Lent Day 11 A Lenten Fast

Reading

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
Philippians 4:8 (NIV)

Reflection

As a child in the Catholic Church, my sisters and I were always required to ‘give up something’ for Lent. Invariably, it was sweets. For 40 long days and nights, we had to go without sweets and sugary treats of any kind. Then, on Easter Sunday, our long fast was rewarded by a basket of chocolate Easter eggs. As an adult I have moved beyond giving up sweets for Lent, but have kept the habit of Lenten fasting. This year I have decided to give up negative speech – complaints, gossip, irritation, anger. It has not taken me long to realise that negative words begin with negative thoughts. Much harder to control! Then I remembered Philippians 4:8. My solution is to try and replace any negative thought with a positive one. I then have a choice to either say nothing, or better yet, to say something positive that will bless others. With the help of the Holy Spirit I am going to work on changing my thinking so that I can change my speech. What about you – are you willing to give it a try? Just for a day? My prayer is that God will change and shape my thoughts and my heart to become more like His.

Spiritual Exercise

Your to-do for today: Ask the Holy Spirit to prompt you whenever you are tempted to speak in a negative way – stop and examine your thoughts and then remember Philippians 4:8. Can you think of something noble, true, pure or lovely instead? What positive thing can you say that will bring light and a blessing to others?