Daily Meditations Archives - Page 333 of 358

My behavior tortures me. I want so much, I want everything.

02/20/2013

My behavior tortures me. I can’t hide from You, Omniscient God. You know how much my behavior tortures me. I don’t act well. My manners show desperate fluctuations. I usually travel between extremes. My condition oppresses me so much, God, often I exhibit a bad picture of myself. My relationships with other people are not developing well at all. One day I seem stupidly rude and impolite, and the next day I reach a level

“KNOCK AND THE DOOR SHALL BE OPENED”

02/19/2013

“KNOCK AND THE DOOR SHALL BE OPENED” (MT 7:7; LK 11:9) “Let us sit still and keep our attention fixed within ourselves,” says Evagrius. Simone Weil describes prayer in much the same spirit when she says “Prayer consists of attention,” and “the quality of the attention counts for much in the quality of the prayer.” The practice of contemplation begins with our attention and our bodies. The basics are simple. We sit down and assume

Jesus Is…

02/18/2013

Jesus Is Poor Jesus, the Blessed One, is poor. The poverty of Jesus is much more than an economic or social poverty. Jesus is poor because he freely chose powerlessness over power, vulnerability over defensiveness, dependency over self-sufficiency. As the great “Song of Christ” so beautifully expresses: “He . . . did not count equality with God something to be grasped. But he emptied himself . . . becoming as human beings are” (Philippians 2:6-7).

To Be a Christian

02/15/2013

To be a Christian means to necessarily be an optimist because we remember what happened on the third day! We know the final stage of death, Jesus’ leap of faith, was not in vain. He was not put to shame, and “God raised him up” (which is the correct way to say it, and not that he rose himself). Most of human life is Holy Saturday, a few days of life are Good Friday, but

Pure Love’s Ways: A Valentine to God

02/14/2013

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind (and with all your strength). Matthew 22:37, Mark, 12:30, Luke 10:27 How do I love Thee my Lord? I love Thee when I turn my back to bitterness, forgiving spite and might To caress and bless the broken-hearted walking dead. I love Thee as I abandon sleep to dawn metallic bangles and belts-tight

The Desert and Temptation (Part IV)

02/13/2013

Without temptation the monks become careless. They let themselves go, and so live any old way. Temptations force them to live consciously, to exercise discipline, and to be wakeful. Thus the monks don’t pray for temptations to stop, but for God to give them enough strength. The story was told of Mother Sarah, that for thirteen years she endured being violently assaulted by demons of impurity. She never prayed for the struggle to cease, but

Father Maximos on Temperance and Self-Control

02/12/2013

Fr. Maximos served himself some hummus and continued. “Apostle Paul describes the fruits of the Spirit in the form of a scale, a hierarchy. He lists the highest and most exalted gift first and ends up with the most basic and foundational.” “What does that mean?” said Emily, who has a reflexive aversion to the notion of hierarchy, which has traditionally denoted social divisions and inequalities. “Think about it,” Fr. Maximos responded. “He lists love

Jesus’ Freedom, Compassion and Self-Portrait: Jesus the Blessed One

02/11/2013

Jesus’ Freedom Jesus was truly free. His freedom was rooted in his spiritual awareness that he was the Beloved Child of God. He knew in the depth of his being that he belonged to God before he was born, that he was sent into the world to proclaim God’s love, and that he would return to God after his mission was fulfilled. This knowledge gave him the freedom to speak and act without having to

CONSIDER THE LILIES

02/08/2013

THEREFORE I TELL YOU, DO NOT BE ANXIOUS ABOUT YOUR LIFE . . . LOOK AT THE BIRDS OF THE AIR . . . CONSIDER THE LILIES OF THE FIELD . . . —MATTHEW 6:25ff. Everyone at some time or the other experiences feelings of what is known as insecurity. You feel insecure with the amount of money you have in the bank, or the amount of love you are getting from your friend or

Yearning

02/07/2013

Abba Nilus said: “Do not want things to turn out as they seem best to you but as God pleases. Then you will be free of confusion and thankful in your prayer.” WHO is THERE who hasn’t, at some time or other, wanted life to be different than it is? Who of us has not wanted it ourselves? We get tired of what we’re doing or where we are. We look for better days somewhere