What is the Daniel Fast?

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 12:1, 2

Our church One Community is going to join together in June for 21 days to fast together.  They have chosen the Daniel Fast.

I personally have never done a fast in my whole life. I am hypoglycemic, so I’ve always used this as my “excuse”.  My dad even teased with me that “McCord’s Don’t Fast”… we have a tendency to pass out so quickly.  When I was in college, the whole student body was encouraged to do a fast at Thanksgiving.  I tried it. I didn’t eat from 6pm until about 1pm the next day. Unfortunately, I passed out during one of our convocations and fell down a number of stairs in our large indoor stadium. Not a pretty picture!  Since then, I’ve always been very leery of fasts.

I understand the concept of fasting.  And I feel there’s great clarity and connection to God when we realize and deny our addictions to earthly things. When I heard about the Daniel Fast, I thought this would finally be something I could do!! It’s exciting!  It’s not something to feel bitter towards, but a way we can feast on things God has given us both spiritually and physically.

I found some information and wanted to share it with you.  Maybe this is something you’d like to participate in as well. Basically, you are getting back to God-foods vs. Man foods.  It’s challenging your creativity in preparing real food. It’s expanding your palette for healthy foods.  And hopefully, it is growing your faith as you lean on Christ through days of hunger or lust.

If you’ve done this before, I would love your thoughts, recipes, encouraging messages we can pass on to our church people.

What is the Daniel Fast?

The Daniel Fast is a biblically based partial fast. It is a method of fasting that men, women and young people all over the world are using as they enter into the spiritual discipline of prayer and fasting.

There are two anchoring scriptures for the Daniel Fast. In Daniel 1 the Prophet ate only vegetables (that would have included fruits) and drank only water. So from these scriptures we get two of the guidelines for the fast:

1. Only fruits and vegetables

2. Only water for a beverage

Then in Daniel 10 we read that the Prophet ate no meat nor any precious breads or foods and he drank no wine for 21 days. So from this scripture, we get a third guideline:

3. No sweeteners and no breads

Another important guideline is drawn from Jewish fasting principles, where no leaven is used during the fast.  So that’s why yeast, baking powder and the like are not allowed on the Daniel Fast.

Finally, with all the above puzzle pieces, we conclude that no artificial or processed foods nor any chemicals are allowed on the Daniel Fast.

Basically, when looking at the Daniel Fast, the best description is it is a “vegan diet with even more restrictions.”

Be sure to read the ingredients on labels of prepared foods to make sure they only include Daniel Fast friendly ingredients.

Foods to Eat on the Daniel Fast

• All fruit – fresh, frozen, dried, juiced.
• All vegetables – fresh, frozen, dried, juiced.
• All whole grains – amaranth, barley, brown rice, oats, quinoa, millet, and whole wheat.
• All nuts & seeds – almonds, cashews, macadamia nuts, peanuts, pecans, pine nuts, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, and sunflower seeds. Nut butters are also included.
• All legumes – canned or dried; black beans, black eyed peas, cannellini beans, garbanzo beans (chickpeas), great northern beans, kidney beans, lentils, pinto beans, and split peas.
• All quality oils – canola, coconut, grapeseed, olive, peanut, and sesame.
• Beverages - distilled water, filtered water, and spring water.
• Other – herbs, spices, salt, pepper, seasonings, soy products, and tofu.

Foods to Avoid on the Daniel Fast

• All meat & animal products – beef, buffalo, fish, lamb, poultry, and pork.
• All dairy products – butter, cheese, cream, eggs, and milk.
• All sweeteners – agave nectar, artificial sweeteners, cane juice, honey, molasses, raw sugar, syrups, stevia, and sugar.
• All leavened bread & yeast – baked goods and Ezekiel bread (if it contains yeast and honey).
• All refined & processed food products – artificial flavorings, chemicals, food additives, preservatives, white flour, and white rice.
• All deep-fried foods – corn chips, French fries, and potato chips.
• All solid fats – lard, margarine, and shortening.
• Beverages – alcohol, carbonated drinks, coffee, energy drinks, herbal tea, and tea.

Websites to help:

http://puregoodness.net

http://www.ultimatedanielfast.com

http://daniel-fast.com/

http://danielfast.wordpress.com

Stores to shop:

Kroger produce and organic isles

Anderson Market (Old Forest Rd and in Madison Heights) – lots of organic lentils, beans, oils, and spices!

Farmers’ Market (Wednesdays and Saturdays)

Tips for the Daniel Fast:

(portion from the website: www.daniel-fast.com)

Meal Planning – Plan all of your meals for one week. Make sure you have all the ingredients you need along with snack foods!

Shop Smart – Don’t go to the store hungry. Shop the perimeter of the store, this is where the fresh goods are.  If you avoid the middle of the store, you will save yourself from being tempted to purchase processed foods.

Set a Cook Day – I frequently use Saturday as the day when I plan all my meals for the coming week and then cook several meals in advance. I make pots of soup, vegetable chili, chapatis and many other dishes. This saves me hours of time and lots of frustration in the coming week, plus it’s fun!

Salad Prep - I wash and trim all my salad ingredients as soon as I get home from the grocery store. I then store each item in a container for easy use later in the week. I can make a lovely salad in less than a minute because all the ingredients are already prepared!

Eat in Community – Plan to have people over who are also going through this. Invite them to your home, cook together, or have each person bring a dish.  This will encourage you to try new things as well as help focus your attention on the joy of community that God has given you.

Sample menu:

breakfast:

Sliced Fruit

Hot Whole Grain Oatmeal or Granola with Raisins and Nuts

Water

lunch:

Hearty Layered Salad and Greek Vegetable Stew

dinner:

Vegetarian Chili, Green Salad with Dressing. or,

Lentil Soup and a Green salad with Dressing

snacks:

Veggies and Hummus, Edamame Hummus, or White Bean Dip

Raw Almonds or other nuts

Sliced Fruits and nuts

Look for recipes here on PureGoodness.  I’m going to do my best to have a variety of good tasting recipes available.  It should be an interesting few weeks!

Remember when fasting, your body will be detoxing and it will feel worse before feeling better.  You will experience headaches, aches, weakness, and other difficult emotions as your body gets rid of what it doesn’t need.  Just pray and push through it.  You will feel great soon!!

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About Rachel Brewer

I am a daughter, sister, wife, mother, and friend. My journey is to find balanced health in my life spiritually, emotionally, and physically. Reaching out to others through the sharing of information and encouragement through daily life and my website www.puregoodness.net.

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