He answered and said to them, "He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise.
"Instructing one's neighbour is for the man who is whole and without passions; for what is the use of building the house of another, while destroying one's own?" + St. Poemen the Great (+450)
I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives, and also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor—it is the gift of God.
"The best fast is to patiently endure everything that God sends." + St. Anatoly of Optina (+1894)
“Learn from the dead. Think nothing of wrongs done to you, nor of praises offered. Be like the dead. Thus you may be saved.” + St. Macarius the Great (+391)
so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
"Before the war begins, seek after your ally; before you fall ill, seek out your physician; and before grievous things come upon you, pray, and in the time of tribulations, you will find Him, and He will listen to you." + St. Isaac the Syrian (+7th Century A.D)
But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;
"For one who believes, there are no questions, and for one who does not believe, there are no answers." + St. Isaac the Solitary (+491)
Therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to you; And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; Blessed are all those who wait for Him.
"Memory of our good works makes us negligient and leads us to arrogance. Do not think of your good deeds, so that God may remember them." + St. John Chrysostom (+407)
Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the Lord, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.
"Prayer is food for the soul. Do not starve the soul, it is better to let the body go hungry." + St. Joseph of Optina (+1911)
And the Lord God said, "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him."
"Whoever thinks about the multitude of his own sins in his heart never wants to make the sins of others a topic of conversation." + St. Gennadios of Constantinople (+471)
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
"We bear our cross unto salvation when, as we struggle against the passions and desires through both outward and inward spiritual labors, we cheerfully endure the hardships of life, patiently and conscientiously fulfilling the duties assigned to us - each in his own place. Under these conditions, the carrying of the cross of life will lead us to eternal rest." + St. Theophan the Recluse (+1894)
But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him.
"To deny oneself means to give up one’s bad habits; to root out of the heart all that ties us to the world; not to cherish bad thoughts or desires; to suppress every evil thought; not to desire to do anything out of self love, but to do everything out of love for God." + St. Innocent of Alaska (+1879)
"Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!"
"As far as possible, be discreet in your conversations and do not overly open up to others. One will say it to another and another to yet another, and then what will come of that?" + St. Paisios of Mount Athos (+1994)
we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments.
"The soul that truly desires to please God should expect warfare. Grace does not dwell in a soul that strives for comfort and avoids every cross." + St. Macarius of Egypt (+390)
'And it shall be, when he is guilty in any of these matters, that he shall confess that he has sinned in that thing;
"Live simply and without thinking too much, like a child with his father. Faith without too much thinking works wonders. The logical mind hinders the Grace of God and miracles." + St. Paisios of Mount Athos (+1994)
rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer;
"No matter how just your words may be, you ruin everything when you speak with anger." + St. John Chrysostom (+407)
"Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock:
"A fish that is alive swims against the flow of water. One that is dead floats down with the water. A true Christian goes against the current of sinful age. A false one is swept away by its swiftness." + St. Philaret of Moscow (+1867)
The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe.
"Thoughts are like airplanes flying in the air. If you ignore them, there is no problem. If you pay attention to them, you create an airport inside your head and permit them to land!" + St. Paisios of Mount Athos (+1994)
Nevertheless in Your great mercy You did not utterly consume them nor forsake them; For You are God, gracious and merciful.
"Learn to love humility, for it will cover all your sins. All sins are repulsive before God, but the most repulsive of all is pride of the hearts" + St. Anthony the Great (+356)
Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
"Humility is the raiment of the Godhead. He who clothes himself in humility becomes like Him who descended from Heaven clothed in it." + St. Gregory Palamas (+1359)
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
"A continuously happy life produces extremely unhappy consequences. In nature we see that there are not always pleasant springs and fruitful summers, and sometimes autumn is rainy and winter cold and snowy, and there is flooding and wind and storms, and moreover the crops fail and there are famine, troubles, sicknesses and many other misfortunes. All of this is beneficial so that man might learn through prudence, patience and humility. For the most part, in times of plenty he forgets himself, but in times of various sorrows he becomes more attentive to his salvation." + St. Ambrose of Optina (+1891)
Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,
"It is a bigger miracle to be patient and refrain from anger than it is to control the demons which fly through the air." + St. John Cassian (+435)
And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews!"
"If you knew how quickly people would forget about you after your death, you will not seek to please anyone but God." + St. John Chrysostom (+407)
A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, But perverseness in it breaks the spirit.
"A man may seem to be silent, but if his heart is condemning others he is babbling ceaselessly. But there may be another who talks from morning till night and yet he is truly silent; that is, he says nothing that is not profitable." + St. Poemen the Shepherd (+450)
The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower is servant to the lender.
"We must therefore submit to the Lord's will thankfully; for then our frequent illnesses and our fight against demonic thoughts will be counted a second martyrdom." + St. Diadochus (+486)
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
“Do not despair if you keep falling into your old sins. Many of them are strong because they have received the force of habit. Only with the passage of time and with fervor will they be conquered. Don’t let anything deprive you of hope.” + St. Nektarios of Aegina (+1920)
And the people said to Joshua, "The Lord our God we will serve, and His voice we will obey!"
"God has not changed. He was God then, and He is God now. If we had perfect obedience to God we would be able to follow the higher path, but our weaknesses and passions control us. We cannot go without talking or laughing, and we cannot abstain from certain things. We say that we are living in the end times and that we cannot achieve what they achieved in older times—but we can! We lack good intention! Through good intentions, a person becomes an ascetic." + Gerontissa Makrina (+1995)
But from the beginning of the creation, God 'made them male and female.' 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'; so then they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."
"Whatever you do, on no account condemn anyone; do not even try to judge whether a person is good or bad, but keep your eyes on that one evil person for whom you must give an account before God - yourself." + St. Ignatius Brianchaninov (+1867)
Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common.
"Obedience to your Elder is God’s commandment. Obedience, life; disobedience, death. Obedience, humility; disobedience, pride." + Elder Arsenios Galanopoulos (+1983)
I would have lost heart, unless I had believed That I would see the goodness of the Lord In the land of the living.
"Without anger, a man cannot attain purity: he has to feel angry with all that is sown in him by the enemy." + St. Isaiah the Solitary (+491)
I will never forget Your precepts, For by them You have given me life.
"Why do men learn through pain and suffering, and not through pleasure and happiness? Very simply, because pleasure and happiness accustom one to satisfaction with the things given in this world, whereas pain and suffering drive one to seek a more profound happiness beyond the limitations of this world." + Fr. Seraphim Rose (+1982)
Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near.
"Prize the virtues and do not be the slave of glory; for the former are immortal, while the latter soon fades." + St. Isidore of Pelusium (+449)
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
"When a man walks in the fear of God he knows no fear, even if he were to be surrounded by wicked men. He has the fear of God within him and wears the invincible armor of faith. This makes him strong and able to take on anything, even things which seem difficult or impossible to most people." + St. Symeon the New Theologian (+1022)