Sunday

2nd Sunday of Lent  Mark 12:1-12

…you shall see the inauguration of the new age, the fulfillment of all promises, the manifestation of the Kingdom. But you shall see it only if you believe and repent, if you change your mind, if you have the desire, if you accept the effort.

Of this we are reminded in the lesson of the second Sunday (Heb. 1:10-2:3):
…therefore, we must pay close attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it… How shall we escape if we neglect such salvation?

In the Gospel lesson of the second Sunday (Mark 2:1-12) the image of this effort and desire is the paralytic who was brought to Christ through the roof:
…and when Jesus saw their faith he said to the paralytic: ‘My son, your sins are forgiven’

NOTE:  the ‘effort’ of the man and his friends is rewarded by the Lord just has he wants us to make efforts in our Lent struggles of fasting, prayer and other things.

 

Monday

“Even is someone who begs from you is not in need, you should still give to him. Be happy in giving to him. God Himself ‘maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust’, so why should we not help our neighbor? Are we worthy of all the gifts granted to us by God? God does not deal with us according to our sins, nor reward us according to our iniquities.”
(Elder St. Paisios in ‘Spiritual Awakening’)

8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. 9 In this manner, therefore, pray:

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

14 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Tuesday

“What is more beautiful than prayer! Whoever prays is enlightened and comes to know the will of God. And how does he know it? When he prays well, of course. And when does he pray well? When he sends his prayers to God with all the right ingredients. And what are the ingredients that make prayer savory? Humility, tears, self-reproach, simplicity, and especially obedience with love.”
(Elder Ephraim of Arizona in ‘Counsels from the Holy Mountain’)

16 “Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 17 But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

Wednesday

“If we work to correct ourselves and look more intently towards our “inner” activity rather than our external, giving precedence to divine help, we can in turn be of greater and more positive help to others. We will also achieve an inner serenity that will quietly help the souls of the people we encounter, because spiritual serenity reflects the virtue of the soul and transforms souls.”
(Elder St. Paisios in ‘Spiritual Awakening’)

19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Thursday

“…we accept this light with our good will, which we express through our love towards Him, through prayer, through our participation in the life of the Church, and through the sacraments. Often neither labor, nor prostrations, nor crossing ourselves attract’s God’s grace. There are secrets. The most important thing is to go beyond the formal aspects and go to the heart of the matter. Whatever is done must be done with love.”
(Elder St. Porphyrios in ‘Wounded by Love’)

Friday

“Fasting and ascetic struggle are prerequisites for prayer. But for prayer to be proper and effective one must have compassion for others. For it is a rule of many Christians in our time not to want to have any worries. Even retired people who sit around all day don’t want to approach an abandoned child, for this requires work and effort, which will disturb their serenity.”
(Elder St. Paisios in ‘Spiritual Awakening’)

22 “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

Saturday

“Everything proceeds from Holy Scripture. You must read it continually in order to learn the secrets of spiritual struggle…We see here [in the ‘Wisdom of Solomon’] how the wise Solomon asks God in such a humble way for His wisdom. And God gave it to him in abundance. All these wise things that he write are not his own. They are inspired by the same Spirit which inspired the words of the poetic canons written by the hymnographers of the Church. That’s why I love them so much. Read them, study them and delight in them. That’s how you will acquire divine eros.”
(Elder St. Porphyrios in ‘Wounded by Love’)

24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.