DON'T WASTE YOUR PRECIOUS TIME ♥️
Metropolitan Athanasios of Limassol.
"A Christian is he who imitates the life of Christ according to the strength of his human abilities, and covers what he cannot fulfil with repentance and humility—the virtues of spiritual work.
Whenever the holy fathers were perplexed or tempted, they set themselves before the life of Jesus Christ, condemning themselves. When Elder Ephraim of Katounakia returned from Jerusalem, we were waiting for him to tell us his impression of Golgotha, of the place of the Crucifixion. How surprised we were when he told us that he was very moved by the cave in Bethlehem. When he beheld this meek, humble cave, which so touched him, he said to himself: “Before visiting the Bethlehem cave, living on Mt. Athos in the rocky, inaccessible Katounakia desert, in a modest cell that could barely fit even the most necessary things, I had the thought that I was something. Now, having seen the place where God Himself, Jesus Christ was born, I feel all of my nothingness, for I see how God humbled Himself, being born in such a small cave—a pen for animals, where barely any place could be found for Him.”
Christ, born in a den, persecuted and despised by all, thereby accomplished the greatest event in the history of mankind; His Incarnation took place in absolute silence, in humility and obscurity, and of all mankind, but a few Persian magi and simple shepherds were informed of the coming of God Himself into the world. Oh the extreme poverty and humility!
If we truly want a correct view of ourselves and a true judgement of our conscience, then every time that life starts to torment us with worldly desires and demands, we must place ourselves before this humble Bethlehem cave, before the event of the Incarnation, and reflect upon what we are doing and whether our life and our deeds correspond to the life of Christ and what He did for us, becoming incarnate. We can thus judge our entire life.
Wheresoever we do not have the strength to imitate Him, let us cover with repentance and humility."
☦️📖☦️
Our times, above all, call for humble and quiet labors, with love and sympathy for other strugglers on the path of the Orthodox spiritual life and a deep resolve that does not become discouraged because the atmosphere is unfavorable. We Christians of the latter times are still called to work persistently on ourselves, to be obedient to spiritual fathers and authorities, to lead an orderly life with at least a minimum of spiritual discipline and with regular reading of the Orthodox spiritual literature which Blessed Paisius was chiefly responsible for handing down to our times, to watch over our own sins and failings and not judge others. If we do this, even in our terrible times, we may have hope—in God’s mercy,
of the salvation of our souls.
—Fr. Seraphim Rose, of Blessed Memory.☦️
IT ONLY TAKES ONE, LORD HAVE MERCY!
A question was asked to St. Paisios: Geronda I don’t think I can be saved. Why replied the Geronda? Geronda I live in the world and it is hard for me. The Geronda looked at him and said, don’t ever say that again, for God knows everything. You people think that we living in monastery’s are all going to be saved?
Listen to me, you people are living a far more harder life than us, you people have to look after family, you have to work, sometimes in extreme situations and conditions, you have to put up with a lot of people and pressures in life, you have children to raise, and put up with many people who are against your beliefs. We have our pressure but not like you have, the devil not only attacks us, but you as well. We could be saying, a thousand, lord have mercy, and nothing.
You could say one lord have mercy, from the depths of your heart, and you will be saved.☦️
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