Day 9 Devotional: Fasting to Humble Ourselves
Day 9: Fasting to Humble Ourselves
Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise, exalt, and honor the King of heaven, for all His works are true and His ways just; and He is able to humble those who walk in pride. Daniel 4:37
The Bible has a lot to say about pride and humility. It’s clear that pride leads to destruction and stumbling (Proverbs 16:18) and pride cannot stand, but will result in humbling (Isaiah 2:17). This consequence holds true for King Nebuchadnezzar in chapter four.
King Nebuchadnezzar leaves humanity and becomes like an animal. He begins eating grass, growing out hair like an eagles’ feathers and nails like bird claws – not a pretty picture!
God had warned Nebuchadnezzar about exactly what would happen if he continued on the same path. He had to turn away from his pride and self-sufficiency, and recognizing that heaven rules or else (Daniel 4:25-26).
Repetition should catch your eye when you’re reading the Bible, and we see this in Daniel chapter four. A variation of this statement is made three times in this chapter:
‘The Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind.’ (Daniel 4:17, 4:25, 4:32)
What things have we taken credit for when instead we should acknowledge that it was God who blessed us, equipped us, and ultimately deserves the praise?
We might be proud of our finances, careers, or home . . . or maybe it’s our parenting, personalities, or accomplishments. Fasting is a good time for reflection and counting those things in our lives that we may have taken too much credit for or placed too much value on.
Pride can lead us to false beliefs and other sins such as self-righteousness, control, greediness, or harboring a critical, judgmental spirit.
We should be confident in who we are in Christ. We are called to work diligently and steward well what we’ve been given. We can rejoice in the blessings we have, but let’s never forget to give God all the glory.
Throughout the Bible, people fasted to humble themselves and place God first, and the can do the same. As C.S. Lewis said in Mere Christianity, the truly humble man will not be thinking about humility because he will not be thinking about himself at all.
So let’s turn our gaze heavenward remembering that God is the ruler over this world!
Your Journey
As the familiar quote goes, humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less – how can you focus less on yourself and more on God? Can you make a list of things to praise Him for?
Song: Hallelujah Here Below by Elevation Worship (YouTube)
Daniel 4:37
Deuteronomy 8:11-18
Ezra 8:21
You can utilize the Daniel Fast Journey book (available on Amazon) for more information about the Daniel Fast along with a 21-day meal plan and recipes.