"Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.
"The little bit of wood that is used to poke the vinebranches when they are burning ends by being entirely burnt up by the fire; in the same way, man purifies his soul in the fear of God, and the fear of God burns up his body." + St. Macarius the Great
Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance,
"To see the angels is not a great miracle, but to see your own mistakes is a miracle." + St. Anthony the Great
For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.
"As health comes from the bitter medicine, so too does the salvation of souls come from bitter experiences." + St. Paisios of Mount Athos
And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.
“Do not call God just... For His justice is not like ours. If He were just in the way we understand justice, we would all be condemned.” + St. Isaac the Syrian
Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.
"I have often repented of having spoken, but never of having been silent." + St. Arsenius the Great
Who are you to judge another's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.
"I have a single, burning desire: To change the world by changing one person - myself." + St. Sophrony of Essex
For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
"People are frightened of being poor because they have no faith in Him Who promised to provide all things needful to those who seek the Kingdom of God." + St. Gregory Palamas
Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
"The Lord seeks a heart filled to overflowing with love for God and our neighbor; this is the throne on which He loves to sit and on which He appears in the fullness of His heavenly glory. 'Son, give me thy heart,' He says, 'and all the rest I Myself will add to thee,' for in the human heart the Kingdom of God can be contained." + St. Seraphim of Sarov
We love Him because He first loved us.
"If I prayed God that all men should approve of my conduct, I should find myself a penitent at the door of each one, but I shall rather pray that my heart may be pure towards all." + St. Sarah of the Desert
You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.
"You should have love, and love has two wings: one is humility and the other is charity and all kinds of compassion for your neighbour." + St. Ambrose of Optina
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
"A man who teaches without doing what he teaches is like a spring which cleanses and gives drink to everyone, but it not able to purify itself." + St. Poemen the Shepherd
Out of the depths I have cried to You, O Lord; Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears be attentive To the voice of my supplications.
"If you knew how much God loves you, you would cry from joy. Love is greater than any miracle. And humility is the throne of that love." + St. Gabriel Urgebadze
But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
"Even if we are entirely despised in the eyes of men, let us rejoice that we are honoured in the sight of God." + St. John the Dwarf
Then Paul said, "John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus."
"The tears shed in solitude are heavier before God than mountains." + St. Isaac the Syrian
A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
"Until the soul becomes drunk with faith in God by receiving a perception of the power of faith, she can neither heal the malady of the senses, nor be able forcibly to tread visible matter underfoot, which is the barrier to things that are within and beyond perception by the senses." + St. Isaac the Syrian
Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
"God did not send you to earth to live comfortably, rather to prepare for eternal life." + St. Nikolai Velimirovich
Done on 15.07.2025.
Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'
"He who gives himself to desires, and sensual pleasures and lives according to the world’s way will quickly be caught in the nets of sin. And sin, when once committed, is like fire put to straw, a stone rolling downhill or a torrent eating away its banks. Such pleasures, then, bring complete perdition on him who embraces them." + St. Theodoros the Great Ascetic
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
“Sufferings bear so much fruit that if we were a little wiser we would not want to ‘come down from the cross’.” + St. Sophrony of Essex
For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, you are God's building.
"A man who is angry, even if he were to raise the dead, is not acceptable to God." + St. Agathon of Egypt
Let my mouth be filled with Your praise And with Your glory all the day.
"The Church is a ship sailing to the harbor of salvation." + St. Sophrony of Essex
Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven
"Go your own way. The devil comes with thoughts and pulls you by the sleeve to divert you from the right path. Do not turn around to engage in a conversation with him or argue with him.Continue your own way. He will keep pulling you by the sleeve, but you keep going on your way. Eventually he will get bored and will leave you." + St. Porphyrios of Kafsokalyvia
Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
"Truth is like eternal life; once found, it is never lost." + St. Tikhon of Zadonsk
Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,
"At the times when you remember God, increase your prayers, so that when you forget Him, the Lord may remind you." + St. Mark the Ascetic
My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor detest His correction; For whom the Lord loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights.
"God's help can't be obstructed, neither by men nor by demons." + St. Paisios of Mount Athos
Done on 30.06.2025.
Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.
"Eat straw, wear straw, sleep on straw: that is to say, depise everything and acquire for yourself a heart of iron." + St. Euprepius of Egypt
He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions.
"Learn something from the Scriptures by heart, keeping your mind focused on it. These things impede the demons from making incursions against us. " + St. Nilus of Sora
Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart, All you who hope in the Lord.
"Let us strive to enter by the narrow gate. Just as the trees, if they have not stood before the winter's storms cannot bear fruit, so it is with us; this present age is a storm and it is only through many trials and temptations that we can obtain an inheritance in the kingdom of heaven." + St. Theodora
Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this," Says the Lord of hosts, "If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it.
"Satan's whole concern is to convince man that God does not care about him." + St. Isaac the Syrian
Without counsel, plans go awry, But in the multitude of counselors they are established.
"Let us weep, brothers, and let tears gush out of our eyes, before we go to that place where our tears shall burn our bodies." + St. Macarius the Great
Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
"Make peace with yourself, and both heaven and earth will make peace with you." + St. Isaac the Syrian
who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
"The Lord dwells in the souls of the humble; but shameful passions fill the hearts of the proud. Nothing so strengthens these passions against us as arrogant thoughts, and nothing uproots the evil herbs of the soul so effectively as blessed humility. Hence humility is rightly called the executioner of passions." + St. Theodoros the Great Ascetic