Understanding The Three Days Fast!
Fasting as a Christian is different from all other fasting. Therefore, when I discuss how to fast for 3 days as a Christian, it’s going to be radically different!
It’s not a water fast, if there is such a thing, nor is it a partial fast which does not exist.
Welcome to “Three Days to Renewal: Your Complete Fasting Blueprint,” in this Bible Study, I will teach you how to fast for three days the Bible way!
3 Days Fasting The Bible Way
I will be discussing a total abstinence fast. This means no eating or drinking during the fast.
If you desire to transform your life then read on because I will share with you how I have been fasting for the past forty-four years.
I will share my biblical knowledge of fasting, tips, and easy improvements that you could incorporate into your fasting to make it a successful venture!
So, whether you’re a seasoned faster or a newcomer to the practice, this guide will equip you with the knowledge and tools you need to embark on a successful three-day fasting.
Join me on this journey to renewal and rejuvenation as I explore the benefits, methods, and three-day fasting tips.
DAY #1 – How To Fast For 3 Days?
The First 24-Hours
Fasting for three days, also known as a 72-hour fast, is a practice that involves abstaining from all foods and beverages for three consecutive days.
For Christians during this duration, we also abstain from sexual intercourse. If you want to know more dos and don’ts of Christian fasting, click this link!
As we continue this discussion of how to fast for 3 days, you will quickly realize that we are not talking about how to water fast!
Neither are we explaining how to juice fast or any of those non-existing fasts.
If you finished the first 24 hours of your 3 days of fasting, then you could complete it. They are the hardest.
Your desire for food and drink is at its summit during this time. If you yield to it, you will ruin your fast because you will be tempted to eat and drink.
However, after the first 24 hours, you will not feel hungry and you will not be thinking about food and drinks!
Benefits of 3 Day Fast!
During this time, the body enters a state of ketosis, where it begins to burn stored fat for fuel instead of glucose from food.
This metabolic shift triggers a range of health benefits. These include improved insulin sensitivity, increased fat loss, and enhanced cellular repair processes.
But we are not fasting for these benefits. They are just icing on the cake that we enjoy because our objective is spiritual.
Do You Need To Prepare Before a 3-Day Fast?
No physical preparations are necessary. However, the only preparation you should do is mental and emotional.
If you have not prepared yourself mentally for the fast you will not complete it! If not, sometime between starting and before the official ending of it, you will break it by eating and or drinking.
Before embarking on a three-day fast, it’s of no physical significance to prepare your body for the experience ahead.
Yes, preparing your mind is the key, not your body. Fasting is punishing your body to obey your spirit.
Mainly, because after the first 24 hours your body would have fully utilized all preparations and put you at zero!
They Say Do These Before a 3-Day Fast But Do They Work?
You don’t need to gradually reduce your intake of processed foods, sugar, and caffeine in the days leading up to your fast.
This is of little or no value. Your body would have used all these efforts in the first 24 hours.
Hydration is also crucial, so be sure to drink plenty of water and electrolyte-rich beverages to support your body’s functions during the fast. This is a myth!
Where I am during the first 24 hours affects how I conduct my 3-day fasting. If I’m at work, I do my fasting differently than if I am at home.
However, almost always when I decide to fast for 3-days and three nights I follow a simple plan. I would usually structure it so I’m at home while I’m fasting.
However, if I can’t be at home for all three days, I would only be at work or away from home for a maximum of 12 hours.
It’s better to fast at home. It affords you more time to spend doing the things that matter. These include reading your Bible and praying frequently during the fast duration!
How To Start Your 3 Days Fasting?
Start simply by praying and reading your Bible. Recall, never fast unless you have a well-defined fasting goal that you are striving to accomplish.
The ultimate aim of fasting is to make us become more like Jesus Christ. Christian Fasting makes us better people!
When Should I Start My 3 Days Fasting?
I recommend that you begin your fast at sunrise. Say you start your fast at sunrise on Friday, March 1st, 2024, then Saturday, March 2nd, 2024, at sunrise, would be the first 24 hours, (or first day), of your fasting.
But you are not compelled to follow that. There is no biblical guidance on this. Do what works for you!
I Usually Do My Three Day Fasting From Here!
I do my 3-day and 3-night fasting from my bed. Yes! So for three days and three nights, I will be in that bed reading, praying, meditating, and searching the Scriptures.
I do leave the bed for brief periods. I still do my regular personal hygiene routines.
This includes showering, shaving, changing clothes, brushing my teeth, gargling with my Listerine Cool Mint flavor, and so on.
I know, someone is asking, do I change bed linen during the fast? I absolutely do!
But, on the whole, I fast from my bed. Everything that I need for the next three days is on that bed.
These include a notebook, pen, pencil, my laptop, kindle, and mobile phone.
Day #2 – What To Do During A 3 Day Fast?
Thirty-Six Hours Into The Fast!
Continue to do those activities that you did to start the fasting, mainly praying, reading your Bible, searching the Scriptures, and meditating on a Word from God!
Nevertheless, Christian Fasting is a seeking for the Lord God.
You will rinse and repeat these activities throughout your fasting.
I have written on the things to do while fasting. That Bible Study will provide more details.
On day 2, during a three-day fast, there is no managing hunger or cravings because you will lack the desire for food!
After the first 24 hours, I have not experienced any hunger or cravings.
Therefore, I don’t expect that you will either. So, 36 hours into the fasting, food and drinks will be the last things on your mind.
48 Hours Into Your 3 Days Fasting
This is the night of the second day of fasting. If you are an avid coffee drinker, like I am, you may experience a pounding headache as you go without it for an extended time.
But this will soon stop.
Therefore, expect to experience some or all of the following:
- Headache
- Weakness
- Dizziness
- fatigue or lack of energy
- Sleeplessness and
- Low blood sugar
This is why I keep my bed when I do a 72-hour fast! I need my energy to finish it! I utilize this time to read, write, or search the Bible for answers!
Day #3 – How To Fast For 3 Days Safely?
60 Hours Into Your 3 Days Fasting
This is the last day of your fasting. You should not be having headaches but you will be weak from lack of nutrients and water.
We fast for 3 days safely not by listening primarily to our medical professionals and scientists but to the Lord God!
If we listen to and obey his instructions concerning fasting then it will be the safest fast we will ever embark on.
He created us and He knows us better than anyone does, even more than ourselves! He knows what’s best for us!
Nevertheless, I want to encourage you to finish what you started. You began the fast so finish it!
- Continue to pray,
- Meditate, and
- Read your Bible.
Play Gospel songs! Some from Shirley Ceaser, Andre Crouch, and The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir come readily to mind.
72 Hours Into Your 3 Days Fasting
Breaking Your Fast
As your three-day fast ends, you will break it by eating or drinking.
Breaking your fasting is as important as starting it. Many Christians do much harm to themselves at the end of their fast.
Therefore, you should exercise extreme care not to hurt yourself as you end your fasting.
Here is a principle that I apply when I’m breaking a fast, The number of days I was fasting is the same number of days that must elapse before I resume my usual diet.
For example, say I just finished a three-day fast, three days must elapse before I resume my usual menu.
However, it’s essential to reintroduce food gradually to avoid overwhelming your digestive system and hurting yourself.
Start with small portions of easily digestible foods, fruits, and drinks. These could include steamed vegetables and lean protein sources.
Myths About Fasting For 3 Days!
“What Can You Expect When Fasting for 3 Days? Fasting for long periods can result in vitamin and mineral deficiencies, muscle breakdown, and diarrhea. Denying your body food for 72 hours can lead to dizziness, headaches, low blood sugar, muscle aches, weakness, and fatigue.”
BetterMe
If you never fasted for three days then, like that writer above, you could write that fasting for that duration results in “diarrhea”.
But that is nonsense!
During such a fast you may urinate twice but you will never defecate. I have been doing 3-days fasting for over forty-five years and not once have I done #2 much less to have diarrhea.
I’m not special in this regard. If this happened to me while I fast it will happen to you or anyone else.
You will never have diarrhea while abstinence fasting.
If abstaining for three days results in any noticeable or significant “vitamin and mineral deficiencies” then they were really, really low before you started your fast.
Conclusion
Congratulations on completing Three Days to Renewal: Your Complete Fasting Blueprint! By fasting for three days, you’ve taken a significant step towards improving your spiritual and physical well-being.
Remember to reflect on your experience and consider incorporating regular fasting into your lifestyle. You could fast every quarter or every six months.
But whatever you decide, do fast! Not fasting is not an option!
In closing, you will not see immediate results but give it time and continue to fast. Then, suddenly, one day you and others will notice the difference Christian fasting makes in your life.
