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Many believers around the world are participating in the 21-Day Daniel Fast this month. We have chosen blogger and author Susan Gregory who has written the widely popular bestselling book The Daniel Fast Cookbook to help guide you through the process.

Stay connected with PraiseHouston.com as we provide helpful information, affirmations and some great recipes to help you along this wonderful journey of cleansing, prayer and restoration.

So what is the Daniel Fast?

The Daniel Fast is a powerful spiritual experience to help followers of Jesus Christ develop a more intimate relationship with their Lord, seek answers to prayer, and grow in the love and knowledge of the Savior.

Fasting, when coupled with prayer, serves as a powerful vehicle to draw closer to God. This is a God-designed discipline to enable the Creators people to enter into a focused time of seeking the Father and His wisdom, intervention and direction.

So what is the origin of the fast and what all does it entail?

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:

Daniel 1: 8-17 But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way. 9 Now God had caused the official to show favor and compassion to Daniel, 10 but the official told Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has assigned your[c] food and drink. Why should he see you looking worse than the other young men your age? The king would then have my head because of you.”

11 Daniel then said to the guard whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, 12“Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.” 14 So he agreed to this and tested them for ten days.

15 At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. 16 So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.

17 To these four young men God gave knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel could understand visions and dreams of all kinds.

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.

Daniel 10: 1-4 In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia, a revelation was given to Daniel (who was called Belteshazzar). Its message was true and it concerned a great war.[a] The understanding of the message came to him in a vision.

2 At that time I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks. 3 I ate no choice food; no meat or wine touched my lips; and I used no lotions at all until the three weeks were over.

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.

When asked about the eating plan on the Daniel Fast, I often say 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.

Read More

Buy The Daniel Fast Cookbook

About The Author, Susan Gregory

More Daniel Fast Recipes and Tips:

The Daniel Fast: 3 Easy Habits For Food Preparation

The Daniel Fast: Strawberry Banana Smoothie

The Daniel Fast: Snacks In Between Meals

The Daniel Fast: Apple and Oat Porridge