January 31, 2023

WHY?

Mark 8:11-12

Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him. But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation.”

Personal Challenge

It is amazing just how blind and insensitive we humans can be. Leading up to this passage we have seen Jesus performing miraculous feats and basically performing sign after sign that He was truly the Son of God. And yet, the leaders of the church of His day, His chosen people, would not accept Him unless He showed them a sign of their choosing. What more did they really need? Just like so many of us today, Jesus gets put into a box that we have defined and if He does something or teaches something that doesn't fit in our box, we reject Him. This is a dangerous thing to do because Jesus, the Son of God, does not fit in any box. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

January 30, 2023

AS GOD SEES

1 Samuel 16:7

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Have no regard for his outward appearance, nor for the maturity of his stature, because I have refused him. For man does not see as God sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord sees into the heart.”

Personal Challenge

We have become so good at "judging" the "quality" of a person by what we see. They look good so they must make a good elected official. The sound good so they must be intelligent and gifted. They are always doing something at church so they must be godly. What we don't see is the content of their heart. Why do they do what they do? What is the purpose that drives them? Only God knows the true nature of what is in our heart. That is what He measures us by. Glory be to God!

January 27, 2023

WHAT WAS MADE FOR WHAT

Mark 2:27

And He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath."

Encouraging Words

It is interesting how today's verse ties back to the verse yesterday in Samuel. God instituted religious traditions and practices to give mankind a way to connect with Him and each other. They are ways to remember what He has done for us and to point us to His Son and what He continues to do for us. When our religious institutions raise these traditions and practices above God's very creation, we begin to go down the path of idolatry, idolizing the traditions and practices. When I was told that salvation was in the liturgy, I realized that it was time to move on. Salvation is only found in the Lord Jesus Christ and the liturgy is for us to worship and adore Him not save us. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

January 26, 2023

HEARING AND OBEYING

1 Samuel 15:22 (1 Kingdoms 15:22)

Then Samuel said, “If only the desired whole burnt offerings and desired sacrifices were equal to the Lord, as compared to one who heeds the voice of the Lord! Behold! Hearing is better than a good sacrifice and obedience than the fat of rams.

Personal Challenges

We are beginning to see a trend in our churches and parishes, which is an increase in the number of services performed. In some cases, the driver behind this is the belief that the more of these that we attend, the closer we are to God. This is not a new phenomenon. Here we see Samuel chastising King Saul for this very issue. What God wants is us to be listening to Him. He wants us to be obeying Him, which today means loving Him and loving our neighbor. When we are treating those around us with contempt or demeaning them because they are not joining all the services like we are, then we are not obeying God. He wants us to be loving and caring. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

January 25, 2023

HEALING FAITH

Mark 2:5

When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.”

Encouraging Words

Throughout the four gospels we see the faith of a person working synergistically with the healing power of Jesus Christ. Could He provide healing without our faith? Yes! He is God incarnate. But He chooses to work with us and teach us to put our faith in Him. The true power of His healing goes far beyond our physical needs. He heals us physically by going to the root of the illness and healing us from our sins. This is the power of God at work in those who trust in Him. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have
mercy!

January 24, 2023

DELIVERY

1 Samuel 7:3

Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, “If you return to the Lord with all your hearts, if you put away the foreign gods and the sacred groves from among you, and if you prepare your hearts for the Lord and serve Him alone, He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.”

Personal Challenge

We all need to examine our lives on a regular basis to see what we are in need of delivery from. Sometimes it is a besetting sin in our lives. Sometimes it is the burden of all the stuff, the material wealth, the prideful accomplishments, any number of temporal things that weigh us down. Sometimes it is just ourselves, out pride, arrogance, and independence. Whatever the case, Samuel has given us a formula for deliverance by our Lord. Return to Him. Put away these foreign gods that have taken ownership over us. Prepare our hearts for the Lord. And finally, serve Him. We need God much more than He needs us. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on my the sinner!

January 23, 2023

HE PRAYED

Mark 1:35

Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.

Personal Challenge

We know that our goal in life as followers of Christ is to walk in his footsteps, or do what He does and be like Him. I have often heard the question asked about how do we know how to do that. It is clearly portrayed in the four gospel letters, if we take the time to read them with open eyes, minds, and hearts. One characteristic of Jesus that we can all follow is his commitment to prayer. Even though He is the Son of God. He still slipped away from the crowds and His ministry to spend time in prayer with His Father. We can make this a practice in our lives as well, especially if we want to draw close to our Father. Glory be to God!

January 22, 2023

NO ONE...

1 Samuel 2:1-2 (1 Kingdoms 2:1-2)

And she said:
“My heart is strengthened in the Lord;
My horn is exalted in my God.
I smile at my enemies;
I rejoice in Your salvation.
Because no one is holy like the Lord,
No one is righteous like our God,
No one is holy but You.”

Encouraging Words

When you have an encounter with God, such as Hannah had, you cannot help but glorify God as she does in this prayer. Read the whole prayer, it is beautiful. I have had the privilege in my life to have seen God at work, not only in my own situations, but in the situations of others. He is real! He is alive. And He is active in the lives of those who strive to walk in the footsteps of His son. Glory be to Him.

January 21, 2023

Saint Quote of the Week

Metropolitan Anthony Bloom

January 20, 2023

GO

Matthew 28:19-20

Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Personal Challenge

The good news of the salvation available from our Lord Jesus Christ is not something that we hold just for ourselves. We are commanded to go forth into the world at all times and to all people sharing the good news. We do not keep it as a secret for ourselves for it was given to us to share with others. We are now the hands, feet and mouths of our God and must be willing to do His work. Glory be to God.

January 19, 2023

THE LORD HAD DEPARTED FROM HIM

Judges 16:20

And Delilah said, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” So he awoke from his sleep and said, “I will go out as before, and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him.

Personal Challenge

The story of Samson has many lessons for us to learn about our relationship with our God. God blesses us with His Holy Spirit through our Lord Jesus Christ. He dwells within us and leads us throughout our lives. However, since God also gave us free will, we can choose to quench the Holy Spirit and make decisions that are not in alignment with God's plan for us. This is what Samson did. He was blessed with the presence and power of God in His life. He chose, however, to flirt with the evils of the world and ultimately lost the precious gift that God had given him. We should learn from this story and strive to listen and submit to the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Lord have mercy on me. the sinner!

January 18, 2023

WATCH AND PRAY

Matthew 26:41

Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Personal Challenge

No matter how long we have been followers of Christ, no matter how many services we attend, no matter how much we pray and read the scriptures, we are still living in vessels of flesh. These vessels are continually confronted with temptations from this fallen world. Jesus reminded His disciples and us to always be watching and praying so that we might be aware when temptations come our way so that we might be able to fight them off. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

January 17, 2023

IF YOU ARE AFRAID

Judges 7:9-11

On that same night the Lord said to him, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have delivered it into your hand. But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant. Listen to what they shall say, and afterward your hands shall be strong and you shall then go down into the camp.” And he went down with Purah his servant to the edge of the camp of the fifty.

Encouraging Words

Our God is so awesome. He continually shows us what we need to be able to trust in Him. Here we find Gideon preparing to go into battle with the Midianites. Gideon's army had been whittled down by God from 32,000 soldiers to 300 for this battle. Why did God do that? He needs us all to know that the battles in our lives are not won by our might, but by God's work in us. God even gave Gideon a chance to eliminate his doubts by going down to the enemy's camp and hearing for himself their fear and apprehension of the God of the Israelites, our God. God loves us so much that He even cares for us in the midst of our doubts. Glory be to God!

January 15, 2023

TAKING CARE OF CHRIST

Matthew 25:34-40

“Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’

“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’”

Personal Challenge

There is so much doctrine that has sprung up about this passage over the millennia since Christ spoke these words. Here is not the place or the time to debate that doctrine. A key element of this passage, as well as the verses around it, is that the followers of Christ are charged with taking care of those in their lives as if they were taking care of Christ Himself. One of my favorite icons in the Orthodox Church is the creation of Adam. As you look deeply into this icon, not only do you see Jesus, the Creator, blowing His breathe of life into Adam, but you see that Adam's face is the same as Jesus' face. We are all created in the image of God. We are His living icons. When we help another human being, our neighbor, in their time of need, we are helping Christ. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

January 14, 2023

Saint of the Week

St. Paisios of Mount Athos

January 13, 2023

MIGHTY ONE

Judges 6:12

And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, mighty one of the armies!”

Encouraging Words

Gideon was very surprised when an Angel of the Lord appeared to him and made this proclamation. His people were under the oppressive role of the Midianites. He was hiding in a wine press threshing wheat so that he would not be discovered. And here this Angel calls him, "mighty one of the armies." So what is the encouraging part of this verse? It is the truth that our God knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows what we are capable of and what battles we have before us. He promises us that He will be with us. We can hold onto this truth through all trials. Glory be to God!

January 12, 2023

HIS WORDS

Matthew 24:35

Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

Encouraging Words

So many religious pundits have come and gone, often leaving behind a trail of misery. We are blessed as followers of Christ to know that He is eternal. He has always been, still is, and always will be, the Son of God. With that truth we can claim this promise that Jesus gave His followers that His words, His teachings. His truths, will always be there as well. His words, His wisdom, transcends all time and has existed before they were ever spoken to mankind. Glory be to God!

January 11, 2023

LOVING GOD

Joshua 22:5

But be very careful to do the commandments and the law which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you to do, to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to keep His commandments, to adhere to Him, and to serve Him with all your mind and with all your soul.”

Personal Challenge

Jesus proclaimed that He fulfilled the Law. This does not mean that we abandon the teachings as defunct and ignore the truth that the law of the old testament portrays. This advice given by Joshua to the tribes remaining on the east of the Jordan is still applicable today as we strive to follow Jesus. Do the commandments that have been given to us, the new covenant. Love the Lord our God. Walk in His ways. Keep His commandments. Adhere to Him. Serve Him. Living this way, loving God this way, leads on our path to theosis. Glory be to God!

January 10, 2023

THE GREATEST COMMANDMENTS

Matthew 22:37-40

Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

Personal Challenge

It can be very difficult at times to be willing to do what God commands us. We can be very stiff-necked. I guess that is one of the consequences of being given free will. Sometimes we try to blame our defiance on God claiming that He never really gave us a rule book to follow. But that is a lie fabricated by Satan, himself. Jesus summed up everything that we need to do to glorify and honor our Lord with these two commandments. We are to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and mind and love our neighbor as ourself. If we do this we will need no other rules to live by. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

January 9, 2023

BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS

Joshua 1:6-9

“Be strong and courageous, for you will divide this land which I swore to your fathers to give them. Be strong, therefore, and courageous to guard yourself and to do as Moses My servant commanded you; then you will not turn away from them, to the right nor to the left. In this way, you will have understanding in whatever you do. The book of this law shall not depart from your mouth, and you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may have the understanding to do all the things written therein. Then you will both prosper, make your ways prosperous, and have understanding. Behold, I have commanded you. Be strong and courageous. Do not be cowardly or fearful, for the Lord your God is with you in all things, wherever you go.”

Personal Challenge

No matter what our age or our background is, we all have a land that we are being asked by God to conquer. It may be sin in our life that we must overcome, or the loss of a loved one that we are mourning, or the loss of a job or a church family that we have grown in, or any other number of battles in our lives that we are called into. Whatever the situation, God encourages us to be strong and courageous and to look to Him to be our fortress and our strength. We must lean on Him and His teachings to lead us through, for He cares for us. Glory be to God!

January 8, 2023

GOD OF THE LIVING

Matthew 22:31-32

But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.”

Encouraging Words

Life is short. Life is hard. We are given two dates, a beginning, when we are born, and an ending, when we fall asleep. What we have in the middle is a dash. What we do when we are alive during that dash is so very important. Only God, our loving, gracious, merciful God, knows where we stand with Him after that dash is completed. We pray over and over again to out God, "Lord, have mercy on me, the sinner!", in hope and faith, that He will show us his mercy through the work that our Lord Jesus Christ did in His incarnation, death, and resurrection to redeem as from our sins. We see from this passage that through God's love and mercy, our lives do extend beyond this earthly dash. Our eternity is in His hands. Lord Jesus Christ Son of God have mercy on me, the sinner!

Dedicated to Mike...May your memory be eternal!

January 7, 2023

Saint of the Week

St. Francis of Assisi

January 6, 2022

GOD BE WITH US

Joshua 1:5

No man shall be able to oppose you all the days of your life, and as I was with Moses, thus I will be also with you. I will not forsake you nor disregard you.

Encouraging Words

When Joshua was charged with leading the people of God into the holy land, God promised that He would be with Joshua and guard and protect him. When Jesus departed this earth, He promised to send us the Holy Spirit to do the same. God does not expect us to take on the battles of this earth alone. He is with us and will not forsake us or disregard us. Glory be to God!

January 5, 2022

FAITH AND BELIEVING

Matthew 21:21-22

So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”

Personal Challenge

Jesus promised us that if we have faith and no doubt, then whatever things we ask in prayer, believing, will be granted to us. This sounds pretty open-ended. We often ask that if this is true, then why aren't our prayers answered. Isn't that question in and of itself an expression of our underlying doubt? Shouldn't we also be aware that if we are following in the footstep of Jesus, becoming more like Him, then the things that we will be asking for in prayer would be the things that He would pray for. Our God is not a vending machine that we put a prayer into expecting an answer. He is our Father. We are to be in relationship with him through Jesus. In that relationship we will be asking for those things that would glorify Him and not us. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

January 4, 2022

HE SHALL BE WITH YOU

Deuteronomy 31:23

Then Moses commanded Joshua the son of Nun and said, “Be valiant and strong; for you shall bring the sons of Israel into the land the Lord swore to them; and He shall be with you.”

Encouraging Words

We are all called to be Joshuas in our lives as we strive to follow and serve Christ. Joshua's journey began when he was selected with the other spies to check out the promised land before the people of Israel were to enter into it. All of the other spies, except him and Caleb, told the people that the land was flowing with milk and honey, but guarded by giants that they could not overcome. Only Joshua and Caleb proclaimed that God would prevail and give them the land. The result of this rebellion by the other spies and the fear of the people was being stuck in the wilderness for 40 years until everyone who rebelled would die and not be allowed to see the promised land. Only Joshua and Caleb were allowed to make it in. Joshua is tasked with leading these special people into this new land with the charge to, "be valiant and strong", and with the promise that "the Lord shall be with him". As we serve our Lord, showing people the promised land that He has for them, we too are promised that He shall be with us. Glory be to God!

January 3, 2023

PERFECTION IN CHRIST

Matthew 19:21

Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

Personal Challenge

There is absolutely nothing that we can do in our earthly life that will bring us to a place of perfection. Perfection only comes in and through Christ. He is the one who works in and through us to bring us to a form of righteousness before our God. Here we have a young rich man who believes he is doing everything needed to be seen as a perfect person in the eyes of God. However, Jesus informs him that there is one more thing to do. He must sell everything that he has, give the proceeds away to the poor, and follow Jesus. This expectation cuts to the quick of his life. As a rich, young man, this is too much to give up. Where are we on this spectrum? Are we trying to achieve, or earn, perfection in the eyes of God by doing things, going to more and more services, singing in the choir or teaching Sunday school, serving on another committee, all the while holding onto the riches of this earth? If we have not been willing to give it all up for Jesus, then we are no different than this young man. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy on me, the sinner!

December 31, 2022

Saint of the Week

St. John Chrysostom

December 30, 2022

NO FEAR

Deuteronomy 31:8

But the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not be afraid, nor be terrified.”

Encouraging Words

If we are truly following Jesus Christ and loving him with all our being then there should be no fear in our lives. If we lose our jobs, God will provide. If we get cancer or some other harsh sickness or disease, God will take care of us. This does not mean that we live reckless lives or abandon good sense. It means that in whatever happens in our temporal lives, God has us in his eternal hands. We can turn to Him for comfort, for help, for peace. This also means that as followers of Christ, if we see a fellow human being going through a difficult time in their lives then we are to be the hands and feet of God and be encouraging, supportive, and helping in their time of need. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me the sinner!