Sunday
\nMeditations from Archimandrite Sergius of St. Tikhon’s Monastery<\/p>\n
And remember, the Jesus Prayer is not some kind of end in and of itself.\u00a0 It\u2019s a tool<\/em>, a weapon<\/em>, by which we learn to still the heart and the mind, and stand before the face of God.\u00a0 It\u2019s not the end point; it\u2019s a tool; it\u2019s a beginning.\u00a0 But ultimately, as St. Theophan says, the most important thing is the inner turning of the heart to the Lord.\u00a0 This is what qualifies as being true watchfulness and true prayer.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n So this is our task, as we consistently try to approach God in our own prayer corner, and even in the middle of our days, and at the end of our nights, as we approach God and give Him some space, through this work of watchfulness.<\/p>\n Psalm 119:147 I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped in thy word.\u00a0\u00a0 Mine eyes prevent the night watches, that I might meditate in thy word.<\/strong><\/p>\n Prayer:\u00a0 O Gentle Light of the holy glory of the immortal, heavenly, holy, blessed Father, O Jesus Christ: Having come to the setting of the sun, having beheld the evening light, we praise the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit: God. Meet it is for Thee at all times to be hymned with reverent voices, O Son of God, Giver of life. Wherefore, the world doth glorify Thee. Monday<\/p>\n [An] elder says there\u2019s nothing more important than this vigilance, whereby when we do our prayer rule, we open the Scriptures, and we read them prayerfully, slowly, as much as we can do according to our prayer rule.\u00a0 We read them slowly, while we say the Jesus Prayer; and as we read, we drink in the words.\u00a0 This in and of itself will produce stillness, which will enable us to taste the presence of God, which will be able to rout the enemy, which will give us the strength to say \u201cNo\u201d to the passions, which will empower us to understand how to approach people who have gone astray.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This is all a simple thing, but it\u2019s tough<\/em>!\u00a0 It\u2019s difficult; it\u2019s easier said than done.\u00a0 Fr. Zacharias says that when we close the door to our room to pray, there\u2019s the desert.\u00a0 But it\u2019s in this desert place that we can stand before the face of God, trying to be attentive to Him.<\/p>\n 1 Peter \u00a05:7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour<\/strong><\/p>\n Prayer:\u00a0 Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God thrust into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.<\/p>\n Tuesday<\/p>\n And not only speak to God, but listen as well, understanding that prayer is a dialogue, and that there is reciprocation.\u00a0 It\u2019s not just me, saying my prayers, checking the box, and then going away.\u00a0 It\u2019s about being able to give God some space.\u00a0 Fr. Zacharias and Fr. Sophrony of Essex say that humility is about giving all the space to God.\u00a0 And if this begins in our relationship with our neighbor, it should apply to God as well.\u00a0 So we give Him some room to offer us something that\u2019s not of this world \u2013 something that\u2019s beyond word, beyond thought, beyond even the sense of this present age in which we live, for it\u2019s something above us.<\/p>\n So, giving space to God is part of prayer, part of the neptic<\/em> tradition, part of the watchfulness that the Church\u2019s prayers, whether in the prayerbook, or the Jesus Prayer, or in the liturgical services, all have as their central core: this ethos of \u201cBe still, and know that I am God\u201d (Ps. 45\/46:10), as the Lord said to David\u2014and through him, to all of us.\u00a0 It all starts in that place of stillness, wherein God\u2019s own life is imparted to us, which helps us overcome the world.<\/p>\n 1 Kings 19:11 And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake:\u00a0\u00a0 And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.<\/strong><\/p>\n Prayer:\u00a0 Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world: have mercy upon us. Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world: have mercy upon us. Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, grant us peace. Wednesday<\/p>\n It\u2019s so imperative to understand, as we reach towards these high principles, these high things which God calls us to, that it\u2019s only by His mercy and grace that these things happen.\u00a0 Yet it\u2019s also through our faith, by which we continue to look to God and say, \u201cYes, Lord!\u00a0 I believe You\u2019re able to do this in my life.\u00a0 I\u2019ll follow You.\u00a0 Wherever I\u2019m at right now, I will continue to follow You.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 This consistent, complete \u201cYes\u201d to God, which we offer every single day, trying to put Him first in our life \u2013 this is like the rudder of our soul, which continues to guide our boat that often goes astray amid the waves of life.\u00a0 But if we go astray, that rudder will help keep us centered, no matter how far off course we get.\u00a0 The life of faith that we have in the Church \u2013 not only our dogmatic Faith, but also our interior faith, our personal connection to God \u2013 is all by the grace of the Church, through the Eucharist, through Confession, through all the ways God conveys His life to us, which enable us to have the faith that knows that \u201cGod is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him\u201d (Heb. 11:6).\u00a0 And as St. Paul says, \u201cFaithful is He Who calls us, Who also will do it\u201d (1 Thess. 5:24; cf. Phil. 1:6).<\/p>\n Luke 22:32 But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.<\/strong><\/p>\n Prayer:\u00a0 O Lord, save Thy people and bless Thine inheritance. Grant victory over their enemies to Orthodox Christians, and protect Thy people with Thy Cross.<\/p>\n Thursday<\/p>\n In one who is trying to dam up the source of evil thoughts and actions, continuity of watchful attention in the intellect is induced by fear of hell and fear of God, by God\u2019s withdrawals from the soul, and by the advent of trials which chasten and instruct.\u00a0 For these withdrawals and unexpected trials help us to correct our life, especially when, having once experienced the tranquility of watchfulness, we neglect it.<\/p>\n Continuity of attention produces inner stability; and inner stability produces a natural intensification of watchfulness; and this intensification gradually and in due measure gives us insight into spiritual warfare.\u00a0 This, in its turn, is succeeded by persistence in the Jesus Prayer, and by the state that Jesus confers, in which the intellect, free from all images, experiences complete quietude (Philokalia<\/em>, vol. 1, p. 163). \u00a0\u00a0And this watchfulness is the key to knowledge of God and freedom from passions.<\/p>\n Psalm 10:1 Why standest thou afar off, O LORD? why hidest thou thyself in times of trouble?<\/strong><\/p>\n Prayer:\u00a0 O my God relying on Thy infinite goodness and promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of Thy grace, and life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer. Friday<\/p>\n So, we always have to take heed to ourselves.\u00a0 And we need to realize that it\u2019s through the difficulties of our life, especially through the indignities, that we are cleansed.\u00a0 This is one of the things the Fathers, especially St. Mark the Ascetic, talk about \u2013 how it\u2019s ultimately the dishonors that cleanse the soul from lust.\u00a0 So whenever we\u2019re dishonored, whenever we\u2019re humiliated, whenever we\u2019re in a low place, we need to remember that humility is being offered to us, which St. Mark says we should accept as a gracious gift \u2013 a cup from which we should drink deeply, because it will cleanse us of the passions…And through the mercy of God, hopefully we all will continue to try to enter deeply into this place where we try to meet the Lord, not only to speak to Him, but also to listen attentively, receiving grace, and the life which frees us not only from the passions, but also from death, and grants us eternal life.\u00a0 Amen.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 2 Corinthians 1:3 Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;\u00a0\u00a0 Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Prayer:\u00a0 O my God I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins, because I dread the loss of heaven and the pains of hell, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, who art all-good and worthy of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to confess my sins, to do penance, and to amend my life. Saturday May we give thanks to God for all things, even those things that cause us suffering. At first, it might seem counterintuitive to give thanks for our suffering. Nevertheless, we must acknowledge that God is totally in charge of everything and that everything \u2013 and everyone \u2013 belongs to Him. God knows exactly what each of us is going through in life, including our suffering. God allows us to experience suffering for His divine purpose, because through suffering we learn how to persevere, to endure steadfastly to the very end, which is not the end, but the true, everlasting beginning. Through this steadfast endurance we develop character, and character produces hope. It is this hope that grows our faith and trust, that assures us that we are always in God\u2019s infinitely loving hands, and that the end of our lives will be found in eternal peace, in the everlasting, glorious Kingdom of Heaven, where we will rest forever in God\u2019s loving embrace. Prayer:\u00a0 O my God I love Thee above all things, with my whole heart and soul, because Thou art all-good and worthy of all love. I love my neighbor as myself for the love of Thee. I forgive all who have injured me, and ask pardon of all whom I have injured. (Act of Charity)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sunday Meditations from Archimandrite Sergius of St. Tikhon’s Monastery And remember, the Jesus Prayer is not some kind of end in and of itself.\u00a0 It\u2019s a tool, a weapon, by […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12445","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-orthodox-daily-devotional","has_no_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12445","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12445"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12445\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12446,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12445\/revisions\/12446"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n*Eastern Vesper Hymn<\/p>\n
\n*Agnus Dei<\/p>\n
\n*Act of Hope<\/p>\n
\n*Act of Contrition<\/p>\n
\nFr Samuel Gantt meditation…<\/p>\n
\nGod constantly, continuously assures us of His infinite love, even when He allows us to go through some very hard times of life. Let us never give up our faith and trust in His provision and love, keeping our eyes totally fixed on Him and not on the cares and troubles of this world. This earth is not our final home; our time here is training ground to prepare us, to train us, for our eternal home.<\/p>\n