Daniel Fast

I read about this on one of my message boards, and was intrigued. The title comes from the Biblical book of Daniel, and the idea is to eat the same way that Daniel did. Different websites list different rules, when you get into the specifics, but the basics are all the same. Eat fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes and drink only water. Some sites say that honey is all right and others okay herbal tea. Foods to be "fasted" from include meat, dairy, sugar, caffeine, flour, leavening agents, and all preservatives. Spices are all right, and so are whole grains like brown rice. I suppose wheat flour would be okay, but there isn't much you can do with flour that doesn't have some kind of leavening in it. One site says unleavened bread is fine....others don't.

Do you get the sense that this is supposed to be an individual thing? Yeah, me too. I'm embarking on this fast, starting Monday, for 21 days. I'm going to allow myself to drink black tea with honey, mostly because, if I quit caffeine cold turkey then, by Wednesday, I'll be insane and I'll quit. Maybe I'll try to taper off in time for Lent.

Some may say that I'm not embracing the spirit of the fast. That it's supposed to be about sacrifice and allowing God to work in my life through that sacrifice. I say I'm sacrificing quite a lot, thank you, and God and I are okay with this modification. At least, that's the general sense that I get.

I started with this idea as a way to lose weight, or at least jump start that process. But, the more I've thought about it, and as I shopped for veggies, fruits, hummus, peanut butter without sugar, and other things, I began to hear God's voice. It's interesting how we can start something with one intent and wind up with something totally different, isn't it? I'm curious to see where God will lead me during this fast.

Bruce is on board and is willing to do much of the cooking for he and the kids. I really don't think that will be necessary. I've already thought of ways I can modify the recipes for them to suit this fast. We're having fajitas one night.....I'll just saute the peppers and onions for me, plus some spices and maybe a portabella mushroom or some squash. No problem! We'll see how I feel by the end of the week, however.

The kids, by the way, don't get it and keep giving me this look like I've suddenly grown another head. Shannon is calling it my "vegetarian" fast.

We'll see how it goes. Tomorrow, I'll delve into the Bible some more.