SACRAMENTAL LIVING

“In order to have a center formed in oneself and to be able to pray from that secret place, it is imperative that one put one's time in before God, every day without fail. Specific periods of watchfulness and prayer must be set aside each day, especially in the morning and evening.” (Hieromonk Damascene Christensen)  “ ‘By practicing watchfulness, we essentially fulfill all the commandments—both those of the Old Testament and those of the New Testament. Sometimes we ask: “Wha

“Despondency is often confused with sadness, a feeling of grief for specific sins or losses. However, it is known that sorrow can also be useful: for example, Godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation (2 Cor. 7:10). But despondency is aimless, all-encompassing melancholy, despair of God’s mercy, and depletion of love for God and others…it is sadness that turns into self-centered despair, an extremely dangerous degree of despondency. St. Theophan the Recluse called

“Do we refuse to forgive? God, too, will refuse to forgive us. As we treat our neighbors, so also does God treat us. The forgiveness or unforgiveness of your sins, then, and hence also your salvation or destruction, depend on you yourself. For without forgiveness of sins there is no salvation. You can see for yourself how serious it is…Our Lord Jesus gives us the teaching regarding forgiveness. He tells us that forgiveness is an integral part of the kingdom of heaven, and the

“The striving of the proud mind to know that which is supposedly hidden from others—the temptation of gnosis, self-deification without...

“I find the bits and pieces of everyday life much more precious than the hopes and dreams of an unlived future. Clouds passing in the sky...

“ ‘But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at the door. It desires to dominate you, but you must subdue it’ (Genesis 4:7)....

“People today are weary, confused and darkened by sin and egoism….People need to realize that their life is troubled because they have...

“…humility is to love the Lord Jesus, to continue to implore Him for mercy and for love, even in the face of what can appear to be...

“… when we deal with suffering it can be difficult to understand and convey why things are happening. St. Paul writes of suffering (and...

“God . . . set no limits for any of us on the spiritual plane . . . We are called to eternal life in the Kingdom of our Father which is...