Prodigal: I’m just chit chatting away.

Me: Well…

This is from Pat Chen in Intimacy with the Beloved

I do a lot of teaching on different types of fasting, and people are always amazed when I encourage them to fast from talking. We fast and deny our bodies food, bringing our bodies under subjection to the will and purposes of God. Why not fast from talking?

The Lord says we’re going to give an account one day for every word that comes out of our mouths. There is a safety in silence as we guard our tongue. Most of us tend to finish someone else’s sentences for them. I’m a much better listener now than I used to be. But I still need work in this area. Our tendency is not to really listen to someone thoroughly. We are thinking ahead before they finish and not listening to their heart. When we’re with God, we need to listen to His heart.

Being silent helps put our tongue in subjection to the Holy Spirit. Bringing our tongue under control is a form of self-discipline. Why do you feel we always have to speak? Why do we always think about the next thing we will say during our conversations? Let’s allow God to speak to us instead; let’s allow Him to fill our minds with His thoughts.

When you become truly quiet, a song of worship will often rise up in your spirit. The more we look at Jesus, the quieter we become and the more we stop thinking about what we can do and say next. After a while, we discover that Jesus consumes our whole mind. At that point all we can think about is the Lord.

On God my salvation and my glory rest; the rock of my strength, my refuge is in God. Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Psalm 62:7-8

Jennifer Van Allen

www.theprodigalpig.com

www.faithincounseling.org