How do I fast the right way with the best impact?
We can and should fast from time to time as Christians.

Many questions occur, like: when shall I fast, for how long, shall I dry fast, can I drink or eat something, what shall I do during fasting and what not to do and for what should I fast, and what’s happen during fasting and after?

First of all, our fasting should please God not us or any people!
One thing is for sure, satan hates it and he will tempt us during fasting and be aware that he will tempt us after fasting the more. We read this in Matthew 4:1-11

In this scripture we see a major key and this is depending on all our lifestyle.
Jesus is fasting for 40 days in the wilderness and it says to be tempted by the devil. We have no record of what was happen in these 40 days and we have no record if Jesus was eating or drinking something or absolute nothing. we only read that the angels ministered to Him. To drink and eat nothing for 40 days is impossible for a man. We will die after 7 days without water and depending on health and strength after latest 40 days, some after 10 or 15 days without eating. This also depends on the climate. In cold regions it might be possible not to drink for two days, but in hot and tropical regions, not drinking for one day causes already problems. We do not know how Jesus was tempted in these 40 days, but we know that He was tempted after the fast.

Here is a key! If I after the fast fall back to my old habits and give way to a not holy life and the temptations, my fasting was for nothing and satan has the victory.
As satan will tempt us in all aspects of our life’s and especially with our weaknesses, we should be prepared for this and the fasting should made us strong in the spirit.
Fasting is letting go for a period of time of foods and pleasures which please us, foods we like and favor. Meaning: less focus on food and drink and pleasure, but more focus on God to draw near Him. It is a sacrifice.

We know from the Old Testament that every sacrifice must be spotless, otherwise it will not be accepted by God, and it will be an offence to Him!

It is a time, to take time with God and have time to read and meditate about the word of God. Meaning: it is not only food we sacrifice but also our pleasures and time. In old times a high event was the weekly time in the bath house and the Shabbat.
In our time, we have bowling clubs, RC model clubs, fishing clubs, fashion clubs, women clubs and lot of associations, and much more we attend as our hobby and pleasure and some even have taken a lot of responsibility in it.
If I fast, I need to fast also from all this. I want to draw near God; how can I do this if I attend all those usual things and come home late, what time is remaining for me and God?

I can’t fast very well for 7 days if I am a construction worker; I want to say as someone who does physical work. Such a person needs to eat and drink well, otherwise performance will go down and it will harm the health. This would not be God pleasing. First of all I have a contract (covenant) with the employer. Meaning I have to give my best to all time to deliver quality work. I cannot say, I am fasting for God so I can work only half now for you. God is just and righteous; He would not understand such behavior. Second, if we fast and work hard we will harm our bodies if we fast the hard way. God will not accept this fasting, He never wants us to be harmed in any way, we are made in his image and likeness and we must treat our bodies to honor Him not to make Him sad.

In fasting, we can do a lot of things wrong
I know many servants of God and their fasting is questionable. They announce it and in the time of fasting they are locked in and it is hard to talk to them, even if someone has a problem. The members of the church and the leaders will avoid people coming to him or her.
They say I am fasting and praying I don’t want to be disturbed. You see even their behavior change and it is written in their face that they are fasting.
This fasting is for nothing but for them to be seen fasting.

Jesus tell us in Matthew 6:16 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face;
18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.

Meaning when we fast, let nobody know but our Father in heaven only. This is a hard thing to do as I said that satan is there. We will meet with people and they offer us food and drink especially if they want to do us good with offering us what we like most, as part of their hospitality. We have to deny it and this is especially in our time of fasting offensive to the host. What shall we say, we shall not lie. I can say, I am sorry but I have a diet, and continue to behave normal. They will say ah you are fasting, and there will be other people around. Being quiet in this moment is a good idea.
If I am sick or feel not well and do not eat, nobody ask me, but if I fast, it’s always like this, people will ask, are you fasting?


When shall I not fast and when shall I fast?

When shall I not fast?

Never fast on command of others except God is commanding me to fast!
If we go into fasting it must be in agreement with our spirit and I should feel joy in it. If I have a feeling of: “oh no why this”? I shall not fast, because the sacrifice has already spots!

I shall not force myself to fasting, and if a fasting, is let’s say the hard word, ordered in the church as community fasting and I feel not comfortable with it, I shall not fast, even if the brethren look and point on me. My fasting must please God not people. People will get over it with time if they see me not fasting with them. If they are offended by it and even judge me, their fasting is for nothing but for themselves only.

If I have a health problem, or feel weak, I must carefully consider from what I will fast, It shall in no way affect our condition and healing process! It is better not to fast at all in this situation.

I shall not fast during the week or on workdays if I do strong physical work. If I feel like fasting, I need to consider my diet to stay strong.

I cannot fast in a time I attend a project that needs a lot of concentration and preparation and my presence and will include a lot of extra work hours.

I cannot fast because there is no food in the house and I have no money to buy food. This is not a fasting in this case.

A women shall not fast from the time on she knows she is pregnant until she finished breastfeeding for 6 month; unless she has no milk for the baby before end of 6 month.

A woman shall not fast during menstruation. This raises another question: How can she fast for 40 days? If she has in her heart to fast for forty days, she is fasting in the days she is free. She interrupts the fasting during menstruation and continues the fast after it until the 40 days are full. For a woman the best fast is 21 days if she decides to fast for more than 1 or 7 days.

When shall I fast?


I shall fast when I can ensure I have time for fasting and praying and meditating

If God tells me to fast
I fast if I feel strong.
If I am mourning
If I feel I draw away from God
If I feel stagnation in my life
If I have to make decisions for my family, my life and for my work
If there is war, pestilence, captivity (includes imprisonment)
If I or my family is under attack, spiritual and by people for example at work- mocking, discrimination
If my dream life is confusing, hunting, demonic always warfare or involves sexual activities
If the church is under attack
If I feel my prayer life is weak
If there is a need for my nation
If I do have the gift of healing and deliverance and I am about to go out to deliver people from those bondage
If I am a prophet and need to hear from the Lord in a certain matter
If I am a servant of God and prepare for evangelism
I can fast for sick family members
I can go into fasting just to say thank you Lord
I can fast if there is division and quarreling in the family, the church, at work in the estate, in the government
I can fast for the persecuted Christians
I can fast for a certain minority of people who are oppressed
If I pray for salvation of people in my family, neighbors, friends, enemies, which are still walking in darkness.
I can go into fasting for the things God puts in my heart I feel it is worthy to fast


What shall I not deny during fasting?

One thing we shall not deny is the Lords supper (communion)
If I feel I get weak and need water or food to keep myself on my feet’s, or get alarms from my kidneys or other organs, I shall eat or drink what is needed to gain strength.

Many questions occur for the duty of marriage. We are not fasting from our marriage, marriage is sacred and we have duty to attend to our partner and their needs. This includes intercourse. We do not deny us from our partner unless the wife is in her menstruation or the 8 weeks after delivering a child or the partner is sick, and unless both fast together and have agreement, or the other partner agrees to have no intercourse during the fasting time of the partner, this needs understanding.

Isaiah 58:7 …..; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?
1st Corinthians 7:1 Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman.
2 Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband.
3 Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence: and likewise also the wife unto the husband.
4 The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife.
5 Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.
6 But I speak this by permission, and not of commandment.
:Genesis 2: 22 And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
Mark 10: 7 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife;
8 And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.
9 What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.
Ephesians 5: 28 So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself.
29 For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church:
30 For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.
31 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh.
32 This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.
33 Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband.


I shall not deny medications and the things necessary for the medications work in my body and its side effects to be attended.

We know that many little children make problems during eating and eat only if the mother of father eats with them from the same plate and spoon, and it gives joy to the child and it will eat if we take a spoon full. Let us not be religious and deny, but take that spoon or two with our child!

What is the right fasting?

We have three major scriptures in our Bible that tells us how to fast in a way that it is God pleasing. One I already stated out of Matthew 6:16-18 above.
The other one is really a hammer and I will give testimony about it as for those who know me, that I love to teach through testimonies; not to boost myself and get rewards from people, but to show the work of the Lord which gives glory to Him.

I will not past this scripture here but I would like you to take your bible and read it and meditate about it very serious and to continue to read here after you read the scripture. If you do not have a bible you can download one as an app or click on this link here which leads you direct to the scripture: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+58&version=KJV
You will find many important tips from the Lord to do the right fasting.
Isaiah 58

I was like the servants of God I had stated above and locked myself in and prayed and fasted and read and for no one to be seen and my face changed until one day in 2007 in Nairobi as the Lord lead me to Isaiah 58 during my fast.
I was reading and pierced in my heart and laughed about myself how religious I was as I adopted the fasting from all those other people.

My eyes were suddenly opened and I felt such a joy and I said wow Lord, let me go out and let me meet the people whom you want me to meet. Short prayer, big effect!

I walked outside and the first guy I meat was in dirty clothes and seemed confused. I talked to him and found out he is in need. I told him to wait, I did not take him to the house as I felt inside in the spirit not comfortable. Nairobi is a danger place and as a foreigner the more danger. God gave us a sound mind! I went home and packed some clothes and some food for him and brought it back to the place I meet him as he was still there. He wondered and received it with thanks. I prayed for him and gave him instructions how to get out of his problems.

As I continued walking, I came to Woodly estate. About 25 meter before me a man was walking somehow strange. The Lord told me suddenly, go and speak to him. I was speeding up and as I was beside him, I asked: may I speak to you? He looked at me strange and wondered, how comes a white man talks to me here? He said yes please. I asked him: would you like to hear what the Lord has to tell you? He wondered more and his eyes became big and he said: please come to my house I am just leaving near. I agreed and we went. On our way he told me he had an accident and has a small brain damage, that’s why he walks so strange. As we arrived at his house, his sister received us and we went in. I preached him the gospel of Jesus Christ and it repented him and he went back to God to receive salvation. As I laid hand on him, he sank into the armchair and was for a time in the spirit. In that moment his sister stepped out of the kitchen and asked me, if she could talk to me? I said yes that’s why I am here. As she wanted to start to speak, the Holy Spirit told me, before she speaks, tell her the testimony of the women who had a 12 years blood flow. I said, please let me tell you this first, and I told her this passage in the bible. As I spoke, her eyes became bigger and she was astonished as she asked me: do you know what I am suffering from? I said: you will tell me: she said she has a continues blood flow and no one can help to stop it. I told her, if she believes that the Lord can and wants to heal her now, to stand up. As I laid hand on her in Jesus name, she was released instantly and her blood flow stopped. Glory is to God.

What if I would have been religious? That man would not have seen salvation and the sister would have continued in the affliction.

Lets fast and go out and do good, and share the food we don’t eat to those who are in need. With the right heart and intention and the right prayer, God will use us for the glory of his great name.
I was doing in 2012 a 40 day fasting but it was a disaster. I did not bear it. I lived in a 2x2 meter room, 3 sides to the sun and an iron sheet roof in Dare s salaam Tanzania, totally overcharged by the owner. The room was like a baker’s oven till 2 am and it was the hot season. I learned that I am not perfect and that we fail sometimes. I lost about 10 kg and felt very weak, I was suppose to break the fast many days before, but I wanted to endure and this was the will of flesh not of the spirit and that’s why I failed. There is a lot of temptation in such a fasting that we have to resist, this needs control of our flesh and mind. Things come easy in this time of fasting as satan is there and puts the nice by the flesh wanted things right before our eyes to tempt us. It needs meditation and prayer and fellowship to resist. Nobody can tell me that they are so strong and it means nothing to them if they are tempted or even say there is no temptation, it is a lie.

If we do the fasting by the Lords saying in Isaiah 58, it is so powerful, he has a lot of promises in this words and it makes the fasting joyful, sufficient, successful,
victorious and gives a lot of blessings to us.

When we fast without consulting the Holy Spirit and not listening to his voice, we go amiss. During fasting the right way, we receive many keys for other people, is it in prayers or in physical acts. If we do the fasting which is not pleasing Him, we will have more darkness then before and this is also a promise he gives us in this scripture and his words stand forever!

If we do fasting together with the Holy Spirit and the way the Lord tells us, He will lead us to the people and places we can do the right thing and He will tell us, who is trying to deceive us and who is really in need, where to be careful and where to trust. We will open doors for other people, even if we never see them again.

Always remember that God hates selfishness, selfishness in prayers. As many people fast, they pray only for their needs, while Jesus tells us in Matthew 6: 32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

If we fast, we release a spiritual war, a fight, a fierce battle in the spirit, where I now come to the second major scripture. Daniel 10, which I also not past here, but encourage you to take your bible and read and meditate before you continue reading here. For those who do not have bible, here is a link leading to the scripture.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Daniel+10&version=KJV

Daniel received a vision which terrified him and he started mourning and fasting to get understanding. We all know that Daniel was a man walking with God so close, that no harm came near him and he had revelations and advises for 5 kings and was lifted up by the favor of the Lord upon him to be a high person in the kingdom during the reign of all those kings.

The amazing thing is, when the angel appeared he said, that his fasting was accepted the very first day, and we see what kind of war it caused in the second heaven that even the arc angel had to fight the prince of this world. Daniels fasting brought a huge disturbance and fear into the kingdom of darkness that they had to try all in their power to prevent the angle to come to Daniel and to go back into the 3rd heaven.

And this is what a true and right fast is causing by every believer who is fasting as it is pleasing to God. satan does not fear a religious fast, because it’s meaningless and empty. satan has already victory in their life and will not even bother to fight. We have a proverb in Germany: “Do not awake sleeping dogs”

These 2 scriptures show us, that our true fasting will cause us victory, blessings and evil to be destroyed in a way we will not even come to know. The immense fight in the second heaven, we have not even any imagination about it, all past wars in this world together are a little thing compared to this battle going on in the second heaven during our fasting.

How shall I fast?

I had done many kind of fasting and I realized that many harmed my health and I needed time to recover after fasting and this is wrong. As we see in the bible and the scriptures I had mentioned, I for myself believe that the so called Daniel fast, is the most best way of fasting. It is a fasting from all pleasant food and drinks but water and it is a health investment into our bodies. And as we see in the scripture Daniel 10, it is absolute God pleasing, causing God to release quick answer to our supplications.

No one must tell us to fast like them, or to do this and this, or dry fast or whatever they come up with. Always remember that our sacrifice must be spotless and God pleasant,
not harming and hurting us.

Fasting shall heal our relationship with God, our spiritual sight and life and to refresh our bodies.
A cleansing in 3 ways!

Leave away luxury drinks like coffee, milk, cacao, alcohol. Leave away foods, like meat, eggs, milk products, sweets, pizza, burger, and so on. Eat vegetable and fruits and drink water. Open and close to right eating times, if the body grieves for water give water to the body especially in hot areas.

Do not announce it to the public, keep it in secret as much as you can.
Behave normal and go out, wash your face anoint your head, do good and charity.

Make sure you have enough time to pray and to meditate, time for God, sacrifice all your other pleasure time and change it into time with God, minister to others.

Do not go shopping for fashion things and pleasure, whatever you wanted to buy to satisfy your needs, give it to those who are in need: by using this money for example for someone.

Pray for others, pray for your nation, the leaders, for Israel, for the persecuted Christians, for people who you would like to see salvation, for the church in the whole, for the sick and needy, for the prisoner. Go to the hospital pray for the sick there, maybe God will lead you to a person that is alone and has no visitors and you care. Obey what the spirit tells you what you hear from Him. There are many more things that can be done during fasting and if we do the right fasting,
the Holy Spirit will lead us.

Be of joy and let your face shine, remove anger and turn it into joy.
One essential thing before we start fasting is deep repentance!

How long shall I fast?


Well this is a question which I cannot really answer here, because I do not know your situation and for what you would like to fast.

If I decide to fast, I need to make this decision together with the Holy Spirit and he will put into my heart for how many days I shall fast.

Most of the time I fast for 3 days, If the problem is more bigger, I fast for 7 days and If there is a mission ahead or something big, or an event that needs long prayers I do 21 days.

40 days is a hard cross to carry and I believe that someone
who starts his or her ministry is good to fast for this period.

Always remember, that if we go into fasting, we go to be tempted! Naz

Other scriptures concerning fasting

Matthew 4:2; 6:17-18; 9:14-15; 15:32; 17:21;
Mark 9:29;
Luke 2:37; 5:33-35
Acts 10:30; 13:2-3;;
Judges 20:26
2nd Samuel 12:16-23
2nd Chronicles 20:3
Ezra 8:21-23
Nehemiah 1:4; 9:1
Psalms 35:13
Isaiah 58
Jeremiah 36:9
Daniel 6:18; 9:3; 10;
Joel 1:14; 2:12-15
Jonah 3:5-7
Zachariah 7:5-6; 8:19


All scripturas written here are from King James Version