A lot happens in twenty-four hours. Babies are born, healing happens and somewhere, two people fall in love.

Think about the past twenty-four hours in your own life. Have you felt joy, did you laugh, have you recognized God’s miracles?

It’s our responsibility to be happy and to bring happiness to others. So how come I was downright rude to the barrista who screwed up my coffee order this morning?

Author Joseph Telushkin challenges people he meets, to go for twenty-four hours without saying anything unkind about or to anyone. He says people laugh nervously at his suggestion and he tells them,

“Then you have a serious problem, because if I were to ask you to go for twenty-four hours without any alcohol, and you said you couldn’t, that would mean you’re an alcoholic. And if you couldn’t go twenty-four hours without smoking a cigarette, that would mean you were addicted to nicotine. And if you can’t go for twenty-four hours without speaking unkindly about or to another, that means you’ve lost control over your mouth, and regaining such control will require vigilance.”

Try it. Note the time and get started. Tomorrow, twenty-four hours from now, reflect on the challenge and notice how speaking kindly, brings you kindness.

Share with us how you did and to see how you compared with others. Go— and speak kindly.

from Susan on Beliefnet!

Susan Diamond is founder of Prayables.com and publisher of .

Words

They can be stones;
they can be roses.
Help me, Creator,
to make my words a gift.
Open my lips to bring comfort;
still my tongue before I lash out.

Let the right combination of sounds
rise to meet anger
and soothe it into submission.
Divine presence, be in my words.
Speak through me,
that I might be your conduit
to the listening world.

"KEEP YOUR TONGUE FROM EVIL, AND YOUR LIPS FROM SPEAKING WITH DECEIT."
Psalm 34:13