of Daniel and his friends.
3. Your time commitment. If you determine to fast for a certain time, keep it. For example, if you determine to fast ten days, don't stop on day nine.
4. Your testimony commitment. Your fast is a statement of faith in God. You want God to heal your body. Faith is foundational to the Daniel Fast.

4. Pray to see the role of sin in your relative health or sickness

Read James 5:13-20 KJV

James 5:13 Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms. 14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: 15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. 16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Observations:

• Our actions and attitudes are vital. James said, "are there any among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms." James 5:13
• The sick person must call for the elders. James 5:14
• Sin is something related to the cause of sickness. James 5:15
• Lack of health or healing may be the result of spiritual rebellion. James 5:15
• Lack of health or healing may be due to sin of wrong consumption, i.e. poor diet, drugs, pornography. James 5:15
• Repentance is linked to health. James 5:16
• Prayer alone may not gain healing, faith in God is the major factor. James 5:15, 17-20

John Piper says in A Hunger for God, "Fasting is God’s testing ground-and healing ground."

5. Daniel Fasted as a statement of faith to others

Daniel made a statement of faith when he asked to eat only vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then Daniel asked the overseer to compare the appearance of the 4 sons of Israel with the other people who ate the king’s food.

6. Learn the effects of the food you eat

What makes some food good for us? What makes other food bad for our bodies? What are the negative effects of foods do to our bodies? If we answer these questions, there would certainly be some foods we would never want to eat again.

7. Yield all results to God

Daniel said, “as you see fit, deal with your servants.” Daniel 1:13 We don't know if Daniel or his friends ever again ate the king’s food.

As Elmer Towns says,

"Fasting for an answer is similar to prayer. Sometimes you can pray once in an act of faith, and God hears and answers. On other occasions you must continuously ask in faith before an answer will come. We need to pray often and fast continually to build up our faith and our spiritual character."

This is a year 2008
application of Daniel's Fast or Diet

• This Daniel Fast is not exactly the same as Daniel's original Fast or Diet.
• This Daniel Fast will lead to spiritual insight. “As for these four boys, God gave them knowledge and skill.” (Daniel 1:17)
• This Daniel Fast is longer than one day. These young men fasted for at least ten days. (Daniel 1:12, 15)
• This Daniel Fast is a partial fast. Daniel and his friends ate only vegetables and drank only water. (Daniel 1:12) We will allow more to eat than they did for various reasons.
• This application of a Daniel Fast requires abstinence from party or junk foods.
• Have a great Daniel Fast!  Be careful as you break your fast.  You don't want to shock your system with too much fat or sweets after going without!  You might get a stomachache or headache.

Food guidelines for observing
this 2008 Daniel Fast or Diet

1. You have freedom in this Daniel Fast to modify it according to your personal physical and spiritual needs. You can modify these guidelines as you feel led by the Lord. If you feel that it would be more productive for you spiritually or physically to avoid certain foods or spices, that would be great. If you feel led by the Lord to eat only vegetables and drink only water, then do so!
2. The main thing is to decide ahead of time how you are going to apply the Daniel Fast. Then stick to your commitment for the length of time you have decided to fast. Some people feel that it is good to make a permanent lifestyle change to the Daniel Fast. Daniel didn't do his "fast" for a limited amount of time. It was his lifestyle. Daniel asked for permission to avoid the kings delicacies over a ten day period. Then, if he was still healthy looking, he could continue his "diet."
3. Daniel's reason for his "diet" are given in Daniel 1:8 The Message Bible

   "But Daniel determined that he would not defile himself by eating the king's food or drinking his wine, so he asked the head of the palace staff to exempt him from the royal diet."

Foods to eat

Daniel seemed to eat only things planted for harvest and drank only water. You may want to keep it simple and eat only vegetables and drink only water. If in doubt about a certain kind of food, read the guidelines! Send us your ideas of additional foods to eat, recipes, and menus to add to this page.

• Whole Grains: brown rice, oats, rolled oats, oatmeal, barley, corn, popcorn, wheat
• Legumes: dried beans, pinto beans, split peas, lentils, black eyed peas, green beans, green peas, peanuts, etc. Grain legumes include beans, lentils, lupins, peas and peanuts (includes natural peanutbutter).
• Fruits: apples, apricots, avocados, bananas, berries, blackberries, blueberries, boysenberries, breadfruit, cantaloupe, cherries, coconuts, cranberries, dates, figs, grapefruit, grapes, grenadine, guava, honeydew melons, kiwi, lemons, limes, mangoes, melons, mulberry, nectarines, oats, olives, oranges, papayas, peaches, pears, pineapples, plums, prunes, raisins, raspberries, strawberries, tangelos, tangerines, watermelon, etc.
• Vegetables: artichokes, asparagus, beets, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, chili peppers, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, garlic, ginger root, kale, leeks, lettuce, mushrooms, mustard greens, okra, onions, parsley, any peppers, any potatoes, radishes, rutabagas, scallions, spinach, sprouts, squashes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, turnips, watercress, yams, zucchini, etc.
• Seeds: all nuts, natural peanut butter, natural almond butter, sprouts, ground flax, etc.
• Liquids: spring water, distilled water, filtered water, 100% all natural fruit or vegetable juices

If you have questions about other foods, check out our Questions and Answers page!

Foods to Avoid

Basically, you want to avoid the King's food. By application, that means that we are avoiding all those things that the Jews couldn't eat. We're also avoiding foods that only royalty in ancient days could afford. It wasn't until recent history that most Americans could afford to eat meat or poultry. In most of the world today, very few people can afford to eat any kind of meat or processed foods, like the following items to avoid. Send us your ideas of foods to avoid.

• Meat, because Daniel didn't want to take the chance of eating non-kosher food and/or meat that was offered to idols.
• white flour and all products using it
• white rice, white bread, hominy and pasta
• fried foods
• caffeine
• carbonated beverages, including diet sodas
• Wine or any other alcoholic drinks
• foods containing preservatives or additives
• refined sugar (see some substitutes)
• high fructose corn syrup
• chemical sugar substitutes
• margarine, shortening, animal fat, high fat products

If you have questions about other foods, check out our Questions and Answers page!

You will need the free Adobe Acrobat* to read some of these documents

Download Elmer Towns' free study guide of the book.

Purchase Fasting For Spiritual Breakthrough: by Elmer L. Towns.

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More fasting resources

• Prayer journal to pray your way through a 21 day Daniel Fast. This free 21 day journal in PDF format includes topics to pray about each day you are fasting. It is published by Life Church Of God In Christ, Riverside, CA, Pastor Ron M. Gibson, Founder/Pastor. It is very well done.
• Books by Elmer Towns
• The Diet of Daniel: A 10 Day Diet to Blessed Health, Weight Loss, and Fitness (Paperback) by Ernest Edsel
• Search for books about fasting

Sources:

Fasting For Spiritual Breakthrough by Elmer L. Towns, published in 1996 by Regal Books, Ventura, California.

Daystar website http://www.daystar.com/

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Rev. Mike and Sue Farho