Reflections – Page 38

Floral Grace

Photo from the Feast Day of the Exaltation of the Cross

A week after celebrating the great Feast Day of the Exaltation of the Cross, I was reminded how amazingly preserved flowers that surround the Cross can be. They are protected from the usual quick wilt and deterioration other bouquets (placed in ordinary locations) can experience within two or three days.

The same holds true with flowers that grace icon corners or icon stands. I remember visiting a convent in the heat of summer, and one of my obediences was to clean and prepare the church for the Sts. Peter and Paul Liturgy. I had picked some wildflowers to put where the festal icon was to be placed, but it appeared someone had already done so. I took my new bunch of flowers back to the main house and was told the hot little church had been locked since Pentecost, as the air conditioned house chapel was being used instead. The last time flowers had been placed in the actual church was nearly 3.5 weeks previously! One “forgotten’ wildflower bouquet had remained at the foot of the analogian where the icon of the Holy Trinity sat. This is the same bouquet I saw when I unlocked the church to clean. It looked as fresh as could be! When I revealed this mini miracle, the nuns nodded their heads, crossed themselves, and stated matter-of-factly, “Oh yes, these kind of things can happen.”

Every flower is indeed fragrant through the power of the Holy Spirit, and the beauty of the Great is contained in the small!

…let all the trees of the forest sing for joy. ~ Psalm 96:12

You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands. ~ Isaiah 55:12

God does not create a cross for man. No matter how heavy a cross a man may carry in life, it is still just wood, from which man himself made, and it always grows from the soil of his heart. ~ St. Ambrose of Optina

Look Unto Me…

Like finding buried treasure, this beautiful antique picture (from nearly 125 years ago), was found in the basement of our church during renovations.

Look Unto Me and Be Ye Saved. ~ Isaiah 45:22

Food for Thought

Quotes from 4th century St. Augustine of Hippo

Faith is to believe what you do not yet see; the reward for this faith is to see what you believe.

God is always trying to give good things to us, but our hands are too full to receive them.

The mind commands the body and is instantly obeyed. The mind commands itself and meets resistance.

God has promised forgiveness to your repentance, but He has not promised tomorrow to your procrastination.

And men go abroad to admire the heights of mountains, the mighty waves of the sea, the broad tides of rivers, the compass of the ocean, and the circuits of the stars, yet pass over the mystery of themselves without a thought.

If you believe what you like in the Gospel, and reject what you don’t like, it is not the Gospel you believe, but yourself.

There is no saint without a past, no sinner without a future.

Right is right even if no one is doing it; wrong is wrong even if everyone is doing it

To fall in love with God is the greatest romance; to seek him the greatest adventure; to find him, the greatest human achievement.

Open to Me the Doors of Repentance Orthodox Hymn

Faith, Hope and Love

Beautiful (almost life size) ambo-iconostas mosaic of St. Sophia and her three daughters, Faith, Hope and Love.

These saints from the second century AD are the epitome of their virtuous names: Sophia (Wisdom), Faith, Hope and Love, and they continue to shine forth as steadfast beacons of spiritual strength!

Today is our parish sisterhood’s feast day, and some cherished friends’ Saint’s Day as well! Congratulations on your Name’s Day, Vera, Sophie, Lu and Esperanza! May God grant you many years and blessings!

Memory Eternal Nadezhda, Faith, and Michael!

The purpose of a parish sisterhood is to engage Christ’s loving kindness, in service to our parish, our Church, each other, and our local community. We strive to emulate the great faith reflected in the life or lives of our name’s-sake(s).

Faith, hope, and love are interconnected. There can’t be one without the other two. In this life we have three great lasting qualities – faith, hope and love. And the greatest of them is love. (1 Corinthians 13:13)

Our soul is a Divine Breath. Our body is His Creation. In the whole of us we are the icon of God… Three things are needful. First Love, second Love, third Love… How beautiful is the Mystery of Tomorrow! ~ Gerontissa Gavrielia

Greeting you with Faith, Hope and Love.

He is Our Gladsome Light

For though He appeared as a man yet He was not in all things subject to the laws of humanity; that he was born of a woman, savored of lowliness; the virginity however that attended His birth shows He transcended mankind. His carrying in the womb was joyful. His birth immaculate. His coming forth without pain, His nativity free of blemish, neither taking rise from the will of the flesh, nor brought forth in sorrow, for since she [Eve] who by her fault had brought death to our nature was condemned to bring forth in sorrow; it was fitting that the Mother of Life should bring forth in joy. And in that hour, in which the shadows begin to retire, and the immense gloom of night was forced back by the splendour of this Light, Christ, through this virginal incorruption, comes to share the life of mortal men. For death had reached the boundary of the domination of sin, and now it moves towards nothingness, because of the presence of the True Light, which by its evangelical rays has given light to the whole world. ~ St. Gregory of Nyssa

Exaltation of Cross

Greetings on the Great Feast Day of the Exaltation of the Cross!

Magnify, O my soul, the exaltation of the life-creating Cross of the Lord! …Let all the trees of the forests rejoice, for their nature hath been sanctified by Him Who planted them in the beginning – Christ Who was stretched out upon the Tree… Let us worship the power of the Cross; for a tree brought about death in paradise, but this Tree hath caused life to blossom forth, for the sinless Lord was nailed to it. …O Thou Who hast abolished death by the Cross and freed us, glory to Thee! ~ Excerpts from Service

Some sweet basil traditions.

Let us exalt the Most Precious Cross of the Lord together, and rejoice in His boundless Love!

Efforts

Congratulation on your Saint’s Day Protodeacon Gordian! May God grant you many years!

Desire and effort must come from you. God will provide the power and the result. ~ St. Paisios

Think nothing and do nothing without a purpose directed to God, for to journey without direction is wasted effort. ~ St. Mark the Ascetic

Much effort and labour is needed, for a man to be changed and to be the good tree that brings forth good fruit. Strive then, for nothing else but to change, renew, and correct yourself. And pray for this… ~ St. Tikhon of Zadonsk

Nothing is permanent, which can be a consolation but also a warning. I don’t like change very much, unless it’s going in the direction I want it to go! When one’s anxious it’s hard to find the way back to God – and my Godfather would remind me that that’s the evil one’s doing. We are reminded to keep asking for God’s help and that the efforts are what matter. ~ Anonymous

Nothing comes without effort. The help of God is always ready and always near, but is given only to those who seek and work, and only to those seekers who, after putting all their powers to the test, cry out with their whole heart: ‘Lord help us!’ ~ St. Theophan the Recluse

Remember that God, during your prayers, is watching for your affirmative answer to the question which He is inwardly asking: “Do you believe I am able to do this?” To which question you must reply from the depth of your heart, “Yes Lord.” (St. Matthew 9:28) ~ St. John of Kronstadt

Pearls of Wisdom

…unless you have suffered affliction – virtue has not been tested. ~ St. Mark the Ascetic

Virtue is nothing without the trial of temptation, for there is no conflict without an enemy, no victory without strife. ~ St. Leo the Great

…For the Holy Spirit, sweet and gracious, draws the soul to love the Lord, and in the sweetness of the Holy Spirit the soul loses her fear of suffering. ~ St. Silouan the Athonite

For one to be ill is a divine visitation. Illness is the greatest gift from God, and when the only thing that man can give back to God is pain. ~ Anonymous old monk

It is absurd to be grateful to doctors who give us bitter and unpleasant medicines to cure our bodies, and yet be ungrateful to God for what appears to us to be harsh, not grasping that all we encounter is for our benefit and in accordance with His providence. For knowledge of God and faith in Him is the salvation and perfection of the soul. ~ St. Anthony the Great

I have consciousness of my sinfulness, but I live with hope. It is bad to despair, because someone who despairs becomes embittered and loses willingness and strength. Someone who has hope, on the contrary, advances forward. ~ St. Porphyrios

Prayer should be our first response, not the last hope. ~ Archpriest Andrei Tkachev

We are like broken glass that reflects in small fragments until the power if God makes us whole again. ~ Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica

Glory be to God for everything! Dry your tears. Your Guardian Angel will carry those little tears away to the Throne of God. ~ St. Barsanuphius

Good Deeds are Never Lost

Japanese Anemone flower, a lovely and vigorous perennial that blooms late summer until first frost, providing a welcome splash of garden colour.

Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body. ~ Proverbs 16:24

A tree is known by its fruit; a man by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; he who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love. ~ St. Basil the Great

Out and about on errands recently, we pulled into a shopping mall and parked outside a coffee shop. To save time, I nabbed the groceries while my husband picked up wine for dinner. When I returned to the car, my husband related how a street person gently approached him asking for spare change. He actually found several dollars worth of coin, handed it to the street person and asked him to accept it in memory of his deceased brother. The man nodded, took the coin, walked around the corner of the building – and returned several seconds later. A forgotten purse sat on an empty bistro table outside the cafe. He picked up the purse, took it into the coffee shop, handed it over to the barista, then quickly exited and continued on his way. May God help that honest man and reward his good deeds!

Excerpts from Everyman a late-15th-century English morality play. Called by Death, Everyman can persuade none of his friends – Beauty, Kindred, Worldly Goods – to go with him, except Good Deeds.

Good Deeds: …Everyman, I will bide with thee, I will not forsake thee indeed; Thou shalt find me a good friend at need.

Everyman: I see my time is nigh spent away. Take example, all ye that do hear or see, How they that I loved best do forsake me, Except my Good-Deeds that bideth truly.

Good-Deeds: All earthly things are but vanity: Beauty, Strength, and Discretion, do man forsake, Foolish friends and kinsmen, that fair spake, All fleeth save Good-Deeds, and that am I.

Everyman: Heaven have mercy upon me, and stand by me!

Good-Deeds: Fear not, I will speak for thee. Short our end, and minish our pain; Let us go and never come again.

It’s not an abundance of words that supplicate God, but a pure soul which manifests good deeds. ~ St John Chrysostom

Multiplier of Wheat

The Multiplier of Wheat Icon of the Mother of God

(Also translated as She Who Ripens the Grain)

We are grateful to have this special icon in our home. My husband is a baker, and we delight in harvesting herbs and vegetables from our kitchen garden.

The Most Holy Theotokos intercedes for harvests, seasonable weather, and lifting of droughts. She is the Benefactress of farmers, gardeners, and others who work the soil for their daily bread.

The Mother of God is a helper for people in their labours for the acquiring of their daily bread… Hail, Full of Grace, the Lord is with You! Grant unto us unworthy ones the dew of Your grace and the showing forth of Your mercy! ~ St. Ambrose of Optina

Salutations to you forever, Virgin Mother of God, our unceasing joy, for to you do I turn again… You are the beginning of our feast; you are its middle and end; the pearl of great price that belongs to the kingdom; … the living altar of the Bread of Life (Jesus)… ~ St. Methodius

The Teacher of children became Himself a Child among children, that He might instruct the unwise. The Bread of heaven came down to earth to feed the hungry. ~ St. Cyril of Jerusalem

Give us this day, our daily bread. ~ St. Matthew 6:11

For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread. ~ 1 Corinthians 10:17

Our Lord says: I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. ~ John 6:51

Our Lord Jesus Christ said: Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. ~ St. John 12:24

The Most Holy Mother of God prays for us ceaselessly. She is always visiting us. Whenever we turn to her in our heart, she is there. After the Lord, she is the greatest protection for mankind. ~ Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica

O Most Holy Theotokos, nourish and pray for us, that we may worthily become God’s wheat!

Hallowed be Your Name

Local Glorious Sunrise with quote – Shared by Sophie

Greetings on today’s feast of St. Anna, the mother of the Virgin Mary and grandmother of our Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ!

Congratulations to my dear friend Anna on your Name’s Day! May God grant you many years.

Akathist Hymn to Sts. Joachim and Anna

The words ‘hallowed be Your name’ could well be understood in the sense that God is hallowed by our perfection. In other words, when we say ‘hallowed be Your name’ to Him what we are really saying is ‘Father, make us such as to deserve knowledge and understanding of how holy You are, or at least let Your holiness shine forth in the spiritual lives we lead. And this surely happens as men ‘see our good works and glorify our Father in heaven ‘ (St. Matthew 6:16). ~ St. John Cassian

‘May Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven’ (St. Matthew 6:10). No greater prayer can be offered than that the things of earth should be put on a level with the things of heaven… What else is this if not a declaration that men should be like angels, that just as the will of God is fulfilled by the angels in heaven so all men on earth should do, not their will, but His. The only man capable of offering up this prayer sincerely will be the one who believes that God arranges everything – the seeming good and the seeming bad – for our benefit, that the salvation and the well-being of His own people is more of a care and a concern to Him than to ourselves. ~ St. John Cassian

Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one… Temptation is a test that is either sent to us from God or comes from the devil but is allowed by God. Every temptation is for us a kind of test of fortitude; sometimes we pass the test and sometimes we do not. In asking God, “…lead us not into temptation,” we are as it were saying to Him, “Do not send us trials beyond our strength; send us such trials as we can cope with, so that the trials and sorrows that Thou dost send, not crush us, not kill the faith within us…” …Therefore, when we ask God to …”deliver us from the evil one,” we ask He help us to always find the strength to refrain from what could enable the evil one to influence our life. If we learn this, neither the devil or any evil forces … can have any influence on us.” ~ Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeev)