Daniel Fast - Finale

So, the fast is complete.

Truly, I learned a lot about myself.  Reading Piper's book, Hunger for God, was remarkable. So much there for me to meditate on in the days ahead.

A few key points for me:

I want to embrace God's gift of food as a GIFT rather than abuse it or replace the Giver with the gift.

I am free from the coffee addiction once more and feel SO MUCH BETTER without it.  I don't even crave it like I used to.

I am challenged FAR BEYOND my own petty struggles with stress eating, food triggers, and binges.  There is much...much...much more that the Lord wants to do in me through prayer and fasting that reaches outside of my small little world.  Learning to think and act beyond my reach will help me lose this daily obsession with food and weight struggles.

Fasting needs to be a regular part of how I learn to worship and hunger for my loving Savior.



The nitty-gritty on some physical changes I noticed:

I was losing about 1 pound a day for the first week and a half or so. Then I guess I stalled. Not sure what happened. I did stop the morning walks.  It seemed after my cycle ended the weight loss ended too. That wasn't why I was fasting, but I find it interesting to note.

As I mentioned above, my taste for coffee and cravings are gone.  Even with the freedom to enjoy the gift as I choose, I find that I don't choose it as a treat or reward for myself.  I'm seeing it as more of a way to enjoy the company of another, savoring it's warmth and flavor while soaking up a good friend.  I prefer it like that.

I really feel better eating less.  Skipping a meal each day rarely felt like a hardship.  I feel lighter and my day is less hectic without having to stop and feed myself so often.

Now I'm on to making some choices about where I go from here. I like sticking with two meals a day. That has been a great help to giving me more time to rest, read, and just feel less rushed in my day.  I'm still working on making wise choices because I continue to give in to eating food that is empty as far as nutrition goes.  I don't want to keep putting things in my body that aren't meant for good. Hopefully, as I learn to point my heart upwards and outwards, this will become less difficult.

In the end, I'm grateful for another fasting time with the Lord. He's challenged me once again to see myself in new ways and draw closer to Him and His truths. So much to reflect on and ponder as I move forward in the days ahead. I guess my primary focus is this:  How can I continue to increase my hunger for the Lord and serve him whole-heartedly?

My end of fast pic.  Again, not really seeing any big changes, but I sure do FEEL great and free from many of the things that have been weighing me down.