Heart of a Lamb

By Bethany Kaldas

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‘The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,
The leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
The calf and the young lion and the fatling together;
And a little child shall lead them.’

Isaiah 11:6

The phrase heart of a lion is used as praise—it means someone demonstrated courage and strength in the face of adversity. That’s fair enough—there is certainly something to be said for those who fight for justice, those who stand up for the helpless and actively defy oppressors. But there is another form of courage and strength in the face of danger that is far more underrated…and is often mistaken for the exact opposite.

‘…giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God.’

Ephesians 5:20-21

Submission is, in modern use, a term quite strongly associated with weakness and fear and helplessness. The lamb is a common symbol of submission—people even use the label as an insult—you’re a lamb, I’m a lion—I’m bigger and stronger, you’re weak, you have nothing.

But let’s take a look at the story of Abraham and Isaac. 

We talk a lot about Abraham’s decision to sacrifice his only and precious son, and throughout the whole ordeal, Isaac almost seems like a prop. We don’t tend to talk about him making any decisions here. But think about it—at this point, Isaac was a strong young man (strong enough to carry wood up a mountain) and his father was very, very old. Isaac also isn’t stupid. He realises that they don’t have a sacrificial animal as they’re going up the mountain. There were very few ways this could go in his favour. By the time he’s being laid on the firewood, he understands exactly what’s happening. He could’ve said something or done something to stop it

And yet, he says nothing.

Personally, I’d never given that much thought to Isaac’s silence. I’d always just assumed that since the story seemed primarily about Abraham that Isaac just wasn’t given much of a character arc, if you will. But although Isaac’s silence seems like mere weak character, a lack of personality or opinion, perhaps even stupidity, I believe it is just as much a decision as Abraham’s choice to sacrifice his son in the first place.

We don’t seem to make nearly as big a deal about it as we do about Abraham, but in his silence, in his submission, Isaac is showing his willingness to be sacrificed—for God, for his father, for whatever purpose this sacrifice served.  Unlike Abraham, we’re given no indication that Isaac thought he would be resurrected after this. This was it, the final battle—and it was not a battle to save his life, but to lose it. Because submission (of this sort) is not passive, submission is a choice. 

I know I said that Isaac was strong enough to stop this from happening if he chose, but I’d argue that’s not the point. It’s not really about whether he could’ve done otherwise—whether he had the power to resist but decided not to use it. That’s not the question—the important question is: was he willing?

We can tell he was willing, because he could’ve done otherwise—but that’s merely the external reassurance of is inner condition. He could’ve submitted just as easily if he had been a frail child who really couldn’t have stopped this from happening. 

This is important. Because sometimes, our circumstances are genuinely inescapable. Sometimes, we’re not young and strong and capable of resisting the sacrifice. Sometimes the ropes are too tight and there is nowhere for us to go. The question is not whether we are able to leave or not—the question is whether I will go quietly, with the assurance that our circumstances are in greater hands, or whether I will go kicking and screaming.

‘We are not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be.’

C. S. Lewis

Clearly, Isaac was going willingly. But I could imagine that it wasn’t easy for him. I could imagine he was having wars inside his mind before he made the decision to lay down his life.

We can see this clearly when Christ is in Gethsemane praying not to have to die. Jesus Himself fought a battle against fear and suffering and injustice—but it was not by dominating his oppressors, it was not by defeating those who hurt Him. He didn’t beat fear by removing its source—He won His battle by trusting His Father’s will for Him. And that is no easy thing for any human to do.

‘And He was withdrawn from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.”’

Luke 22:40-42

We think that standing up and taking action against an external enemy is challenging—it is, that is true, and it is often necessary. There are many circumstances where the right thing to do is to stand firm and fight, especially for the wellbeing of others. Jesus turned the other cheek, but He turned over tables too. 

But this is not always the case. Sometimes, the impulse to fight comes not from a sense of love and justice, but from fear, from pride, from a wounded ego. And in those instances, to submit is to let go. And to let go…is scary.

Do not underestimate or misinterpret the act of submission—submission to God’s will takes just as much courage and strength as any battle does. And submission is itself a battle.

We battle all those instincts that tell us to fight or flee, all those self-preservation methods we keep stored up to save us from any kind of peril. When you’re hanging off the edge of a cliff, uncertain of what lies beneath you, it takes a lot of strength to hold on. But it takes more strength—a different kind, but strength nonetheless—to let go. It takes the strength of trust—and even when we’ve seen God save us before, it can still be hard to believe He’ll get us through our present struggles.

‘Relying on God has to begin all over again every day as if nothing had yet been done.’

C.S. Lewis

Lambs are different. Lambs are trusting. A lamb will follow their shepherd wherever he takes them, even if it is to places the lamb has never been before. We might think them naive or silly, but they will not follow just anyone. This was a decision they made. The flock follows because they know their shepherd will not lead them astray. It is not weakness that they follow him into the unknown. It is the power to lay down their own fears, their own will, and trust the one who knows the way. And we must remember that although Christ is the Lion of Judah, He is also the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8).

‘He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He opened not His mouth;
He was led as a lamb to the slaughter,
And as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
So He opened not His mouth.’

Isaiah 53:7

Submission and love go hand in hand—and neither is a form of weakness. On the contrary, real submission that comes from love requires more strength and courage than we tend to realise. If Christ had fought the soldiers who came to arrest Him, it probably would’ve been a bit challenging—but I can guarantee that letting them arrest Him—knowing exactly what He was about to go through—that was far harder. In the same way, it might take guts to punch someone who offended you, but it takes a much deeper, quieter strength to let it go. It might take power to take revenge on someone who hurt you, to make sure they never dare do it again, but it takes a much stronger character to forgive, to empathise, and to show compassion on those who have wronged you. 

These things look like weakness to the world, but this is just one of the many forms that real love takes. Love is indeed a roaring Lion, but Love is also the silent Lamb, willing to give up its life for even those who have wronged Him.

‘Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”And they divided His garments and cast lots.’

Luke 23:34

A Reason for Hope

By Mora Tiab

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It is no secret that life lacks consistency. A day in itself can have highs and lows. The truth is that consistency is as synthetic as plastic. Everyone experiences difficulties and joys in their lives. More often than not, these difficulties cannot be controlled, but what can be controlled is my outlook on life and the experiences that come with it. For me, I find it easier to take on a negative outlook because that involves accepting what is and letting go of whatever control can be taken.

However, according to WebMD, a positive outlook on life has been attributed to several health benefits including lower blood pressure and better stress management. These effects are directly correlated to McGill’s Office for Science and Society’s article on the cardiovascular effects of anger.

Throughout the wild rollercoaster of life, we all have moments when we feel as though the whole world is against us; when we feel as though we are running on a treadmill and getting nowhere, when we feel we are doing everything we can yet still drowning. It is in these moments that a positive mindset seems to be a shield made of glass in a tumultuous hurricane – naive and useless. 

Verywellmind calls it “toxic positivity.” Simply put, it is when negative feelings are ignored for the sake of “remaining positive.” Despite the beneficial effects of a positive mindset, toxic positivity takes it to an extreme and can induce feelings of guilt or sadness. Essentially, it’s nothing more than a façade meant to allow one to avoid confronting any difficult emotions. Since it is only possible to maintain a front for so long, the problem grows within over time and eventually comes out when we would least like it to. Seeing as how toxic positivity is not a better option than a negative outlook on life, there must be another option when life becomes difficult.

It is clear that too much of anything is detrimental, even positivity. In life, we need to remain grounded. But what can I do when I feel like there is nothing left to be positive about? This is where hope comes in. Christ warned us, “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). I don’t live my life thinking that everything will be okay. If I just stay positive, it will all work out. I can’t even live life just bracing for the next bad thing to happen to me. I live with hope. I live knowing that there will be struggle, there will be tribulation, but I have hope that the One that overcame the world will deliver me and will be my Salvation.

Hope is the reason that I continue to work hard and do what is right. It is the driving force that allows me to face difficulties head-on, rather than running away. Without hope, the best thing that I can do is chase the next high or whatever makes me feel good at the moment. Whatever consequences this has on the future does not seem to matter when I lack any kind of hope for a good future.

Unlike positivity, hope is not a mindset. Hope is trust in a solid foundation. A foundation that is strong enough to withstand all difficulties that come to pass. It is reliable and supportive of my hope without ulterior motives. My foundation is in Christ – the One that will never fail me.

The Christian belief is that God created each and every person out of His immense love for each person. As the Father, He creates each person in His image; with intelligence and talents. Even an individual’s physical traits, personality, and the people placed in their lives are placed there intentionally. Everyone has hopes and dreams, but God has a purpose for us all that is greater than we can imagine. His greatest desire is that we fulfil our purpose by using our talents to learn and make an impact on the world around us. 

My God is my hope and saviour that cannot be compared to any man. He is omniscient and omnipotent. He is eternal; without beginning or end, He is constant and unchanging. God’s character is undeniably and unwaveringly reliable.

These characteristics of God places mankind in a very advantageous position. No matter what I experience and no matter what I face, I know that an omnipotent God is taking care of me the way that a father cares for his child. Nothing can overcome a love like this. The history of the world is littered with people who struggled and held onto hope in God. Not only were they saved, they accomplished great things because their hope in God was not in vain.

As St. Paul puts it in Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV) “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” There were generations upon generations before us that took a leap of faith and God delivered them. When we take that leap, we know that we are not doing so blindly. The same God that delivered those that came before us through their hope, will deliver me too. Every leap of faith is a risk, but when considering Pascal’s wager about God from the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, one can acknowledge the fact that there is little to lose but so much to gain by placing my hope in God.

This hope in difficulties, this light in the darkness, is the reason Christmas is celebrated every year. Christmas itself is simply the celebration of the day that the Saviour was born, however, it’s not just any birthday that is celebrated every year. It is the reminder that there is hope – that I have hope. It reminds me that no one has to endure their difficulties alone. It is the reminder that God was incarnated and became man out of His immense love for each one of us His immense love is what saves me. My hope in God is the reason for the joy of Christmas.

References

Sherwood, Alison. “What is Positive Thinking?” WebMD, Jan. 16, 2022, https://www.webmd.co m/mental-health/positive-thinking-overview

Schwarcz, Joe. “Is it true that getting angry can affect the heart?” McGill Office for Science and Society, Feb. 20, 2017, https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/health-you-asked/it-true-getting- angry-can-affect-heart#:~:text=That’s%20because%20anger%20causes%20an,stress%20hormones%20adrenaline%20and%20cortisol.&text=Indeed%2C%20the%20risk%20of%20a,stroke%20is%20four%20times%20higher.

Cherry, Kendra. “What is Toxic Positivity?” verywellmind, Sept. 28, 2022, https://www.verywell mind.com/what-is-toxic-positivity-5093958

The Bible. New King James Version. Bible Gateway, version 42, Bible Gateway / Zondervan, 2016

Saka, Paul. “Pascal’s Wager about God” Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, https://iep.utm.edu /pasc-wag/

Why Should I Love My Enemies?

adapted from a sermon by Fr Mark Basily

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Reading: Matthew 5 

Love your enemies – the commandment that is so synonymous with Christianity. We all know this verse well and love to hear it. What a high moral standard; to love an enemy. 

Although we love it for its beauty and its poetic nature, we often relegate it to the irrationality in a practical sense. We don’t really take it seriously. When the Bible says, “if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.” We don’t then go and actually pluck it out. We treat this verse in a similar fashion. I can’t really love my enemies.

It doesn’t even make sense. If someone is an enemy, how can you love them?

As a priest, we have the honour and privilege to be invited into the lives of those whom we serve. We share in their life journey and their challenges. One of the most common struggles, is the struggle to love someone that has hurt you, someone that you cannot stand to be around. 

As a priest, we try to challenge and stretch people to love; to love the unlovable and to love our enemies. The response is always similar. HOW can I love them after they have hurt me so deeply? I cannot even bare to be around them, let alone love them, or trust them even. 

This response comes from the way we interpret love. Particularly in the English language, “love” has become a word that is wrapped up in emotions and feelings. When we hear the word, “love,” we think of warm and fuzzy feelings. I delight to be in the presence of the ones I love. It is something I look forward to.

When Christ gives us the commandment to love our enemies, it is more than just a feeling or emotion. After Christ gives this command, He unpacks and explains how you can love your enemies. There are three concrete methods to love an enemy or someone who has hurt you.

1. do good to those who hate you

Christ is not saying you have to have good feelings toward them. This is not about emotions. He is saying to do good actions. Do good to those who hate you. Take action. Do something good for them. Doesn’t matter if you can’t stand them, doesn’t matter if cannot bare to be in the same room as them. You may never lose the hurt, you may never forget what they did. Despite all of this, do good actions toward them. This is the first way we can love our enemies. 

2. Bless those who curse you

Blessings come from the mouth. We bless others with our words. Give them a good word. I can say nice things, and this is how I show love to my enemies.

3. Pray for those who spitefully use you.

It is so important that we remember to pray for those who have hurt us. We pray for our enemies. This is the most critical. To do good and to bless our enemies requires interaction, but to pray for them does not require interaction. This is only between you and our Lord. You open your heart to the Lord to wish them well. To pray an hour of the Agpia dedicated to that one person. To do metanias to that person that has hurt you. 

I am confident that if we follow Christ’s three methods of loving our enemies, then the emotions will follow. The heart will follow and we will love our enemies. 

Christ gives us more specific examples. To do good to those who hate you, is to turn to the other cheek to the one that strikes you. To do good is to offer your jumper to the one that steals your cloak. If someone takes from you, do not ask for it back. A whole collection of irrational actions. No one in this world could function in this way.

Christ is teaching us that it is not irrational, but super rational. These are commandments that do not follow the logic of this world but the logic of the Kingdom to come. The logic of Christ.

Where did Christ speak these words? This was part of the Sermon on the Mount. Just before this commandment came the Beatitudes. The Beatitudes is a collection of illogical statements. Since when is it good to be poor? But Christ is saying, “blessed are the poor” and “blessed are you when you weep” and “blessed are you when men hate you.”

Then even, “woe to you who are rich,” “woe to you who laugh” and “woe to you when men speak well of you.”

When Christ teaches, He shocks and surprises. He turns the world upside down. The logic that you function with is not the logic of My Kingdom. When Christ speaks a collection of illogical statement and continues with further irrationality to love our enemies. This is not the logic of this world but the logic of Christ Himself. 

What did Christ do when He was struck on the cheek? He did not fight back. He is the One who was rich and became poor for us. He is One who gave up everything for us, expecting nothing in return. He is the One that gave His life for us, knowing He would be rejected. This is logic of Jesus. This is the logic of the Cross. Christ is calling us to live our life according to the logic of the Cross. We are challenged, we are stretched so that we do not follow the logic of this world but the life hereafter. We are pushed to love, to seek peace, to seek forgiveness with all people.

It is not okay to hate somebody and be a Christian. It is not okay to hold a grudge. It is not okay to not forgive. 

One of the scary things of priesthood is that you are expected to teach others. If there is another priest around, the fear is compounded because you don’t want to say something wrong in their presence. In the last ten years, I know I have said many things wrong in the presence of Fr Yacoub. In his love, he resists to correct me. There was only one time when he corrected me publicly. 

There was a question about what Romans 12:18 really meant – “as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.”

I answered, “if you have done all that you can do to live in peace with somebody and they refuse to forgive, and they hold the grudge then that is on them. You had done your part; you can be at peace.”

Fr Yacoub stepped in and said, “We can never stop trying to be at peace with others. Till your last breath, try and live at peace with others.”

Our part never ends. Do good when you can do good. Say good things when you can say good things. And always remember to pray for them. Life is too short to hold grudges, to not forgive, to have enemies, and to hate.

Life is snatched away. It is so fragile. We will all stand before the Lord in our last days. We want to be blameless before Him. The way to stand blameless is by having a heart full of love for all people. Love must be in all that we do. In your last days, God will not measure your good deeds but the the love that compelled you to do good. The weight of your love is what will make you blameless before the Lord. It is our super rational love that will be measured. The irrational love that we are called to. Glory be to God, Amen.

Healing Nations

adapted from a sermon by Fr Daniel Fanous

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Passage: Luke 5:17-26

¹⁷ Now it happened on a certain day, as He was teaching, that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every town of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was present to heal them. ¹⁸ Then behold, men brought on a bed a man who was paralyzed, whom they sought to bring in and lay before Him. ¹⁹ And when they could not find how they might bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the housetop and let him down with his bed through the tiling into the midst before Jesus.²⁰ When He saw their faith, He said to him, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.”

There are a number of things in this passage that are fascinating that we can easily overlook. The first is, “And the power of the Lord was present to heal them.”

It does not say, “He was there to heal him.” The word used is, “them.” Sometimes, in certain translations it may mean, “the power of the Lord was there to heal the sick.” But that is not what we read here. We read the word, “them.” The healing was for all those present before our Lord.

Christ was not only there to heal the sick but to heal them- all of them. That means that even the friends that carried the man, were present before the Lord for their own healing too. 

You can imagine the scene- a small house in a small village that was filled to the brim with people all around. No one could enter. The only entry way they found was through the roof, carried by four men. They had to make their own way to see Jesus and the only way they say fit was by making a hole through the roof to let the man down. You can imagine the scene, the embarrassment, the height of disturbance that was caused in the process. They had utter compassion for their friend, they took on his suffering as their own. They are embarrassed with him, and now, somehow, they are healed too. 

Sharing in the burdens of others transforms us. It happens both practically and mystically. Years ago I spent a few months living with nuns that had consecrated their lives to serving others. One of the things that I observed in all of them was that like all humans, they have weaknesses. Even as nuns, they each had a set of weaknesses. But the other thing that I observed in all of them was that there was so little focus on themselves. There was so little time to even dwell on themselves. Their entire being was consumed by other people. Everything that they did was for somebody else. Every meal that they had was after a meal that they shared with somebody else. Every moment of rest that they had was after consuming themselves all day in the service of others. 

This made them free. Unlike others who are so obsessed with their problems, so focused on what is happening in their own hearts and so disturbed by their own circumstances. It was as if they had no time for these things. The same applies to anyone that dedicates their life for others. Whether clergy of layman – those who are aware of the problems and sufferings of others and are living for them, do not have time to be entrapped in by their own problems. Somehow, this heals them. By living for others, we can be healed through the healing of others. 

Our life and our death is with our neighbour. If we gain our brother, we have gained God

St Anthony the Great

Somehow, sharing in the healing and in the lifting of the burdens of the person next to me, helps me gain God. The power of God was present to heal him. It was not one man healed in this story, but five.

Once they enter through the roof and cause a huge disturbance, scattering hay and mud throughout the house, our Lord looks upon their face and says, “your sins are forgiven you.” It does not say, “when He saw his faith” but “when He saw their faith.”

When He saw the faith of the four men that were carrying him, He forgave the sins of the paralytic man and healed him. 

Healing is communal. We lift each other up with healing and repentance. It also means that my healing affects those around me. The Lord saw the faith and the love of those four men, He healed their friend. It wasn’t only about the paralytic man, but his friends also. Healing, forgiveness and restoration are all communal. This is why we do it as an act, as a church, when we pray the Liturgy. Repentance, although it is personal and something that I do on my own behalf, is communal in that it affects those around me. 

Our repentance goes beyond us in ways we cannot see. If you are cold, you put your hands together and you become warm, and in turn, brings warmth to your whole body. The same applies to our repentance. When someone around us repents and shows us love, this increases our own repentance. 

If you find peace, thousands around you will be saved

St Seraphim of Sarov

When we share in the healing of someone else, there is transformation within us as well. My own healing can go beyond me, goes beyond my family, and the walls of the church.

Why Can’t I Bear Fruits?

Adapted from a sermon by Fr Elijah Iskander

Luke 8:4-15

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What does my Lord want me to be? The Lord wants me to be fruitful. Time and time again we read in the Gospels Christ referring to bearing fruits. We must bear fruits worthy of repentance, we strive to attain the fruits of the Spirit and the famous parable of the seeds. The Lord wants to throw seeds of blessing so that we may bear fruit.

Bearing fruit is not a theoretical or conceptual idea. Our fruits are tangible, real, and sweet. A Christian is identified by their fruit. Sometimes we may think, “Lord, I want to be fruitful, but I don’t see the fruit within me.” Or sometimes we think, “I want to bear more fruit.”

There are three reasons why I may not be as fruitful as I would like and the Lord uses the parable of the seeds to help us overcome these obstacles.

The Wayside

I might not be fruitful if I lack flexibility. I am rigid. The seed, that is the Word of God, first falls upon the wayside. The road is unyielding, unforgiving and cannot be moved by the seeds that fall upon it.

Those people are those with minds hard and unyielding and are so pressed together that they cannot receive the Divine Seed

St Cyril of Alexandria

Sometimes the seed is thrown, it lands on my mind but my mind is like a rock; unyielding and unforgiving. Too rigid in its thinking, too rigid to be swayed. We see this in the interaction between Christ and the rich young ruler;

If you want to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.

Matthew 19:21

The rich young ruler went away sorrowful, unmoved by the Word of God because of his possessions. Like us, he came to the Lord to listen, the Lord throws the seed but it fell on a hardened, unyielding heart.

When I come to listen to the Word of God but I’m not ready to make a change, I begin to justify myself and my sins. If this is me, then the desert fathers propose a simple solution – this kind of rigid thinking and unwillingness to change is like a serpent deep in a cave. As soon as the snake is exposed to the bright sun, it slithers away. The same applies to our thoughts. If we expose our thoughts to our spiritual father, then sometimes that is all that is required for that thought to be dismissed.

If I want to bear fruit, I must be willing to yield, or at the very least, willing to expose my unyielding soul to my spiritual father.

The Stony Ground

Sometimes I cannot bear fruit because I am frustrated by my past efforts that have not produced any result. This was not a ground mixed with rock and soil, where the roots could grow deeper, underneath the rocks. There was a layer of soil, but underneath the soil, was hard rock. When the sun hits the rock, it makes the soil look vibrant and yielding. It seems to sprout up quickly, but it is short lived. When the roots reach the soil, the growth stops and there is no depth to the fruit.

I’m trying, I might be seeing some early changes, but nothing substantial, nothing changes. I become frustrated by the lack of result and I stop.

Sometimes it is not to our advantage to be healed quickly, especially if the disease by this means becomes more enclosed into our organs where it rages more rapidly.

Origen

Quick healing is superficial healing and interferes with true, deeper healing. God heals some by not healing them. The Lord wants to prevent the unready from healing too quickly, and only achieving the appearance of fruit. If the forgiveness of sins is too easily obtained, they would soon fall again into the disorder of sin.

All that is acquired with labour is guarded with caution.

St Isaac the Syrian

We become frustrated by the lack of result. Sometimes it is by the design of the Lord to strive for a slower process over rapid, superficial healing.

Even in medicine, it seems obvious to remove a cancer as soon as it is diagnosed. This is a natural and reasonable response. The doctor may advise not just yet. To undergo treatment to shrink the tumour and then remove it completely. Healing that is rapid is often superficial and incomplete. We should not become despondent if we are trying to acquire virtue and are beginning to overcome sin, and just as we hit a sprout, that is the end to our growth. We must keep going, and trust in the Lord’s timing of complete healing.

The Thorns

We become choked with cares of this world, our reliance on riches. We are choked with pleasures and desires. This stops us from attaining fruits. If I struggled with this, then the Lord invites us to try Him.

He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

2 Corinthians 9:6

If I pursue my own pleasures and my only luxuries and I find it so hard to give, then I miss the rewards of the Lord. The more that I give to the Lord, the more the Lord gives to me in return. It is a clear promise.

So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.

2 Corinthians 9:7-8

We say this same phrase in every Liturgy. If I am choked with pleasures and luxury then the solution is simple- give. If I do not want to give a lot, then I give a little.

Someone said to me once, “I’m so upset with God! Really upset! He doesn’t listen to me!”

So I said, “What happened?”

“By God’s grace, I have what I need, even more so. Work is good, family is well. I found out of someone in need, so I gave. Not because I wanted anything, I have everything, I just wanted to give for the sake of giving, and God just doesn’t listen!”

It was so enjoyable to witness this. Just give. If I am choked with pleasures and riches, then I try to let them go a little, and the Lord will give more so that I can loosen my tightened hands and give more and more.

But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.

Luke 8:15