Fasting is withholding from something we want so we can set our minds and attention on God. Food is an important part of life, but Scripture is full of invitations to go without it for a period of time to connect with God and be more mindful of our reliance on him.

For more on why we fast, check out Doug’s Sermon, Five Reasons Fasting Will Change Your Life.

As we head into 21-Days of Prayer and Fasting, here are four different fasts to choose from. Read through the different fasts and decide which one is right for you this year. If for any reason, you don’t feel comfortable fasting from food, the final option (the soul fast) is for you!

Complete Food Fast
In this type of fast, you drink only liquids. Drink a lot of water, and then add in juice and shakes as needed.

Partial Food Fast
This fast is sometimes called the “Jewish Fast” and involves abstaining from eating any type of food for a certain period of time each day. For example, you can choose to skip a certain meal or abstain from eating until sunset.

Selective Food Fast
This type of fast involves removing certain elements from your diet. One example of a selective fast is the Daniel Fast, during which you remove meat, sweets, and bread from your diet and consume water and juice for fluids and fruits and vegetables for food.

Soul Fast
If you don’t have much experience fasting food, have health (or other) issues that prevent you from fasting food, or if you wish to refocus certain areas of your life that are out of balance, this is a great option for you. For example, you might choose to stop using social media or watching television for the duration of the fast and then carefully bring that element back into your life in healthy doses at the conclusion of the fast.

The next key to making these 21-days successful is establishing a prayer routine that works for your schedule. We are creatures of habit, and the goal for these next three weeks is to establish a healthy habit of prayer we can carry with us for the rest of the year.

Your strategy should consist of three things—a time, a spot, and a plan.

Pick a Time
What is a time that works for you every day? If you have young kids, there is a good chance it will either have to be before they wake up or after they go to bed. It doesn’t matter when it is; just pick the time that is going to be easiest for you to stick to and put it in your calendar right now.

Pick a Spot
Your prayer times will be a lot more consistent if you designate a specific spot for them. Maybe it’s a certain chair or closet. Or maybe it’s your backyard or your car. Again, it doesn’t matter what spot you choose; it only matters that you pick one and stick with it.

Pick a Plan
The best way to ensure you will have success during your prayer time is to go into it with a plan. There are many different models you can follow for this, and in week two, we will walk through one together (praying The Lord’s Prayer). But go into your prayer time with a plan.

One option is to pray through the acronym: ACTS.

Adoration: Start your prayer by praising God for who he is.
Confession: Admit any sin in your life.
Thanksgiving: Next, express gratitude for a few things in your life.
Supplication: Finally, end your prayer by praying for one person.

What if today was the day you established a routine for your prayers. And what if next year at this time, you can look back and know that you’ve prayed every day for the last 365 days? Praying for one day may feel underwhelming, but if you pray every day for a year, the results will be overwhelming!