“Helping a person in need is good in itself. But the degree of goodness is hugely affected by the attitude with which it is done… If you give aid to others in a spirit of joy, then they will receive your help joyfully. Your assistance will neither demean nor humiliate those you support. Rather they will feel glad to have caused you pleasure by receiving your help. Thus, joyful acts of generosity are sources of blessing to the giver as well as the receiver. They increase our hope in the greatest gift of all history, the sending of the Son of God from heaven to earth as our Savior.” (St. John Chrysostom)
“When we lack an attitude of gratefulness, not only does it make life difficult for everyone around us, but we increase the burden in our own life as well. Conversely, by being grateful, we can decrease the burden that difficult circumstances might otherwise place on our lives.” (Robin Phillips)
“…we need to love God completely, and will the good of our neighbor as thoroughly and wholeheartedly as we will our own good. Even if we think of love as a mere attitude or disposition, these two commandments, so simple, sound simply impossible. But of course, love is no mere attitude. Love is incarnate in service and in action: to love God completely is to turn every breath and act over to seeking and doing God’s will. And to love our neighbor is to act in the interest of our neighbor’s good at every turn.” (Metropolitan Tikhon)
“Much of the spiritual life is dedicated to one goal: complete self-mastery, especially in relation to control over one’s reactions. The more mature we are, spiritually, the greater control we have over our reactions. In other words, we have to be watchful over our thoughts, and maintain a spirit of love and compassion. When our thoughts accuse others, and we begin to be upset, then we need to cut off the thoughts and recognize that they are temptations. They are more about me than about the other person. The more we let our thoughts against the other fester, the harder it will be to rid ourselves of them, and resentments will develop. The basic principle of non-reaction, not only in deed, but in thought and feeling, and maintaining a spirit of peace, is the key. With this underlying attitude, it becomes difficult to get us to take offense, and thus, there is seldom a need for forgiveness or reconciliation. This, however, is a mark of very great maturity, and few there are that possess it.” (Hieromonk Jonah)
“Love is more than simply warm feelings; it is an attitude that reveals itself in action. “How can we love others as Jesus loves us? By helping when it’s not convenient, by giving when it hurts, by devoting energy to others’ welfare rather than our own, by absorbing hurts from others without complaining or fighting back. This kind of loving is hard to do. That is why people notice when you do it and know you are empowered by a supernatural source…“As we grow in our relationship with God, we should experience a revolutionary change in our attitudes toward people… The more we love people, the more our differences disappear.” (Life Application Study Bible, John 13:34-35, Bill Hybels, Metropolitan Joseph)
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