How to Access the Supernatural Power of Fasting in 2026

Fasting is one of the most controversial topics in the Christian community and as such, many questions arise concerning it. People wish to reach that threshold where they fast with ease but they do not have enough empowerment on how to go about it or how important it is.

First, fasting is the deliberate abstinence from food or other distractions legitimate or illegitimate for a period of time which can be short or long for the purpose of interactions with God's word and continuous deliberate prayers.

In 1st Thessalonians 5:23, the Bible says that the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. Now this Bible text expressly tells us that man is a spirit being with an "earthly suit" and a mind. We are spirit beings and the supernatural realm is our natural habitat. Therefore ,to attain this level of impact of ancient men, we must fast and wait on God to release His power over us, fortify our spirit with heavenly food and bring the body under dominion of God's spirit.

Another thing we must know as as believers is that, fasting is a responsibility on you as a believer. It definitely is not optional. The Bible again in Matthew 6:16-18 says “And when you fast, don’t make it obvious, as the hypocrites do, for they try to look miserable and disheveled so people will admire them for their fasting. I tell you the truth, that is the only reward they will ever get. Verses 17 and 18 goes on saying that when you fast, comb your hair and wash your face so no one will notice that you are fasting, except your Father, who knows what you do in private. And your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.

Read: Christian Drama Script - The Man Jesus

Notice that Jesus Christ said,"When" not"if" you fast. So, this leads us to our next title line - Why exactly Must a Believer Fast?

 Another preferred title for this article would be “How to Fast Properly and Effectively”

Why should Christians fast and pray?

Since this is my first post this year, it is only right to welcome you into this blessed year, and to do that, I will be kicking off the year with something that every Christian should cultivate this year, and this is “fasting and prayer.” 

Fasting and prayer, as simple as they sound, have so many misconceptions around them and in this write up, I will be explaining in depth the concept of fasting and prayer and also sharing some biblical backing for them. 

First, let’s understand what the different concepts are.

What is fasting? To put it in a very simple form, fasting is abstinence. Fasting is abstinence from water and food. For some others, fasting entails doing away with something that you are used to doing. More like sacrificing something to be focused on what you are expecting. 

Fasting can also be religious or not; for the sake of this write up, I will be differentiating between both. 

There are different things that set religious fasting aside and they are: 

Intent: The reason behind religious fasting is spiritual discipline, which may be as a result of many things (e.g., seeking the face of God, preparing for something big, seeking to hear from God, etc.). For non religious fasting, most of the time it is for medical or dietary reasons, but it’s not limited to those two. 

Basically, religious fasting has the God factor, while the other doesn't.

Process: For anything to be effective, procedures and processes have to be followed. As a Christian, religious fasting must include seeking the face of God; without that, it is starvation. And the process entails doing this for a specific time. (e.g., 12am-3pm). 

For non religious fasting is basically starving yourself to reach a worldly goal. 

The importance of fasting

For everything in life, there is a purpose; if something doesn’t have an importance, then there would be no value attached to it. The same thing applies to fasting. 

Fasting is an act that invokes ultimate focus and helps you hear clearly from God. Fasting is an act of spiritual discipline that helps silence the flesh and makes you sensitive to the voice of God. 

Fasting intensifies your ability to pray; it makes your hunger for God rise beyond your usual level. It also helps to grow our faith as we wait on the Lord. Fasting sort of shows that we, too, as humans, can willingly sacrifice a little to draw closer to God. Fasting is important to have a deeper connection with God. 

When yo​​u look at the lives of the greats in the Bible, you will understand the inspiration of fasting. Fasting has been seen to come before some of the greatest encounters in the Bible. 

For example: Moses fasted for forty days and forty nights, after which he wrote the ten commandments, and he experienced what no man did in the Old Testament. He had such an encounter that the skin on his face shone and the children of Isreal were scared to come near him. (Exodus 34:28-30). Fasting is important to evoke unusual encounters with God. It also helps when we need to hear God clearly when we need a sense of direction. 

Lastly, in this section, fasting shouldn’t be limited to when we want to ask God for something. Although, when we need something from our father, we can fast and make our requests but there are tons of reasons to fast; asking and asking should not be the main reason we fast always. 

After an understanding of what fasting is, let's delve into what praying is. 

What is praying? 

Praying is an act of talking to God and hearing from him. Unlike how most people view prayers, it’s an actual communication process that entails speaking to God and also hearing from him, not just speaking alone. 

There are different forms of prayers; intercessory prayers (the ones we pray on behalf of others), thanksgiving, making our requests known, etc. 

When praying as Christians, it is important that we know what counts as prayer and what doesn't. For example: crying, grumbling, mumming, and blaming God—all these don’t count as orayers. 

Imagine your teenage child walks up to you, starts crying, and doesn’t say anything, despite you lending your listening ears. After that, he goes and says, “mum/dad didn’t answer me.” The next question would be, What did you ask for? Although God knows our needs before we ask, we too must cultivate the act of asking. You can cry, but make sure you ask. Matthew 7:7 says, Ask, and it shall be given unto you, not cry. It further says, Seek and ye shall find, not cry and ye shall find. 

The same goes for grumbling and blaming God; you are not asking, like the Bible asked us, to make our requests known to God with prayer, supplication, and thanksgiving. (Philipians 4:6)

Knowing these two concepts. Why, then, must Christians fast and pray?

To keep communicating with God: If you want to have an intimate relationship with God, you have to continue to speak to him. You can’t claim to love someone and cut communication with them.

To keep ourselves out of troubles: (Matthew 26:39) Just like Jesus prayed to God to let the cup pass over him, we should always learn to run to God, not man, to help us in trouble. And the best way to do that is through fasting and prayer.

To experience divine encounters: We have examples of people in the Bible who prayed and fasted, which invoked divine encounters, e.g., Moses.

To praise God (thanksgiving; Psalm 147:1): Praising God can come in different forms, including thanking him for what he has done and also for what you trust him to do. 

To overcome the wiles of the devil: As Christians, we need to fortify ourselves against the wiles of the devil, who seeks whom to devour. It is best to keep praying and fasting to overcome the devil and his agents. (Sin also).

To experience spiritual growth: (Matthew 17:15-21) A practical example of this can be seen in the scripture mentioned above, where the disciples were unable to cast out demons from a certain boy. He told his disciples that to access such power, you have to fast and pray. 

To evoke speedy response to our requests. 

Biblical backing for fasting and prayers

This writeup will come to an end with me just supporting all I have written with scripture. 

The right number of times to pray is always. (Ephesians 6:18, Luke 18:1) The Bible also emphasizes that we should pray without ceasing. (1 Thessalonians 5:17)

Don't pray amis (James 4:3) Always pray the right way; if you ask the wrong way, you won’t be getting any answers.

Only Christians who are born again can reap the fruits of prayer and fasting. 

Learn to pray using the Lord’s prayer as a guide (thanksgiving, requests, forgiveness, intercession, and thanksgiving)

We focus more on God when we fast

Anytime we engage in fasting, our fellowship with God becomes deeper. The spirit of God hovers around us and we become empowered.

 

We must fast for our spiritual growth

Spiritual growth and development is necessary for every believer. The channels of our spirit is opened up when we give ourselves to fasting and prayers,our utterances become heavy and filled with power. Through this,we are connected to the spiritual realm for maximum growth in the spirit.

 

We fast to experience the Supernatural 

In seasons of fasting, a believer is set to experience the supernatural power of God in healings, deliverance, problem resolution, victory as well as an out pour of God's spirit over the believer. Jesus Christ in Matthew 17:21 rightly asked the disciples as to every believer today, saying, "Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting?". In the same way, we can not experience the supernatural if we do not give heed to basic spiritual exercises like fasting.

How then do you fast? How can we access the supernatural power of fasting as believers?

Having discussed the reasons why a believer should fast, let's now address the title (four ways to access the supernatural power of fasting) specifically below.

1. Decide the Purpose of your fast

Don't be aimless while fasting. You must be specific every time and season of your fast. All through scriptures, every time a fast was called, it was as a result of certain things that needed to be addressed spiritually. In our article about life lessons from the life of Esther, we discussed the Spiritual fast that the Israelites had to undertake because of the plot to wipe them off the land. In the same manner, every believer must understand that angelic activities work on your specificity. Fast purposefully so that you will reap bountiful benefits.

2. Draw a Commitment Plan

While you want to fast purposefully, you should also plan your commitment to yourself by drawing up a goal for how long you want to spend in the word and prayers. Purpose without a committing plan will not be fulfilled or will in most cases, lead to futility. At that point in time, you discover that you are observing a mere "hunger strike" instead of a proper fast. A hunger strike will be a waste of time and that is why you need a commitment plan for your prayer and word schedules during the fast. Also plan the tools and resources you will need for the fast such as scriptures to use, messages to listen to or books to read.

 

3. Trust and Believe in Your Action of Faith

What is a fast without faith? Why should you fast if you do not believe that God can hear you? Whenever you believe and fast, many times, you receive your reward before the fast. The Bible says in Hebrews 11:6 that it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him."

4. Minister to the Lord

In your fast, you must schedule time to minister to the Lord in praise, worship, meditation and deep study. When you do this, expect to hear from Him too. God wants to talk to you but you must be patient enough to tap into that frequency where you can listen to Him seamlessly.

Conclusion

Lastly, remember to pray as a fast without prayers is just hunger strike! As a believer, never underestimate the power of a fast. Being busy is not an excuse to not fast as no one can really be spiritual without a fasted life.