21 Powerful Prayers for the Daniel Fast [Prayer Guide]

Beginning a fast of any kind or duration is a great undertaking, one to be taken seriously and one to couple with prayer. Actually, the two most definitely go together. Jesus said it best: some things just cannot be accomplished without both prayer and fasting. 

If you’re embarking on a challenging 21 Day Daniel Fast, these powerful prayers for the Daniel Fast will serve as a guide to help you pray each day of your journey. These are meant to lead you into prayers from your own lips, your own heart, unto the God who knows you best and strengthens you on your fasting journey.

Our sister post, 21 Daniel Fast Scripture Readings, makes a great companion for your prayer time. There are 21 bible passages, one for each day of your fast. 

If you prefer to download these prayers for the Daniel Fast, bundled with daily scriptures for easy reading, we’re making them available to you in PDF form. Click here for our Daniel Fast Prayer Guide. 

Related:

• Daniel Fast Snacks
• Daniel Fast Recipes
• Daniel Fast Meal Plan

21 Powerful Prayers for the Daniel Fast

Day 1. Praise

We begin our prayers for the Daniel Fast with PRAISE. In the Book of Daniel, Chapter 9, Daniel is praying for his country, which is caught in sin and rebellion and needing the mercy of God.

Daniel begins with praise. Praise before confession, praise before asking for anything because God is worthy. We should always come to His throne with praise and thanksgiving before we petition.

Lord Jesus, You alone are worthy of glory, praise and honor! Thank You for another day to worship Your holy Name. Thank you for the mercies afforded me when I open my eyes every morning.

I praise You for breath, for strength, for my right mind, and especially for Your presence in my life. My desire is to please You, to bring glory to Your Name so that others would see You in me.

I praise You for Your mighty acts, I praise You according to Your excellent greatness! While I live I will praise You, Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Day 2. Confession

Daniel goes from praise immediately into confession for his country. He is blunt as he proclaims, “We have sinned.” He confesses their:

1. Iniquity
2. Wickedness
3. Rebellion
4. Ignoring of the prophets
5. Ignoring the Voice of God

Confession doesn’t surprise God! He already knows everything about us. Confession helps us realize who WE are and our need for change. 

Thank you Savior Jesus, Lord of All, You alone are worthy of praise! I humble myself before You today and confess my sins, shortcomings and failures.

You know all about me; You formed me in the womb, and yet I realize my need to express my wrongdoing. I was born in sin, shapen in iniquity, but because of the cross, I can admit my transgressions and bring them to You, knowing You hear and have compassion on me.

I surrender in repentance and turn to You, my Rock and Redeemer. Amen.

Reminder: If you prefer to download these prayers for the Daniel Fast, bundled with daily scriptures for easy reading, we’re making them available to you in PDF form. Click here for our Daniel Fast Prayer Guide. 

Day 3. Forgiveness

Daniel continued to petition his God in the ninth chapter of the book bearing his name. Next, he asked for forgiveness and gets specific with his request for pardon and intervention. He asked for God to:

1. Hear his prayer
2. Open His eyes to see their extreme desolation
3. Extend mercy and not righteousness
4. Forgive them of their sins

Jesus, Everlasting Father, I seek Your forgiveness today and ask for mercy that You are so free to hand out. Without Your involvement in my life, where would I be?

Please forgive my judgmental disposition, my lackadaisical attitude, and anything that would hinder Your work in my life.

As I fast and pray the next few weeks, let the forgiveness You have extended to me cause me to be merciful to others.

May I not forget the price You paid that I could come boldly before the throne of Grace and receive forgiveness of sins and if I have offended or hurt anyone else, please help me to ask forgiveness and restoration.

In the Name above all names, Jesus, I give You praise.

Day 4. Sacrifice

By now you are growing a little accustomed to your fasting schedule but now is not the time to let up or be at ease! We must deny ourselves other things that normally occupy our time and use that time to spend with God every day in prayer and the Word; there is where we get our strength! 

Thank you, Jesus, that I am able to fast and pray today. Thank you for the examples in Your Word of the countless number of people of God that also fasted and prayed and were able to see their prayers answered according to Your will. Lord, I am bombarded with distractions, please help me to push things aside so this isn’t a diet but a sacrifice of my habits and routines.

There is power in prayer and when I also deny myself and concentrate on time spent with You, I can be changed and renewed in spirit, mind and physical body. For this I am thankful and give You alone the praise. In Your Holy Name, Amen.

Day 5. Fire and Desire

There is no better time than a prolonged fast to draw closer to your God. It is ample opportunity to ask Him to renew Fire and Desire in your heart and life. The more you spend time with Him, the more you will WANT to spend time with Him.

Make your prayer one that asks God to give you desire to be in His presence and then fire to make sure others can see that you have been with the Almighty so they may also come to know Him.

Dear Jesus, I need to be revived in spirit and mind. I want the desire that I have for food, for worldly amusement and entertainment and other things to be replaced with a hunger to know You as never before.

Light a fire in me that will be so bright that others cannot help but notice there is something different about me; not for my righteousness but for Your glory alone, that they may come to know You.

It’s not about me, Lord, I was made to praise You and to point others in Your direction. Use me today, according to Your will, Amen.

Day 6. Unbelief

If you struggle with unbelief, whatever the reason, fasting will loose faith in its place! Unbelief can hinder the work that God is trying to accomplish in your life. Ask Him to replace that doubt with confidence in His Word that you may walk boldly in the knowledge that He is always with you.

Lord Jesus, I thank You and praise You that You are ever with me. Even though Your Word declares Your faithfulness and mercy to me, I am human and still am subject to doubt and unbelief. As the apostle Thomas declared, “Lord, I believe, help my unbelief!” Help me to realize that fasting and prayer will remove doubt and replace it with hope in You alone. Then I may go about my day, every day, knowing that the God of the universe, the Creator of the world, is on my side, is beside me and forever encouraging me to be more like You that others may also believe. In the powerful Name of Jesus, Amen.

Day 7. Patience and Endurance

You are ending the first week of your three weeks of prayers for the Daniel Fast; you have displayed determination and commitment! Today, ask God for patience and endurance to continue, to finish the “race” and push on every day, even when it is just plain difficult. He will answer that prayer.

Thank You, God, for helping me through the first week of the fast, You are my reason for living and my desire is to know You. Help me today and the next two weeks of the fast to endure because Your Word tells me that perseverance produces character and character produces hope. And hope never disappoints us because You have poured out Your love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. (Romans 5:4, 5)

Thank You for patience, I am confident that comes from above, Lord, it is not in my nature to be patient. But Your Word and Your presence encourage me that all things are in Your time; Your timing is always perfect but it is rarely what I think it should be. Help me to trust You and You alone; I know You are for me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

Day 8. Idols

Beginning your second week of prayers for the Daniel Fast, ask God to reveal areas in your life that need to be pruned and weeded out. Are you harboring idols that you don’t even realize have impacted your walk with the Savior? Sure, you aren’t bowing before a golden statue every day but what about things that take up too much of your time? Pray and fast today for those things that are taking up room in your heart to be replaced by love for the things of God.

Jesus, You are my strength and my song, You have become my salvation! Help me today to see things in my life that have become idols, even those I am not aware of. Reveal them to me, things that consume my time, things that fight for my attention and are total time wasting distractions. Help me to recognize the stumbling blocks that the enemy may put in my way, hoping I may trip and fall. But according to Your Word, when I fall, I shall arise!

I put my hope in You alone to strengthen me to replace those distractions with spiritually life-giving truths. May I fill my home, my heart and my mind with the good things of God that I may be continually reminded of all the blessings I am missing when I choose things over You. Blessed be the Name of the Lord, Amen. 

Day 9. Renew, Restore

There are many benefits to fasting but the bottom line is that it empties us of ourselves and points our weary souls to Christ. He alone is able to heal, restore, renew and refresh us in His Spirit, and yet, there are some things that we may not see God do right away. Trust Him today to know what is best for you and believe Him for every big and little thing.

Thank You today, Father, for the declaration in Your Word that fasting and prayer go together. If I am not spending time with You, it is just another healthy way of eating. I need healing in my body, in my mind, in my spirit. Please refresh, renew, and restore me as I humble myself in Your presence. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me! This is where I gain that strength to continue on with the fast; through worship and prayer.

Lord, I trust in You with all my heart and lean not on my own understanding. In all of my ways I submit myself to You, knowing You alone will make my paths straight. Amen.

Reminder: If you prefer to download these prayers for the Daniel Fast, bundled with daily scriptures for easy reading, we’re making them available to you in PDF form. Click here for our Daniel Fast Prayer Guide. 

Day 10. Obedience

Obedience is difficult at times and yet necessary in all things of God. The Lord promises us great benefits if we obey! Deuteronomy 28 declares that all these blessings will come upon you if you obey His voice. Ask God to help you to be obedient, take away the human characteristic of stubbornness and rebellion and replace it with humble obedience. Then pray the rest of that group of scripture in Deuteronomy in the first person; make it your own!

Jesus, I thank You for showing me things in my life that I need to work on, things that may be hidden in my heart and so much a part of my nature that I don’t even realize how they have changed me and inhibited me from being all I can be in Christ.

Help me to be humbly obedient, knowing that blessings flow in the life of the child of God who can readily submit to You being Lord in their life. Your Word declares I will be blessed in the city, I will be blessed in the field. My children and all that I consider mine will be blessed. Wherever I go and whatever I do will be blessed by the Lord Most High if I keep my eyes on You and let You be Lord in my life. I am forever thankful, in Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

Day 11. Relationship

It’s not religion; it’s relationship! Do you really know God or do you just know about Him? “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8. Communication with God, including a listening ear, is the best way to develop that most necessary relationship.

I’m so very thankful, precious Lord, to be able to have a relationship with the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords! You alone are worthy to be praised, high and lifted up! I desire today to know You, not just know about You. I make it my mission to come before You every day, asking for Your strength and wisdom, longing to come into true fellowship with You. Help me to not just ramble on and dump a list of requests in Your lap but may I take the time to listen to Your voice. Your Word declares that Your sheep KNOW Your voice and another they will not follow. Thank you for the opportunities afforded me every single day to truly come into meaningful, life-giving relationship with You, the only One who has sacrificed His life for me that I might not just live but  live abundantly. Thank You, Jesus, Amen. 

Day 12. The Word

Immersing ourselves daily in The Word of God is as necessary for the spiritual man as food and water are for the physical. Martin Luther said it well, “The Bible is alive; it speaks to me. It has feet; it runs after me. It has hands; it lays hold of me!” Ask God today to give you a love for His Word, to breathe a deep desire to embrace it, inhale it and apply it to every area of your life.

Lord, You declare that the Word of God is powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword and able to pierce my heart. Why, then, do I neglect to make time for the studying of the most powerful book in my home? Life is there, strength is readily available, encouragement, wisdom, direction, comfort and on and on. I need a love for the Word, a love for the instruction manual You have left for us. In it are the answers to ALL of life’s problems and the keys to eternal life! Help me to realize I need it as much as the air I breathe and the water I consume. I must have it; I must crave it if I am to be effective in this world and to be ready to meet You in the next. It is in Your Name I pray, Amen.

Day 13. Pray the Scripture

One of the most powerful things you can do while praying and fasting is to pray the scriptures. Daniel’s prayer in the 51st Psalm is a great example of how to do that. Just apply a Psalm, or another example of a prayer in the Bible, to your own life, even inserting your own name or just pray in the first person. It is powerful! God will bring things to your mind as you pray the prayer of another and catapult you into deep prayer and praise.

Oh God, Everlasting Father, I ask You today to create in me a clean heart and renew a right spirit in me. Cast me not away from Your presence; and take not Your holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of Your salvation; hold me up with Your free spirit. O Lord, open my lips; and my mouth will give You praise! (Psalm 51) 

You have searched me and You know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from far away. You hem me in–behind and before; You have laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain! Search me O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Amen. (Psalm 139)

Day 14. Wrestling the Enemy

You’re now completing your second week of prayers for the Daniel Fast. The enemy doesn’t fear you going to church but he does fear you when you hit your knees. When the angel Gabriel came to David to strengthen him and answer his prayers he told him that his prayer was heard the FIRST DAY but he was engaged in spiritual warfare to get to him. You may not see the answers to your prayers right away, but rest in the knowledge that God is working all things for your ultimate good. 

Jesus, the Word declares that we don’t wrestle against flesh and blood, or people, we are really wrestling, or fighting, with the enemy of our souls. The Word of God is our Sword, we fight, we win, by declaring Your Word. Because You have overcome the world, we can do the same when we humble ourselves in prayer and fasting. No weapon formed against me shall prosper! You fight for me, and I have read the back of The Book…we win! Thank You for victory today, remind me throughout the day that the battle belongs to You and You are more than victorious, Conquering King! I love and appreciate You today, Lord, and every day for all that You have given me to live an overcoming life. In Your Name, Amen.

Day 15. Good News

We begin our third week of prayers for the Daniel Fast with a focus on the GOOD NEWS, the Gospel. Do you ever wonder what your purpose is here on this earth? Some of the last words of Jesus before ascension were to go. Go where? Go into all the world and preach the Gospel. The Gospel is simply the Good News that Jesus died, was buried and rose again to conquer hell and the grave. He offers eternal life through faith in His Name! It is our responsibility; it was a command to all of us, to share this Good News with others.

Dear Jesus, thank You for Your love that is everlasting, I cling to the promise that You will never leave me nor forsake me. Help me today to be aware of those around me who do not know You, who may be in a desperate place in their lives and need to hear that God still cares. In everything I do or say, may my light shine as a reflection of Your love and mercy so that someone can come to know You in spirit and in truth. My testimony is a great witness that You are alive and still performing miracles today. I pray I can play a small part in leading another to the foot of the cross that their life may forever be changed. In Your matchless Name, Amen.

Day 16. Intervention

The Book of 2 Chronicles is the location of one of the more famous prayers in the Bible. It is a Word from the Lord to His people, instructing them that if they would pray, He would hear and answer. The good news is that the prayer still applies today and so does His promise to answer. Now, more than ever, our nation, our world, needs God’s intervention. Pray.

Dear Lord, we are desperate for revival in our nation and around the world. I pray for my eyes to be opened so that I can see what You see in order to be effective in these last days. I pray for our world leaders, protect them from those that wish them harm. I pray we would always protect Your people, the nation of Israel, and ask God to give us favor as we support them. Remind us of what our nation could be again if we put You first and ask Your blessing on every part of our lives. Each day is precious, help me not to be so involved in meaningless things that I forget that I am a part of something so much bigger and I know the One in control. Thank you for spiritual insight as I draw closer to You, in Your Precious Name, Amen.

Day 17. Waiting

Are you tired of waiting, weary, downcast and maybe doubting that God even hears your prayers? Waiting is difficult but God gives us an example in His Word of a group of people who were told to go…and to wait. They were probably full of questions too but they went anyway, they waited and they were rewarded with a tremendous outpouring of the Holy Spirit! (Acts 2)

Lord Jesus, I know Your promises are true, every Word You have spoken has always come true and that will never change. Just as those that waited in the Upper Room, with no idea that a mighty rushing wind was on the way that would forever change the world, may I be expecting, believing and trusting that my prayers, my world, can also be so impacted that I will never be the same. Nothing is too hard for You, Lord and I trust the process; I trust You in the waiting. Amen.

Day 18. Less of Me

You’re coming close to the end of your three week Daniel Fast and your heart is likely crying out, “Less of me, more of Thee, O Lord!” How do we reflect that hunger into our daily lives? We keep doing what we are doing. A day, a meal, sometimes fasting things instead of food. But we make it, and prayer, the most important things in our lives. 

God, I pray today that You would remind me of the power of prayer and fasting and not to put it aside when these three weeks are ended. THIS (world, life, things, circumstances) is not about me. May my prayer continually be “Less of me, more of Thee!” I am such a small part of a much, much bigger picture and yet You can use someone like me when I truly get ME out of the way. You lead, Lord, love through me and refresh my memory when I forget that You can see down the road. You must increase, I must decrease. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

Day 19. Fear

Have you ever been so fearful that you didn’t know where to turn? 

Wringing your hands, pacing the floor kind of fear? Every child of God has some sort of area in their lives that they might struggle with and fear is a big tool of the enemy. Being fearful doesn’t mean we don’t trust God but if we hang on to that fear, if we don’t allow God to take it from us, we dig ourselves deeper and deeper into a tunnel that is difficult to get out of. 

O Lord Jesus, when I am afraid, I will trust in You! (Psalm 56:3) 

The Lord is on my side; I will not fear; what can man do unto me? (Psalm 118:6) 

You have not given me a spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7) 

You, Lord are my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me. (Hebrews 13:6) 

Your Word encourages me to trust You, I will not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, I present my request to You. Then that peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep my heart and mind in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7) 

Amen.

Day 20. Judge Not

The Bible talks quite a bit about judgmentalism. If you are quick to point out a speck in your brother’s eye, be careful of the beam protruding from your own! The world is hungry for someone to love them; they have plenty that will judge. We must stop pointing out their faults and instead point them to Jesus. 

Lord, thank You for loving me unconditionally; for if You only loved the good in me I would surely be close to unlovable! The world is hungry for love, for love without strings attached. They see enough backstabbing and finger pointing, Lord, may I be different than what they are used to and may they want to know why. Time spent with you will make me a conduit of Your great power. It is only because of Your mercy that I am able to love and to offer it freely. I pray others will want to know this Christ in me, the hope of glory! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Day 21. Syncing Hearts

We’ve come to the end of the prayers for the Daniel Fast and have discovered that it isn’t about changing the mind of God, it’s about changing your heart and getting in sync with His. He heard your prayer on the FIRST day of these prayers for the Daniel Fast, and He has been with you ever since. Even when you aren’t aware, He is working. As the song says, “Even when I don’t see it, You’re working, even when I don’t feel it, You’re working!” If we are faithful, He is faithful. If we are not faithful and we stumble? He is still faithful! End today’s devotion and prayer with praise for His goodness and be expectant over His answers to your prayers.

Jesus, I can’t thank You enough for all You have done for me the last few weeks. I know it was Your strength and encouragement that helped me to press on even when I felt like giving up. Surely, Lord, there are times in my weakened condition I feel as if You may be far away but remind me that You are an ever present help in time of need! Even when I feel like my prayer hasn’t left this terra firma, may I remember the prayers You have answered in time past or help me to go the Word and be flooded with wonderful reminders of Your faithfulness! I cannot live on feelings, Lord, nor do I want to. I walk by faith, I live by faith, in You alone I trust and depend. I trust Your redemptive work in my life for You are good and want what is best for me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. 

Have these 21 days of prayers for the Daniel Fast been a blessing to you? Please share this with someone so it blesses them, too!