Fasting

[Guest]

Can you drink water while fasting? In true tho the faith, it says: To fast is to go without food and drink voluntarily. So i'm just curious...

[Jane_Doe]

A traditional fast is without food AND water, correct.

[Josiah]

Generally, you are supposed to go without eating or drinking anything. It's different if you have a health condition or other circumstances that don't make that reasonable (for example, some medicines need to be taken with a little bit of water and/or food in order to be safely used). Otherwise, you wouldn't drink water while fasting. 

[pam]

There is also that thing called common sense.

[bytor2112]

  On 9/7/2015 at 1:44 AM, pam said:

There is also that thing called common sense.

 

Pshh....that ole relic of the past?

[Palerider]

Always start and end your fast with prayer ....otherwise you are starving yourself. My opinion.

[Vort]

Correct, no food and no water. For anyone in decent health, this is not a problem. I have found that tanking up on water before starting my fast helps, and I often complete the whole fast without so much as getting thirsty. I do live in a cooler climate; those in a hot climate may need to be a bit more careful. But fasting is for (almost) everyone, with rare exceptions.

 

I am convinced that a consistent 24-hour monthly fast gives great spiritual blessings, and also great physical blessings. (I don't think the Lord distinguishes much between the two.)

[Traveler]

Anciently and in many contemporary cultures - fasting does not require no food or water but a definite change in what we eat and drink.   Some argue that Moses and Jesus really did not spend 40 day without food or drink but that they did go without any food provided by or through man.  I personally spend 40 days in the "wilderness" eating and drinking only what G-d would provide - which amounted to mostly a lot of insects and larva.  To this day - almost 50 years later - I still consider this one of my greatest spiritual efforts and adventures.

 

I believe that a fast from processed sugars for a week or even a month would be both physically and spiritually advantageous to many.  One purpose of a fast that is often overlooked is the value of self discipline.  I find it interesting that often in revelation and scripture - self discipline and spirituality are considered to be one in the same.

[askandanswer]

  On 9/7/2015 at 1:44 AM, pam said:

There is also that thing called common sense.

 

Among life's many mysteries

I've often wondered why

A sense that's known as common

Is in such short supply

 

Piet Hein

[hagoth]

  On 9/6/2015 at 6:47 PM, Lilyflowers88 said:

Can you drink water while fasting? In true tho the faith, it says: To fast is to go without food and drink voluntarily. So i'm just curious...

How/when/why you fast is between you and God.

 

https://www.lds.org/scriptures/ot/esth/4.16?lang=eng#15

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fasting

 

If it hasn't been suggested yet in this thread, I highly recommend carefully considering the law of the fast in Isaiah 58.

[cdowis]

I'm diabetic, and still working on that fasting thing.  The problem is going hypoglycemic -- going into a very low glucose shock.  One Sunday I wasn't even fasting, but teaching a lesson and suddenly almost fainted.  It's really really scary.

 

Last fast Sunday I took a small drink bottle with grape juice in it.  Drank some of it when I got to church, and left some in case I got into trouble.  I know that my medical condition allows me to be excused -- but I still want to try.

[Ironhold]

I have issues with my blood sugar (odd hours and all that), and so I need at least something light; I can't do a true fast without consequences. Even if it's just a frozen burrito, I need breakfast or something close enough to it. 

 

Plus, in my part of Texas it's virtually suicide to go without drinking anything during the summer, as dehydration is that big a threat.