Do you know...

…what a great gift it is that God gave us the right to speak to Him every hour and moment, wherever we are? He always listens to us. This is the greatest honor we have. For this reason we must love God.

Elder Porphyrios, +1991

At the Lavra of the Towers...

…there was an elder who practiced poverty to an exceptional degree and yet his particular spiritual gift was that of almsgiving. One day a beggar came to his little tower asking for alms. The elder had nothing but a single loaf of bread which he brought out and gave to the beggar, “It is not bread I want,” said the beggar. “I need clothing.” Wishing to minister to the man’s needs, the elder took him by the hand and led him into his tower. When the beggar found that there was nothing there at all other than what the elder stood up in, he was so impressed by his virtue that he opened his bag and emptied out all its contents in the middle of the cell. “Take this, good elder,” he said, “I will get what I need elsewhere.”

John Moschus, Leimonarion (The Spiritual Meadow) 9

You should be joyful!

Jesus holds a sculptor’s chisel in his hands. He wants to make you into a slate for the heavenly palace.

Elder Amphilochios of Patmos, +1970

In lower Egypt there was an anchorite...

…who was well-known because he dwelt in a solitary cell in the desert. Now by the power of Satan, a shameless woman who had heard of him said to some young men, “What would you give me if I could cause your anchorite to fall?” They agreed to give her something of value.

In the evening she went out and came to his cell as though she had lost her way, and when she knocked, the anchorite came out. When he saw her he was troubled and said, “How have you come here?” Weeping, she said, “I came here because I have lost my way.” Filled with compassion, he made her come into the entry, and he returned to his cell and shut it, but the unfortunate creature began to cry out, “Abba, the wild animals will eat me!” He was uneasy again, but fearing the judgment of God, he said, “What is the source of this trouble?” and he opened the door and made her come inside. Then the devil attempted to attack him with his arrows.

Pondering the warfare of the enemy, he said, “The ways of the enemy are darkness, whereas the Son of God is light,” and he rose and lit the lamp. Burning with desire, he said to himself, “Those who commit such acts go the punishment; try then, and see if you can bear the everlasting fire,” and he put his finger into the lamp and burnt it without feeling it, so extreme was the sensual flame. He went on doing this until morning, burning all his fingers. The unfortunate woman, seeing what he was doing, was petrified with fear.

In the morning the young men came to see the anchorite and said to him, “Did a woman come here last night?” He said, “Yes, she is inside, asleep.” They entered and found her dead, and they said to him, “Abba, she is dead.” Then, uncovering his hands, he showed them to the young men, saying, “Look what the daughter of the devil has done to me: she has destroyed my fingers,” and he told them what had happened and said, “It is written, `Do not render evil for evil’”, and he prayed and awoke her, and she went away and lived wisely the rest of her life.

Two brethren went to an elder who lived alone in Scete

And the first one said, “Father, I have learned all of the Old and New Testaments by heart.” The old man said to him, “You have filled the air with words.” The other one said, “I have copied out the Old and New Testaments and have them in my cell.” And to this one, the old man replied, “You have filled your window with parchment. But do you not know Him who said, ‘The kingdom of God is not in words, but in power?’ And again, ‘Not those who hear the Law will be justified before God but those who carry it out.’” They asked him, therefore, what was the way of salvation, and he said to them, “The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord, and humility with patience.”

St Romanos the Melodist - On the Ten Virgins, I

O brothers, let us love the Bridegroom, Let us make ready our lamps, Shining out with brightness and true faith, So that, like the wise virgins at the Lord’s coming, We may arrive with Him at the marriage, For He, the Merciful, since He is God, Offers to all as a gift The incorruptible crown!

Thou, O God, the Bridegroom of salvation, the hope of those who hymn Thee, Grant to us who pray to Thee That we find, without stain, in Thy marriage, Just like the virgins The incorruptible crown. 

St Romanos the Melodist - On the Ten Virgins, I 
St. Romanos the Melodist, commemorated October 1
icon and troparion at: http://www.comeandseeicons.com/r/jfl30.htm

There was a presbyter from Kellis...

…who was discerning. While coming into the church to complete the synaxis, he saw a number of demons outside the cell of one of the brothers. Some had taken the form of women who were speaking indecently, and others of blasphemous youths; others were dancing while still others were trying on different outfits. The old man sighed and said, “The brother persists in negligence in every way, and because of it the wicked spirits surround his cell in this disorderly manner.” Therefore, when he had completed the synaxis, he returned and entered the cell of the brother, and said to him, “I am suffering, brother. I have faith in you, and if you pray for me, God will completely relieve my heart from suffering.” The disciple was shamed, and said, “Father, I am not worthy to pray for you.” The old man persisted, pleading and saying, “I will not leave unless you promise me that you will say one prayer for me every night.” The brother obeyed the old man’s command. The old man did this because he wanted a new way to ensure that the brother would pray at night.

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As sticks are thrown into the fire...

…and are unable to resist the power of the fire, but are burned up at once, so too demons, seeking to wage war against a man who has received the Spirit, are burned up and consumed by the divine power of the fire, provided only that the person always clings to the Lord and has trust and hope in Him. And even if the demons are strong as mighty mountains, they are burned up by prayer, like wax by fire.

In the meantime, great is the soul’s struggle and war against them.

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A brother said to Abba Poemen...

…”If I give my brother a little bread or something else, the demons tarnish these gifts saying it was only done to please men.” The old man said to him, “Even if it is to please men, we must give the brother what he needs.” He told him the following parable: “Two farmers lived in the same town. One of them sowed and reaped a small and poor crop, while the other, who did not even trouble to sow, reaped absolutely nothing. If a famine comes upon them, which of the two will find something to live on?” The brother replied, “The one who reaped the small poor crop.” The old man said to him, “So it is for us; we sow a little poor grain, so that we will not die of hunger.”

Elder Paisios of Mt. Athos said:

The greatest sickness of our age is the vain thoughts of secular people, which bring stress. Only Christ can provide a cure with spiritual serenity, along with eternity, provided you repent and turn to Him.

Young people must be made...

…to distinguish between helpful and injurious knowledge, keeping clearly in mind the Christian’s purpose in life. So, like the athlete or the musician, they must bend every energy to one task, the winning of the heavenly crown.

St. Basil the Great, 4th century

I once related to him (St. Herman of Alaska)...

…how the Spaniards in California had taken fourteen of our Aleuts prisoner, and how the Jesuits (more likely Franciscans - CJH) had tortured one of them to try and force them all to take the Catholic faith. But the Aleuts would not submit, saying, “We are Christians, we have been baptized,” and they showed them the crosses they wore. But the Jesuits objected, saying, “No, you are heretics and schismatics; if you do not agree to take the Catholic faith, we will torture you.” And they left them shut up two to a cell until the evening to think it over.

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Don’t be sad...

 …for we will all depart from here. We are passing travelers. We came here to show our works and to leave.

Elder George of Drama (1901-1959)

Now if by the sign of the Cross...

 …and by faith in Christ, death is trampled down, it must be evident before the tribunal of truth that it is none other than Christ Himself that has displayed trophies and triumphs over death, and made him lose all his strength. And if, while previously death was strong, and for that reason terrible, now after the sojourn of the Saviour and the death and Resurrection of His body it is despised, it must be evident that death has been brought to nought and conquered by the very Christ that ascended the Cross. For as, if after night-time the sun rises, and the whole region of earth is illumined by him, it is at any rate not open to doubt that it is the sun who has revealed his light everywhere, that has also driven away the dark and given light to all things; so, now that death has come into contempt, and been trodden under foot, from the time when the Savior’s saving manifestation in the flesh and His death on the Cross took place, it must be quite plain that it is the very Saviour that also appeared in the body, Who has brought death to nought, and Who displays the signs of victory over him day by day in His own disciples.

St. Athanasius, On the Incarnation of the Word, 29.1-3

Whoever is at peace in the material world...

…and is not concerned about the salvation of his soul is like the senseless birds who don’t make a noise from within the egg, so as to break the shell and come out to enjoy the sun – the heavenly flight in the life of Paradise – but instead remain unmoving and die inside the egg shell.

Elder Paisios +1994

Helena, the emperor (Constantine's) mother...

–from whose name having made Drepanum, once a village, a city, the emperor called it Helenopolis– being divinely directed by dreams went to Jerusalem. Finding that which was once Jerusalem, desolate “as a Preserve for autumnal fruits,” according to the prophet, she sought carefully the sepulchre of Christ, from which he arose after his burial; and after much difficulty, by God’s help she discovered it. What the cause of the difficulty was I will explain in a few words.

Those who embraced the Christian faith, after the period of his passion, greatly venerated this tomb; but those who hated Christianity, having covered the spot with a mound of earth, erected on it a temple to Venus, and set up her image there, not caring for the memory of the place. This succeeded for a long time; and it became known to the emperor’s mother. Accordingly she having caused the statue to be thrown down, the earth to be removed, and the ground entirely cleared, found three crosses in the sepulchre: one of these was that blessed cross on which Christ had hung, the other two were those on which the two thieves that were crucified with him had died. With these was also found the tablet of Pilate, on which he had inscribed in various characters, that the Christ who was crucified was king of the Jews. Since, however, it was doubtful which was the cross they were in search of, the emperor’s mother was not a little distressed; but from this trouble the bishop of Jerusalem, Macarius, shortly relieved her. And he solved the doubt by faith, for he sought a sign from God and obtained it.

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Think about people...

…in a way that will profit you: so that you sorrow for the lost, feel pain for those gone astray, suffer for those in pain, pray for sinners, and in the case of the good, entreat God to preserve them. 

John the Solitary, 5th century

To uproot sin and the evil...

 …that is so imbedded in our sinning can be done only by divine power, for it is impossible and outside man’s competence to uproot sin. To struggle, yes, to continue to fight, to inflict blows, and to receive setbacks is in your power. To uproot, however, belongs to God alone. If you could have done it on your own, what would have been the need for the coming of the Lord? For just as an eye cannot see without light, nor can one speak without a tongue, nor hear without ears, nor walk without feet, nor carry on works without hands, so you cannot be saved without Jesus nor enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.

St. Macarius, Homily 3.4

Another day, Theodore (of Tabennesi) went off to a monastery...

…to visit the brothers, and straightway they brought him a brother they accused of having stolen something, that he should expel him from among the brothers for this reason. The culprit, however, was not this brother, but another who passed for a faithful man among all the brothers. But they were accusing the former because he was somewhat negligent in their view.

When the thief realized that he had not only committed the first fault but that, moreover, because of him they were going to drive the other brother away from the monastery, he went to see Theodore privately and said to him, “Forgive me, my father; I am the one who committed the theft.” Theodore said to him, “The Lord has forgiven you the fault you have committed, for clearing the innocent in our presence.”

Then he called the one who had been falsely accused and said to him, “I know that you are not the perpetrator of this fault. But even if the brothers afflicted you a little for the fault you have not committed, nevertheless do not be proud of your innocence in this case. For you are doubtless indebted to the Lord for other faults you have committed. Therefore, give Him thanks and be in fear of Him all you life long.” Then he said to the brothers about this matter, “Have you not entrusted me with judgment so that I might pass sentence? Well, it is God’s will that he should be absolved. Indeed, we are all in need of God’s mercy.”

from the Bohairic Life of Pachomius, fourth century

One day St. Epiphanius sent someone to Abba Hilarion with this request...

…”Come, and let us see one another before we depart from the body.” When he came, they rejoiced in each other’s company. During their meal, they were brought a fowl. Epiphanius took it and gave it to Hilarion. Then Abba Hilarion said to him, “Forgive me, but since I received the habit I have not eaten meat that has been killed.” Then the bishop answered, “Since I took the habit, I have not allowed anyone to go to sleep with a complaint against me, and I have not gone to rest with a complaint against anyone.” The old man replied, “Forgive me, your way of life is better than mine.”