Identifying What Controls You
Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18; Daniel 1:8-16
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
Daniel 1:8-16
8 But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way. 9 Now God had caused the official to show favor and compassion to Daniel, 10 but the official told Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has assigned your[a] food and drink.Why should he see you looking worse than the other young men your age? The king would then have my head because of you.”
11 Daniel then said to the guard whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, 12 “Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.” 14 So he agreed to this and tested them for ten days.
15 At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. 16 So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.
Fasting reveals what truly controls our lives. When we voluntarily abstain from food or other comforts, we quickly discover what has been shaping us. Do we run to the refrigerator or to prayer when stressed? Do we scroll social media or search Scripture when bored? Daniel understood this principle. He refused the king’s delicacies not because food was evil, but because he wanted God—not culture—to shape his identity. We are three-part beings: body, soul, and spirit. Whichever part we feed most becomes strongest. Our generation is the most connected in history yet often the most spiritually disconnected. We’re plugged into endless streams of entertainment, news, and social media that constantly shape our thoughts, emotions, and desires. Fasting isn’t about impressing God; it’s about weakening the world’s grip on our lives and strengthening the Spirit’s voice within us.
