that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him,
"This is the great work of a man: always to take the blame for his own sins before God and to expect temptation to his last breath." + St. Anthony the Great (+356)
Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning, For in You do I trust; Cause me to know the way in which I should walk, For I lift up my soul to You.
"Pride does not allow the soul to set out on the path of faith. Here is my advice to the unbeliever: let him say, "Lord, if you exist, then illumine me, and I will serve you with all my heart and soul." And for this humble thought and readiness to serve God, the Lord will immediately illumine him... And then your soul will sense the Lord; she will sense that the Lord has forgiven her, and loves her, and you will know this from experience, and the grace of the Holy Spirit will be a witness in your soul of your salvation, and you will want to cry out to the whole world: "The Lord loves us so much!"" + St. Silouan the Athonite (+1938)
But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition.
"Do not say, "I can't." This phrase is not Christian. Christian words are: 'I can do all things, but not by myself, but through the Lord who strengthens me.' " + St. Theophan the Recluse (+1894)
For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.
"Learn to know the spirit of the age, study it, so whenever possible you will be able to avoid its influence." + St. Ignatius Brianchaninov (+1867)
"Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
"If you cannot find Christ in the beggar at the church door, you will not find Him in the chalice." + St. John Chrysostom (+407)
Excellent speech is not becoming to a fool, Much less lying lips to a prince.
"If you give all your life to the earth, the earth will give you a tomb; but if you give your life to Heaven, Heaven will give you a throne." + St. Ephrem the Syrian (+373)
Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!
"Humility and suffering free a man from all sin; for the first cuts out spiritual passions, and the latter bodily." + St. Maximus the Confessor (+662)
What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
"In all your works, either at home or at the place of your service, do not forget that all your strength, your light and your success are in Christ and His Cross; therefore, do not fail to call upon the Lord before beginning any work, saying: Jesus, help me! Jesus, enlighten me! Thus your heart will be supported and warmed by lively faith and hope in Christ, for His is the power and glory unto ages of ages." + St. John of Kronstadt (+1909)
Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
"In order for one to realize his weak nature, he must encounter many great temptations. And then, through many trials he is humbled and learns true humility. But it takes time. Humility is the truth." + St. Joseph the Hesychast (+1959)
"So you shall serve the Lord your God, and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you.
"When a poor man asks you for something, he is not begging, he is offering you the Kingdom of God" + Elder Arsenie Papacioc (+2011)
The Lord is merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.
"A seed will not grow without earth and water; and a man will not develop without voluntary suffering and divine help." + St. Mark the Ascetic (+430)
A perverse man sows strife, And a whisperer separates the best of friends.
"He who drives out self-love, the mother of the passions, will with God's help easily rid himself of the rest, such as anger, irritation, rancour and so on. But he who is dominated by self-love is overpowered by the other passions, even against his will." + St. Maximus the Confessor (+662)
"And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.
"Let us strive to enter by the narrow gate. Just as the trees, if they haven't stood before the winter's storm can't bear fruit. So it is with us; this present age is a storm and it's only through many trials and temptations that we can obtain an inheritance in the Kingdom of Heaven. " + St. Syncletica of Alexandria (+ 4th Century CE.)
"Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets preached, saying, 'Thus says the Lord of hosts: "Turn now from your evil ways and your evil deeds." ' But they did not hear nor heed Me," says the Lord.
“If pain, sorrow, and trials were removed from human life, then holiness would belong only to the Angels” + St. Eumenios Saridakis (+1999)
And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, And establish the work of our hands for us; Yes, establish the work of our hands.
"Those who wish to acquire meekness should endeavour not to get angry, not only at people but also at animals or even inanimate things." + St. John Cassian (+435)
I cried to Him with my mouth, And He was extolled with my tongue.
"Suffering is an indication of another Kingdom which we look to. If being Christian meant being “happy” in this life, we wouldn’t need the Kingdom of Heaven." + Fr. Seraphim Rose (+1982)
And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.
"If you cannot labor with your body, atleast make efforts in your mind. If you cannot fast for two days, fast at least till evening; If you cannot fast till evening, be careful not to overeat. If you are not a peacemaker, atleast do not be addicted to strife. If you cannot close the mouth of a man who is judging his brother, atleast refrain from joining him in this." + St. Isaac the Syrian (+ 7th Century CE.)
The Lord will perfect that which concerns me; Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever; Do not forsake the works of Your hands.
"Prayer, fasting, vigil and all other Christian practices, however good they may be in themselves, do not constitute the aim of our Christian life, although they serve as the indispensable means of reaching this end. The true aim of our Christian life consists in the acquisition of the Holy Spirit of God." + St. Seraphim of Sarov (+1833)
For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.
"Do not be upset when people only remember you when they need you. Feel privileged that you are like a candle that comes to their mind during their most darkest hours." + St. Nektarios of Aegina (+1920)
as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.
"Just keep seeking with tears that the Lord's Holy Will be done in the way He knows best, and not yours." + St. Joseph the Hesychast (+1959)
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
"What we gain from fasting does not compensate for what we lose through anger." + St. John Cassian (+435)
Ponder the path of your feet, And let all your ways be established.
"When we call upon the Saints in prayer, if we pronounce their names from the heart, it already means that we bring them near our heart itself. Therefore ask their prayers and intercession undoubtingly for yourself. They will hear you, and will speedily lay your prayers before the Lord, in the twinkling of an eye, for He is omnipresent and omniscient." + St. John of Kronstadt (+1909)
Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
"Do not be surprised that you fall every day; do not give up, but stand your ground courageously. And assuredly, the angel who guards you will honour your patience." + St. John Climacus (+603)
Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
"Desire and effort must come from you. God will provide the power and the result" + St. Paisios of Mount Athos (+1994)
The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
"A monk once told me that when he was very ill as a child, his mother said to his father: "Look how much our child is suffering. I would gladly allow myself to be cut into pieces if only it would ease his pain." Such is the love of God for mankind." + St. Silouan the Athonite (+1938)
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.
"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
So he answered and said to me: "This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' Says the Lord of hosts.
"Love forgives many mistakes, while hatred inagines mistakes even where they do not exist." + St. John Chrysostom
"God gives us opportunities every day to become saints — but we walk right past them" + St. Paisios of Mount Athos
A fool vents all his feelings, But a wise man holds them back.
"A true fast consists not only in exhausting the flesh, but also in giving away to the hungry that piece of bread you would have liked to eat." + St. Seraphim of Sarov
Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober.
"It is necessary to rouse the heart to pray, otherwise it will become quite dry. The attributes of prayer must be: love of God, sincerity, and simplicity." + St. John of Kronstadt
He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He.
"If you give all your life to the earth, the earth will give you a tomb; but if you give your life to Heaven, Heaven will give you a throne." + St. Ephrem the Syrian