Day 3: What Do You See?

Here we are on day three, and the hunger pains are either at their peak, or maybe just beginning to subside a little. It’s always about day 3 that my body starts to adjust, as if to say “So you’re really going to go through with this?! Okay (sigh).”

On days 1 & 2 my prayers usually consist of “God please don’t let me come across any more beautiful chocolate chip cookies today, that was torture!” But on day 3 a little bit of a rhythm begins. So if this is your first time, and you’re struggling, be encouraged.

If you’re like me, you are coming into this Daniel Fast and life is a blur. The Daniel Fast may just seem like one more thing. Are you asking, “God, do I really have to add being hungry to my list of things to do today?!”

The pace of our lives can feel overwhelming at times, and changing what you consume so dramatically only adds fuel to the fire. It’s tempting to focus on those feelings, and miss what lies beneath the surface of our discomfort. So many of the challenges we face are a matter of perspective, and it is here that I believe God wants to work (at least in me).

It’s a retraining of sorts really, which is like me telling you to not think about an elephant.

What image do you see?

An elephant of course.

When challenges come, what image are you in the habit of seeing? When you feel the ache of refraining from certain foods, what is your focus? When the elephant comes trampling through your head, God wants to be the image that you see.

It was somewhere about day 3 during last year’s Daniel Fast that I remember the fog lifting a little, and things start to come into focus. Fasting is a process I submit to so God can change the picture I see when trouble comes.

Fasting is a self imposed trial in a way, through which we chose not to focus on our lack or discomfort, but on his goodness and grace.

So as the avalanche of responsibility has come tumbling down around me this week, there is a focus that belies my lack of sleep, there is a patience that disregards my limited time, and there is an image forming on the inside which gives me strength.


Tadd