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Excerpts from Sermons: The Lord Wants to Heal Us


Father George Glinsky

God loves all of us equally. This should make us look at other people with the Christ’s eyes. We need this to learn how to see people not just as good or bad ones, but to see something good even in the worst person. As St. Photius the Great said, to see in a person the ray of light, the image of God, which barely shows thorough his sinfulness. And we hope that the man will understand his condition, understand that he has fallen away from God, and that he will find salvation if he turns to God. (After the Divine Liturgy on October 6, 2016)

Father Sergius Phalei

“And there shall in no wise enter into the Kingdom of Heaven any thing that defileth”, says the Lord. This is why we need changes in our lives. We should not be afraid of them. The Lord does not order to rebuild our life globally and at short notice – ruin everything and build it anew tomorrow. It is impossible. The Lord offers us to start small. “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much” (Luke, 16:10). This is why it is less painful to begin with small changes. Big changes are painful for our passions and our sins. Especially, if we remember that over thousands of years the sin became a part of us, of our nature, although it is alien to the human nature. To cut it off is like to cut off a hand. The pain is the same. It is a great feat. However, a river cuts though rock with time. And our personal efforts mean a lot. Some time later you may be told: “Look, you have changed. You were not like this earlier”. It is not useful for us to notice these changes, but people can notice them easily from the outside. This is what Christ offers. And this is why we should be faithful in small things, such as morning and evening prayer, reading the Gospel and Psalter, the Jesus prayer, and the prayers to the Mother of God. (After the Divine Liturgy on September 25, 2016)

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Let us be more attentive to what we say or do and remember that although we are on our own, sometimes everything happens in the presence of witenesses. It can occur that your sin “infects” other people. Their personal weakness makes them prone to this sin as well, which makes their own condition even worse. May the Lord save us all from such seductive behavior. May the Lord make us stronger on our spiritual way towards Him. (After the Divine Liturgy on December 2, 2016).

Father Valery Zacharov

Looking at oneself, it is difficult to understand how God can bear us at all. He knows everything, all our thoughts, deeds, words and aspirations. He does not just tolarate us, He loves us. You see, God loves us! We cannot understand this with our mind. We only can learn to act in the same way – to love. To forget about ourselves and to see our neighbor. The way to a human’s heart lies through this heart. You cannot get there through the mind.

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How can we learn to thank for what God sends us? To accept it. Not just stand it with our the teeth clenched, but understand that it is necessary. Necessary, because it is a remedy, which will heal us. People can abuse and slander us, which may seem unfair: this is not what I do, I did not say that. And if a person humbles himself, the man, who has slandered him, asks for forgiveness. But if a person do not, than there are even more such “listeners”, who say unkind things. The Lord wants to heal us. He wants us to be as holy as He is. He wants us to follow Him the way He has gone, enduring sufferings and pain. He did that not to make us compassionate Him, but to make us reach the Kingdom of Heaven. (After the Divine Liturgy in the Boarding school on December 3, 2016)

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We used to think that we lose the people who end their earthly way. However, it can be that we do not lose them, but gain them as our supporters, the people who pray for us and the people who have already reached the bank… We are still sailing across the rough sea of life. The weather changes every day, and we do not know what will happen next minute or whether our boat will reach its destination, which is the Kingdom of Heaven. (After the Divine Liturgy in the Boarding school on November 5, 2016)

Father Sergius Hrapitsky

You cannot learn how to love without suffering. If we say we love God, but do not want to suffer for Christ, then this love is just words. The same we can say about people: if you love someone, but do not want to suffer for your loved ones, then your love means nothing. Just words. (After the Divine Liturgy on October 7, 2016)

St. Elisabeth Convent, 2017



            

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