My 21-Day Daniel Fast Experience (Jan 2017)
Hay Daizee Loves!
Last year (January 2017), I decided to do the 21-Day Daniel Fast. It was super last minute. I had been wanting to do a fast because I was in a very bad place mentally and spiritually. My heart, mind, and spirit was so congested with MESS. Hurt. Pain. Sadness. Confusion. Worldly desires. Disappointment. Rejection. Loneliness. Anger. Lies from the devil. You name it. I wasn’t feeling good enough and didn’t feel like I had a REASON to be here.
You may be wondering what reasons I had to feel that way. For me, although I had graduated from college and was blessed with an awesome job opportunity, I was heartbroken. Right before graduation, things ended with someone I NEVER wanted to be without. He was part of every dream and vision board I had made during college. Losing him felt like I was losing a huge part of myself. I realize now that a lot of my hopes of dreams for my future revolved around him (Mistake #1) and that’s why it was so devastating to lose him. (Lesson: EVERYTHING should revolve around the man that created you and gave you the breath of life. You will NEVER lose Him. Just think about that. We humans are something else). On top of that, I was simply just going through growing pains. Adulting is so depressing to me. I felt like I was just doing. I didn’t know what my purpose was. I felt like I was living my life for my parents and not for ME. I needed some clarity and direction from God, BUT I COULD NOT HEAR OR FEEL GOD. Like, is my heart working right now? Why do I feel so lost and broken? Then I was so mad at myself for feeling so bad (do y ’all ever get like that? Like… snap out of it!) I was blaming myself for every bad thing that had EVER happened in my life. The devil had the tightest grip on my mind. Something had to give. I knew I needed something different and I knew I needed to HEAR and FEEL Jesus more.
I was at work and one of the military personnel we work with (He is AWESOME) randomly asked a group of us if we wanted to do the Daniel Fast with his group at his church. I was like, okay THIS is it. I have never did a fast for more than 12 hours. I wanted to be healthier and it was definitely going to help me get rid of a lot a physical toxins in my body and a lot of the spiritual and mental toxicity that I had flowing through me. I’m all in Chief!
I had about 3 days to prepare myself mentally and to get all of my supplies. It was so last minute but I knew I was going to do it. The entire 21 days. I had great support and guidance from the man who invited us to do it. He checked on us throughout the day and made sure we were focusing on the right things and setting ourselves up for the breakthroughs we desperately needed. Y ’all… it changed my life.
Yes, I had to “give up” a lot of things (see the complete list in the Pretty Daizee Detox & Fast posts) for 3 weeks but I needed to. I needed to get away from all of the distractions and all of the worldly junk that was tearing my spirit up and taking me farther and farther away from God. I needed to see that men truly do not live by bread alone. I NEEDED TO BE HUNGRY!! In the physical and spiritual sense. I needed to show my body that I was in control. I needed to practice self-discipline and change my mindset around food. I needed to desire God’s word. One of the BIGGEST lessons I learned was that your body will crave what you give it. You may not desire God, His word, or anything of Him, BUT when you MAKE YOURSELF spend that time with Him and read His word, it feeds your spirit and your spirit will start to desire spiritual food and reject things that are not of God. You thought you wanted to listen to one of these WorldStarHipHop rappers, but they said something toxic and worldly and now your spirit man is like, “whoa fam… lies... turn it off”. Okay Kirk Franklin it is. LOL
The same with your physical body. For example water and kale. You may not be craving it but if you start putting it in your body anyways, you’ll find yourself craving it. You thought you wanted juice or coffee but you took a sip and realized your body was craving water. You thought you wanted a burger but now that it’s in front you, you feel your body screaming “greens”.
I felt so much better at the end of the fast. But it was not easy. I had to deal with so many deep rooted issues and so many things from my past that I wanted to forget. I had to deal with myself and my role in so many situations. I had to forgive myself and accept myself and make some promises to myself. I was at work in the bathroom balling my eyes out on a number of occasions asking the Lord for forgiveness and making new promises with Him. It was very REAL for me every day of the fast. The purge was REAL. The communication with God was REAL. When you declutter your heart and spirit and actively seek God… you will find Him! That is what He promised us.
I felt different. I knew I was thinking different. I was thinking more clearly and more positive. I wanted different. I knew even though the fast was essentially over, I created some lifestyle changes and I prayed for the strength to keep it up. I knew it was undoubtedly something I would be doing again.
Not only did it change things for me spiritually and physically, but it changed things for me when it came to my dreams and purpose. I told y ‘all I needed some guidance and direction. Once I got myself in a position to hear God, that is exactly what I got. The idea behind Pretty Daizee was pretty much birthed during this experience. It came from learning and understanding more about myself. It came from the things the Lord placed on my heart during my journaling time. In my #BloomUp post, I talk about how you may need a spiritual detox in order to hear God. You have to first know your dreams and purpose in order to chase them relentlessly. How will you know what they are if you are not close enough to hear THE ONE who placed them in you to begin with?
And so here we are. January 2018. The 2017 fast was definitely for spiritual reasons but I knew it would come with added physical benefits. This year, it is more so for physical reasons (Y ‘all know I have stayed sick since May). However, I know for certain that the spiritual benefits will be what keeps me motivated throughout the 21 days.
If you feel that your mind, heart, and/or spirit are cluttered and you desperately want or need to feel and hear God. Or if you desperately need a change and want to feel different and jumpstart being different… this is FOR YOU.
Thank you for reading. Check out the next posts (Pretty Daizee Detox & Fast: For Your Body, Soul, & the Dreamer Within) in preparation for Monday. January 15, 2017.
Love ALWAYS,
Megan