Growing up I don?t ever remember hearing a message on fasting let alone participating in a church-wide call to fasting and prayer. By default, I grew up thinking that fasting was something they did in the Old Testament that was sort of like animal sacrifices ? we just don?t do it anymore. And I was fine with that. The idea of going extended periods of time without eating didn?t sound like my idea of fun.
But then, you come across passages in the Bible that indicate that fasting is an assumed practice of believers. Jesus expected his followers to fast and He said that God rewards fasting. Fasting, according to the Bible, means to voluntarily reduce or eliminate your intake of food for a specific time and purpose. It is an assumed regular practice of followers of God.