Thoughts for the Day

Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh...... Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealous, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before, those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control..... If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another.

(Church in Wales Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

It's very tempting when we look at the list above to say "Well I don't engage in sorcery, or idolatry, and I don't cause strife, or carouse....!" And we completely ignore the other sins of the flesh listed in Galatians, which include things like 'licentiousness' and 'fornication'. So having dismissed these things on the list, we can ignore the more insidious ones like 'envy', or 'anger', or 'jealousy' or 'factions'. But Lent is a time to examine ourselves properly, and ask ourselves if what we say or do is based on envy, anger or jealousy; and does our gossip cause factions to grow in our village or workplace?

St Paul reminds us that we should be guided by God's Holy Spirit (his power-arm today), and when we live by the Spirit then we will show evidence of the 'fruits of the Spirit' - of love; joy, peace, patience etc in our lives. You might like to look at the desires of the flesh and decide which are your worst offences, and try to work on them during Lent, or look at the fruits of the Spirit and decide your hardest areas. And don't get despondent when you make mistakes, but keep working on them.

Lord God,
help us to be honest
with ourselves;
to examine our actions
and thoughts;
to accept our biggest faults;
and to try and change what we do
and what we say this Lent,
with Your help.
Amen.