My 10 in 7 : My 7-day Prayer and Fasting Experience

My Church holds an annual 7-day Prayer and Fasting. It was my first time to join but it was not my first time to fast. The last time I fasted was more than 10 years ago and I probably don’t even have a very clear understanding of why and how I was doing it then.

Photo from Victory Christian Fellowship Philippines.

A Guideline Manual was given. It includes a list of fasting options – water fast, liquid fast, one-meal-a-day fast and whatever you think you can faithfully commit to for 7 days. You have to consider your activities during the 7 days so you can decide on which option works best for you. Your option does not make you more or less of a Christian than others because it is your heart that matters to the Lord.

It was actually a scary thought. Can I even do it? Deny myself good food when a mere aroma can turn my taste buds crazy? I didn’t know if I can but I still tried. I knew I was going to be working in most of the fasting days so I prayed and picked an option I know I could commit to. I chose the ‘one-meal-a-day-with-water’ option. In addition to that, I also committed to doing two things that I have always wanted to do but have not been able to – lessen meat intake and drink water only (no colored liquid). I decided and committed myself to it. My “one-meal-a-day” is defined as either a sandwich OR small amount of rice and canned tuna OR 1 Skyflakes. Water survived my rest of the day.  It may sound easy compared to no eating or no drinking at all but it actually wasn’t.

All of a sudden the candies in my “sweets” jar looked so appealing. I could smell my neighbor's food. I could salivate over a picture of a burger in a manner of seconds. Tine’s Spam meal tested my determination; Phil’s chocolate bars are oh so tempting! And Bryce’s coffee on a sleepy Monday night before work smelled sooo… ah… good! It was so easy to give up. It was so easy to cheat and eat more when no one is looking but I chose not to. I didn’t want to bend. I pleaded for God to give me all the strength I need to make it because I couldn't make it on my own and never will I make it on my own.

I knew very well it was going to be hard so I helped myself a little bit. I turned off my refrigerator so I couldn’t store food and softdrinks (good thing I live on my own). I went on a pre-fast last trip to the supermarket to buy only the things I committed to eat for the whole 7 days – about 4 canned tuna, just less than enough rice and Skyflakes. I informed my closest friends about it and asked them to support me and they did. They don’t invite me to eat out or to eat with them anymore; although I could see it was hard for them to do. I stayed home most of the time. I only went out to go to work and to go to church for the Prayer Meetings. I attended Prayer Gatherings and Services because it gives me so much relief and comfort that I wasn’t the only one struggling and salivating over those billboard pictures. I lessened my time in Facebook and internet. The rest of the time I dedicated to meditating the Word, praying for my 10 faith goals and my friends’, listening to podcasts, working and writing this.

My body started to adjust a little well on my third day. I no longer crave for more. I still get hungry many times. I tell you, I could imagine myself being so lost in my senses with that Sunday Cone from a little boy in front of me in a jeepney on my way home. Ice cream has always been my comfort food and not being able to have that quick comfort when I need it the most made me turn to the One True source of Comfort. I’d close my eyes and say “God, I know you can make me do this.” My flesh has slowly learned to give in to the spirit and it’s all God’s grace.

The twist of the story doesn’t end there. What’s more funny is the closer I got to the last day the harder it suddenly became. I was so eager to finish the race that sometimes I lost focus of what I was doing. It could turn you a little crazy sometimes knowing that you are just a few notches away from your prize. There was a time that I lost count of the days which reminds me those instances in our lives when we ask God for something, pray hard, and work hard for it; then when we feel like He isn’t responding we’d lose hope and let go of the faith not knowing how close we truly are to the prize. We give up or, even worse, sell out.

With God's grace I finished the 7-day fasting I committed to. I got my benefits too – I lost a little weight, no meat intake for a week, no colored drinks for a week, saved money for a week and, boy!...did I gain a lifetime!

Why fast? More than praying for things to happen, it was an encounter with God. All of a sudden my lifestyle changed. I have finally finished the New Testament during the fasting which, given my Bible reading pace, I probably would have in 6 months. My eyes were opened to people other than myself. I began to see prayer requests in the hearts of others without them telling me. My prayer started to sound like an intimate conversation with God – like I was talking to a long-time friend. His words speak to me like no other. I have read the Bible a couple of times when I was younger but they speak new words every time I do. I began to appreciate food more than I used to. My taste buds have become surprisingly less discriminating. I appreciated the things that I have and realized that I don’t lack a thing. I was going through something personal at the moment but I was filled with peace – the kind that the world cannot give.

Why fast? Because to deny yourself of a pleasure in its simplest form (food) for a greater purpose is to see who God really is in His greatest splendor. When we draw near to Him, He will make Himself known.

With all that I gained from those 7 days, I will never be on the losing end even if God doesn’t answer my 10 faith goals. I am already a winner in every sense of the word.