LENT can be a FEAST AND A FAST.

LENT can be a FEAST AND A FAST.

LENTEN DISCIPLINE:
Fast from worry; feast on trusting God.
Fast from complaining; feast on appreciation.
Fast from negatives; feast on affirmatives.
Fast from hostility; feast on tenderness.
Fast from unrelenting pressures; feast on unceasing prayer.
Fast from judging others; feast on Christ dwelling in them.
Fast from fear of illness; feast on the healing power of God.
Fast from words that pollute; feast on speech that purifies.

Fast from discontent; feast on gratitude.
Fast from anger; feast on patience.
Fast from personal anxiety; feast on the fullness of truth.
Fast from pessimism; feast on optimism.

Fast from bitterness; feast on forgiveness.
Fast from self-concern; feast on compassion for others.
Fast from discouragement; feast on hope.
Fast from suspicion; feast on truth.
Fast from lethargy and apathy; feast on enthusiasm.
Fast from facts that depress; feast on truths that uplift.
Fast from gossip; feast on purposeful silence.
Fast from problems that overwhelm; feast on prayer that sustains.
Fast from thoughts that weaken; feast on promises that inspire.
Fast from apparent darkness; feast on the reality of light.

William Arthur Ward (American author, teacher and pastor, 1921-1994)

Food for the Journey. Forgiveness

"Words of forgiveness do not annihilate the past, but they can make even the barren wilderness of our lives blossom again."

Food for the Journey.

"Someone may object that God has promised beatitude under such and such conditions. The condi­tions may be reduced to a single one, which was pro­claimed by the angels at Bethlehem: “Peace on earth to men of good will.” They did not say “to men of char­acter,” nor “to men of genius,” nor “to men of good deeds,” nor “to men of great virtue,” but “to men of good will.”  

When St. Thomas Aquinas’s sister asked him how to obtain salvation, he answered her with one phrase: “Will it.” Nothing more is necessary. The promises of God demand from us only this one condition: Will it!"

From Archbishop Martinez’s When God is Silent. Luis M. Martinez (1881-1956) was Archbishop of Mexico City and a philosopher, a theologian, a poet, and a director of souls. He is author of True Devotion to the Holy Spirit, When Jesus Sleeps, and other works.