SACRAMENTAL LIVING

“…most of the thoughts which torment us from the inside are not ours at all, but come from the demons, that every one of us has the God-given power and freedom to refuse such thoughts, and that our lives depend on the quality of the thoughts we nurture in our minds and hearts…A person who is entrapped in the vicious cycle of chaotic thoughts, in the atmosphere of hades, or has only so much as touched it, feels the torments of hell. For example, we read the newspapers or take

“This is the spiritual logic: affliction comes to those who follow Christ because He is the source of all goodness, love, and truth. Invariably, the world will seek to evade or silence any intrusions on its territory, for the ruler of the present darkness strikes out against the Light.” (Dynamis 10/30/2018) “God’s people are to be a light in darkness. Because Christ the Light lives in the Church, she uniquely reveals His glory. It shines within her despite the darkness of dis

“Suffering not only bears witness to others...but also can serve to increase our faith. Suffering is a gift from Christ, as is faith: it is a participation in His grace…Suffering matures us as Christians in the present (James 1:2–4) and enables us to be glorified with Christ in the future (Rom. 8:17).” (Orthodox Study Bible, Foundation Study Bible, Philippians 1:29) “This special gift of suffering, yields a capacity to love, difficult and so puzzling, pushes you to a painful

“How often do we anticipate some really bad things: crosses that may happen in our lives? It is the real 'crosses' in our lives that we have to carry. Unfortunately the human propensity to think irrationally…and have distorted cognitions…make carrying our crosses that much more difficult than it would be in reality. Irrationality and distorted cognitions serve as psychological barriers to our sanctification. Errors in thinking lead humans to create scenarios that may never be

“Just as God has made the material universe, He also created humanity, and the whole gamut of human actions for his greater glory and our blessing. God therefore delights in all human pursuits that are undertaken to praise Him, not simply in our intellectual and “spiritual” practices…The connection between the human artist and the Creator God, the ultimate Artist, can be found only in beauty. True art and music are a reflection of the soul that is journeying into the heart of

“Prayer, fasting, and vigilance over ourselves, i.e., carefully watching our thoughts and feelings, make us victors over the enemies of our salvation. The most difficult of these three works is prayer—an everlasting virtue which will become a habit if we practice it. But prayer, until our very death, will require coercion on our part, a constant struggle.” (St. Barsanuphius of Optina) Many people seem to find prayer a difficult thing to do, but when questioned, it often becom

“There are very few people who come to their senses, very few who understand life. We pray with our lips only, and we hurry through our prayers to “get it over with” as soon as possible, and then we lose peace. Fasting and prayer are a means of embellishing our soul and bringing it back to its original state.” (Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica) “...God’s answers [to prayers] come from God’s perspective. They are not always in harmony with our expectations, for only he knows the wh

“We can sit down and say the Jesus Prayer for hours every night, but if our mind is wandering all over the place, there is no profit in that. The purpose of a prayer rule is to offer God our attention morning and evening, to focus on Him.” (Gerontissa Philareti) “Prayer is not a technique or a trick…prayer must involve the mind and the heart. It is not a matter of repeating many words, Jesus warned us of this error. When we pray we should try to focus on the words we speak, l

“Fear is a powerful enemy of our faith and a strong deterrent to the believer’s peace of mind… Faith in God keeps us from losing hope and helps us resist fear…yet faith needs time to mature…Fear disrupts faith and becomes the biggest obstacle to trusting and obeying God…Sometimes faith is the absence of fear. Other times faith may be choosing to believe God even when your heart is melting with fear…We can overcome fear by trusting God for His protection in our darkest hour.”

“The Lord Himself said: “Be merciful, just as your heavenly Father also is merciful” [Luke 6: 36]. He did not say: “Fast as your heavenly Father fasts,” neither did He say: “Give away your possessions as your heavenly Father is without possessions”; but he did say: “Be merciful as your heavenly Father is merciful.” This is because this virtue—above all—emulates God and is a characteristic of Him…God’s judgment is based in mercy…” (Orthodox Study Bible, Romans 9:22-24, Abba Do