March 30, 2019

Saint of the week

St. John Chrysostom

March 29, 2019

WATCHING OUR WORDS

2 Timothy 2:14-17

Remind them of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers. Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness. And their message will spread like cancer.

Personal Challenge

Heresy, the truth of God twisted to meet our own desires. We must constantly be on the guard for those who twist the truths of our Lord for their own gain or edification. We must also watch our own words to make sure that we are not professing our own doctrine and therefore creating our own heresies. This is especially true today as the post-modern church becomes more individualistic and fosters the mindset that we each have the right and the ability to interpret the scriptures the way that we see fit. Our responsibility is to our God, to be diligent in our work and approved by Him, to rightly divide the word of truth. We do this by staying connected to His Church and relying on the teachings of our holy fathers before us. Glory be to God!

March 28, 2019

IF...

2 Timothy 2:11-13

This is a faithful saying:
For if we died with Him,
We shall also live with Him.
If we endure,
We shall also reign with Him.
If we deny Him,
He also will deny us.
If we are faithless,
He remains faithful;
He cannot deny Himself.

Encouraging Words

I remember growing up and hearing my mother say, "If wishes were horses, then beggars would ride." We can go through our lives wishing things were different or wishing for things to be given to us, but this passage reminds us that if we do certain things, then there will be consequences. If we die to ourselves for our Lord's sake, then we will live our lives with Him and in His glory. If we endure this world, then we will reign with Him in His Kingdom. If we deny Him, He will deny us in the day of judgment. If we stumble and lose our faith, He will remain faithful to us because He dwells within us. Glory be to God!

March 27, 2019

ENGAGED IN WARFARE

2 Timothy 2:3-4

You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.

Personal challenge

The Apostle Paul is a master at using metaphors to describe for us what it means to live a Christian life. These metaphors worked in his day and continue to work for us today. If we are to live our lives in a way that truly glorifies our Lord then sometimes we must be like soldiers in a great army engaged in warfare. We are at war. We live in a world that is against us and our Lord. This war causes hardships that are sometimes constant and extremely challenging. As a soldier in the midst of warfare, we must keep our focus fixed upon the leader of our army and engagement at hand. We do this by not getting entangled in the affairs of the world around us. We do this in order to please the leader of our army and to win the battle of this life. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

March 26, 2019

NOT ASHAMED

2 Timothy 1:12-14

For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.

Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. That good thing which was committed to you, keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.

Personal challenge

Paul lived quite the life. He grew up as a renowned Jewish scholar and Pharisee. He was on an upward path to leadership, especially when he started to lead the persecution of those new Christians in order to purge them from his society. But God had another plan for him. When he was introduced to Jesus on the road to Damascus, his life was changed forever. Paul realized that this Jesus that he had been trying to persecute and expunge was none other than his much awaited for Messiah. Paul became a Christian and was willing to undergo his own persecution. He was not ashamed to be called a Christian and gave us all an example to follow. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

March 25, 2019

OUR HOLY CALLING

2 Timothy 1:8-9
Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,

Encouraging Words

What is our Holy calling? Jesus Christ died on the cross to save us from the ravages of death and by doing that, He has called us to be a part of His holy family and Kingdom. This calling has nothing to do with what we have done or could do, but everything to do with His purpose and grace in our lives. A purpose and grace that was set aside of us at the beginning of time. Because of this, our calling, our holy calling, is to live our lives for Him, loving our God and our neighbor with all of the love that we can muster and to do good works for Him because of our appreciation for all that He has done for us. We can live for Him and not be ashamed because of how the world might treat us. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

March 24, 2019

NO FEAR

2 Timothy 1:7

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

Encouraging Words

We have been blessed by God to have the Holy Spirit bestowed upon us in our baptism and chrismation. That Holy Spirit, living within us, does not give us a spirit of fear and trepidation in this hostile world, but a spirit of power, love, and a sound mind. This is a promise from the living, eternal God. A promise that we can hold on to in all circumstances. This is how the martyrs through the history of the Church, and the prophets before them, could stand firm on their beliefs even in the midst of persecution and death. Glory be to God!

March 23, 2019

Saint of the Week

St. Nikon of Optina

March 22, 2019

BEWARE

1 Timothy 6:20-21

O Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge— by professing it some have strayed concerning the faith.

Grace be with you. Amen.

Personal Challenge

We have been blessed with a Church that has carried forth the teachings of Christ from the very beginning. He promised us that even the gates at hell would not prevail against His bride, the Church. We have 2,000 years of teachings and traditions that we can hold on to and learn from. However, even with all of this to guide us along, we must heed Paul's warning to Timothy to avoid the babblings and false teachings of those who choose to teach heretical things. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

March 21, 2019

FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT

1 Timothy 6:11-12

But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

Personal Challenge

Paul is telling Timothy to fight the fight and to hold on, informing him, and us, that our Christian journey is one comprised of work and struggles. Jesus also warned us that if we choose to follow Him then we are also to choose the path that He walked, a path of grief and ultimately death. This is what He meant when He told us to take up our cross and follow Him, daily. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

March 20, 2019

GREAT GAIN

1 Timothy 6:6

Now godliness with contentment is great gain.

Personal Challenge

Wouldn't we all like to make great gains in our life? For some, this is making a great profit on their investments. For others, it is accumulating as much stuff as possible. For the Christian, however, the great gain that we should pursue is godliness with contentment. When we are pursuing our Lord and desiring to be like Ann, we are striving for godliness. If we do this, being content with what we have, where we are on our journey, and with whom we are, then we are and the pathway of great gain. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

March 19, 2019

BE AN EXAMPLE

1 Timothy 4:12

Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.

Personal challenge

Even though Paul starts this verse off encouraging Timothy because he is a young leader in his church, he still packs it full of truth for all of us on our journey through life to be like Christ. No matter what role we have in our church, or outside of it for that matter, no matter what our age, we are called to be examples. First of all, we are called to be examples to our fellow believers in what we say and how we say it. We are to be examples in our behaviors, our conduct. And we are to do everything in love, in spirit, in faith, and in purity. If we can do this toward our fellow believer then this example will spill over to the non-believers in our lives and point them to Christ. Glory be to God!

March 18, 2019

TRUST

1 Timothy 4:10

For to this end we both labor and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe.

Encouraging Words

Why do we labor for our Lord? Why do we suffer reproach from those around us for professing to be His children? Because we trust in Him. We have faith that He is the savior of all mankind, both those who are scoffing Him and reproaching us, but especially those who put their trust in Him. Glory be to God!

March 17, 2019

EXERCISE

1 Timothy 4:7-8

But reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.

Personal Challenge

It is one thing to set up and adhere to a physical exercise regimen. Believe me, I have done this as part of this new year and it has been challenging. But where the real personal challenge kicks in is trying to set up a spiritual exercise regimen. Although attending church and liturgy on a regular basis, reading the scriptures daily, and praying multiple times throughout the day are all good and necessary things to do in this spiritual exercise journey, but they are just the foundation. We must also build on that foundation by fasting when we can, giving to the church, helping the needy, or any number of other things for good. The real, strengthening part of this exercise comes in how we treat those around us, with love and respect, how we manage our thoughts, desires, and passions, and how we behave when no one else is looking, or better yet, within our internal being. Without adding these aspects to our spiritual exercise regimen we will never grow into the image of our God. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy on me, the sinner!

March 16, 2019

Saint of the Week 

St. Anatoly of Optina

March 15, 2019

PRAY FOR THOSE IN AUTHORITY

1 Timothy 2:1-4

Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Personal Challenge

Elsewhere in his writings, Paul calls Christians ambassadors. We believe that by our adoption by God into His eternal family that our citizenship is transferred from this temporal world to His eternal Kingdom. We are no longer citizens here, but God's representatives in this foreign land. So, doesn't it make sense that we should be persistently praying for the rulers of this world because we are now guests in their countries and subject to them? We do this whether we like them or not. We do this out of respect for our true leader, God, and so that our lives will be peaceable in this temporary living place. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

March 14, 2019

LOVE

1 Timothy 1:5

Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith,

Personal Challenge

All Christians know that Jesus gave us two commandments to follow as we live our lives for Him. We are to love God and love our neighbor. Paul reminds Timothy, and us, that this love must come from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith. The love that we are commanded to give is not superficial or shallow. It is to come from the depths of our very being. This is the personal challenge. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

March 13, 2019

FAITHFULNESS

2 Thessalonians 3:3

But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one.

Encouraging Words

In this day and age when it is so difficult to build relationships that are deep and strong, it is encouraging to know that our Lord will always be faithful to us. He will go beyond faithfulness and He will establish us in such a way that He can guard us against the wiles of the evil one. Glory be to God!

March 12, 2019

THE WILL OF GOD

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Personal challenge

We often hear people ask what the will of God is. Well, Paul gives us a small glimpse into a part of Gods' will in our lives. Rejoice always, not just when things are going our way. We are to rejoice in our difficulties as much as we do in our blessings. Pray without ceasing. We are to develop a mindset and a relationship with our God such that every breath is an uttered prayer. That is one of the reasons we have the Jesus prayer, which is, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner." Finally, we are to give thanks in everything. This is like eating a sandwich. The center of the sandwich is praying without ceasing and this is surrounded by rejoicing always and giving thanks in everything. Glory be to God!

March 11, 2019

TREATMENT OF OTHERS

1 Thessalonians 5:14-15

Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all. See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all.

Personal Challenge

Practicing the second great commandment of loving our neighbor as we love ourselves can be difficult at times. People are not always easy to love, but then, neither are we. Here are some basic guidelines that can help us to develop the ability to love others. Gently warn those who are unruly, comfort those who are faint of heart, when we see a neighbor who is weak, uphold them, and be patient with all others. If someone treats us in an evil way, do not be evil back but look for the good in them. Loving our neighbor is a process that must begin somewhere and that somewhere is in our own heart. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

March 10, 2019

WE HAVE HOPE

1 Thessalonians 4:13-14

But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.

Encouraging Words

As Christians, we put our hope in Jesus Christ and that He will carry us through to the end of times. We believe that He will resurrect us from our sleep just as He was resurrected. Our hope does not stop there. Our hope is that He will also raise up all of those who have gone before us and have put their hope in Him as well. This hope gives us peace as we remember our dear departed ones. Glory be to God!

March 9, 2019

Saint of the Week 

St. John Chrysostom

March 8, 2019

LOVE TO ONE ANOTHER

1 Thessalonians 3:12-13

And may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you, so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.

Personal challenge

Wouldn't we all love to be found with our hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the end of time? We are told here by Paul that we do that by increasing and abounding in love to one another and all. And how do we do that? We don't. Jesus does that in and through us. We need Him much more than He ever needs us. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

March 7, 2019

PASSING THE BATON

1 Thessalonians 2:3-4

For our exhortation did not come from error or uncleanness, nor was it in deceit.

But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts.

Encouraging Words

Encouraging aspects of our Christian faith is the legacy of how it has been passed down through the ages. We believe that the fundamental and core teachings were given by Jesus Christ, the Son of God, to His apostles. They were given everything needed for His Church to thrive and to succeed throughout the remainder of eternity. Through the governance model established for the Church in the very beginning, these teachings are passed from generation to generation and kept in check by the traditions and structure of the original Church and continue to this day. Scriptures are to be interpreted in this context. Heresies are to be confronted in this context. And our practices even to this day are founded in this context. When a person, or group of people, choose to break away from this foundation, they begin to lose their roots and their approval. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

March 6, 2019

SAVORY SPEECH

Colossians 4:6

Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.

Personal Challenge

Everyone enjoys a savory meal, a meal that has just the right amount of spices and flavors to make your mouth water for that next bite. This is the image that comes to my mind when I read this verse. Too much salt and the morsel that touches the tongue gets spewed out. Our speech should be savory to those around us, truthful, honest, and yet filled with grace. With this kind of speech, there is no room for sarcasm or put-downs, no room for false platitudes and insincere compliments. We are to answer everyone in a way that glorifies God. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

March 5, 2019

PRAY

Colossians 4:2

Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving;

Personal Challenge

Prayer is one of the most powerful, and readily available, weapons in our arsenal of a godly and righteous life. Unfortunately, it is sometimes the least used. Prayer doesn't focus on us, it focuses on God and others. Even if we are praying for a need in our own lives, by asking that God's will be done, we are shifting from focusing on ourselves to focusing on God. He is always there for us, we need only call out to Him earnestly with vigilance and thanksgiving. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

March 4, 2019

DO IT HEARTILY

Colossians 3:23-24

And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.

Personal Challenge

In Christianity, there is no room for doing things in a lackadaisical or nonchalant way. If we have truly given our lives over to our Lord, then we will recognize that we are no longer doing things or living our lives for ourselves but for Him. Because of this, we will desire to serve Him with our utmost ability, and then even more. If we are teaching Sunday School, we will go that extra mile to prepare our lessons so that we will glorify Him. If our job is to clean the floors after an event, we will do that to our utmost. If we are blessed with a career, we will execute it as if Jesus was the owner of the company. If we are in any kind of relationship, especially a marriage, then we will act as Christ did for His bride, the Church, and gave His life for her. Being a Christian means taking up our cross and giving our all, our entire lives, to God in everything that we do. Glory bet God!

March 3, 2019

GODLY LIVING

Colossians 3:12-17

Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Personal challenge

This passage is so packed full of wisdom for living a Godly life that it would take volumes to unpack it all. Maybe the best thing to do is to just read through it, over and over again until it starts to sink it. But here are some tidbits that I know I need to be reminded of daily. I am Supposed to put on...

     tender mercies 
     kindness
     humility
     meekness
     long-suffering
     bearing with one another
     forgiving one another
     ABOVE ALL... putting on love
     letting the peace of God rule in my heart
     being thankful
     letting the word of Christ dwell in me
     doing all in the name of the Lord Jesus

If I could do just a fraction of this every day, what a difference it would make in my life and the lives of those around me. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

March 2, 2019

Saint of the Week

St. Isaac the Syrian

March 1, 2019

THE NEW MAN

Colossians 3:8-10

But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him,

Personal Challenge

Jesus told His disciples that unless we be born again we will not be able to make it into the Kingdom of heaven. This caused quite a stir amongst His disciples because they could not figure out how a person could enter back in their mother's womb and be born again. Paul reminds us that we were born again when we were baptized into Christ and that now it is our responsibility to live the remainder of our lives putting off the old man, that old nature that practices anger, wrath, blasphemy, filthy language, and lying to one another and to spend the rest of our lives putting on the new man, the man (or woman) that is continually striving to live in the image of Christ. Once again, our salvation is not a single point in time event, but an ongoing action of growing in the image of Christ. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!