It's a sacrifice of strength for a purpose. If you skip eating a favorite food, a meal, or even go a day or longer with no food, you are giving up physical strength in favor of spiritual strength. If you are fasting for a loved one so they might be helped by God, you are sacrificing physical strength that you could have received from the food for someone else.
Do you care about someone who is suffering and want to help but don't know how? Consider fasting and praying to God to solve their problem. I have personally seen a loved one become free from alcoholism after multiple days of fasting with prayer.
Fasting is similar to alms and prayer. If you give alms to the poor, you are blessing them at your expense. If you pray for someone, you are sacrificing your time to think on the needs of others.
God will bless these three things, when done secretly because of your love:
- fasting
- prayer
- alms
God will bless those you want to help, and he will also bless you.
