Verse of the Day

Author: David Short

  • January 5, 2016

    Mountain moving faith!


    Matthew 21:21-22

    So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”

    Encouraging Words

    How is it that eleven uneducated, simple men could so radically change the world? How is it that throughout the history of the Church great and miraculous things have been done by such common people no different than me? Through faith! Proper faith! Faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and the things that He has the power to do. If we have true, spiritual faith we will not ask for things that will glorify and exemplify ourselves. We will ask for things that will glorify and exemplify God. Even the apostles, with their great faith and works for the Lord, did not ask to be spared from persecution and martyrdom. They did not ask for wealth or prestige. They asked to be used by God to build His kingdom. Is this not the same behavior that we are seeing from our Christian brothers and sisters in the Middle East who refuse to renounce their faith? Should I do any less? Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

  • January 4, 2016

    Holding on to promises!


    Matthew 14:27

    But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”

    Encouraging Words

    This is the reason that I can go through each day, every crisis, every challenge, without any fear or apprehension. It is not because I have everything under control because I seldom do. It is not because I am some kind of special person because I am not. It is because Jesus promised that He would always be with me and He always keeps His promises!

  • January 3, 2016

    The Power of the Incarnation!


    Psalm 85 (84 LXX)


    O Lord, You were pleased with Your land; You turned back the captivity of Jacob;
    You forgave the transgressions of Your people;
    You covered all their sins.
    You ended all Your wrath;
    You turned from the wrath of Your anger.
    Turn us, O God of our salvation,
    And turn away Your anger from us.
    Will You be angry with us forever,
    Or will You prolong Your anger from generation to generation?
    O God, You will turn and give us life,
    And Your people will be glad in You.
    Show us Your mercy, O Lord,
    And grant us Your salvation.
    I will hear what the Lord God will speak in me,
    For He will speak peace
    To His people and to His holy ones,
    And to those who turn their heart to Him.
    His salvation is very close at hand to those who fear Him,
    That glory may dwell in our land.
    Mercy and truth met together;
    Righteousness and peace kissed each other;
    Truth arose from the earth,
    And righteousness looked down from heaven.
    For the Lord will give goodness,
    And our land shall yield its fruit.
    Righteousness shall go before Him
    And establish His footsteps as our pathway.

    Encouraging Words

    Why, oh why, would our God, the creator of all, especially all of mankind, use the incarnation of His Son as the means by which to save us all for eternity? Because as long as we were created beings, created from the soil of this earth, we would remain separated from God, the Creator, the Divine. But through the incarnation, through God Himself becoming man, mankind has been given the divine opportunity to see the Image of god. And through that Image, our Lord Jesus Christ, we will come to be in the presence of our God throughout eternity. Glory be to God!

  • January 2, 2016

    Saint of the Week
    St. Hesychios the Priest

  • December 29, 2015

    Doing all for His glory!


    1 Corinthians 10:31

    Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

    Personal Challenge

    Every moment of my life, every thought, every action, every inaction, can be used to glorify God. Or it can be used to distract from Him and His glory. the choice is mine. It is a choice that I must constantly be making. Thank You Lord for giving me the Holy Spirit so that I can have help in these choices.

  • December 28, 2015

    Bearing one another’s burdens!


    Romans 15:1-3

    We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification. For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, “The reproaches of those who reproached You fell on Me.”

    Personal Challenge

    Do I truly love my Lord? Am I willing to do whatever He asks me out of that love? Or, is my love for Him in word only so that I can reap some benefit by claiming that I am His? Then, if I do love Him I will bear with my brother in his times of need. This does not mean that I just put up with him. It means that I share in his burden as Jesus did in mine. It means that I put his needs before mine. Am I really ready to live my Christian life this way? Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

  • December 27, 2015

    Taking up our cross!


    Matthew 10:38-39

    And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

    Personal Challenge
    One of the things that I am beginning to learn, especially in times of fasting such as Lent, is that if my Christian walk is all smooth and easy then I have drifted away from my Lord. The truth is that the closer that I am to my Lord, the more at odds I will be with the world. This is taking up my cross. To do this, I must turn my back on the world and all that it has to offer me and pursue my Lord. Only then will I find true life. Glory be to God!

  • December 26, 2015

    Saint of the Week
    St. Porphyrios

  • December 24, 2015

    Striving to be real!


    Matthew 15:7-9

    Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:

    ‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth,And honor Me with their lips,But their heart is far from Me.And in vain they worship Me.’

    Personal Challenge

    It is so easy to slip into the mode of telling others to practice what I preach but to not do what I do. This is something that I must fight off so that my actions reflect what my desire is for following Christ. But in order to do this effectively and genuinely, I must bring my heart into alignment with the heart of my Lord. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

  • December 23, 2015

    I am no longer what I was!


    1 Corinthians 6:11

    And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.

    Personal Challenge

    So, what were we before Jesus got hold of us? We did wrong and cheated. We were fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, sexual deviants of all sorts, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, extortioners, and the list goes on. And I am sure that we all, for I know that I do, will say that we were never as bad as this list. But then, I must remember that I only need to some of this in thought and it is as bad as doing the whole thing. In other words, I was (and still am) totally unworthy of God’s love, mercy, and grace. But Jesus has come along and become my living sacrifice and benefactor. Through Him, and Him alone do I experience salvation from that which I truly deserve. In Him, I was washed through my baptism. In Him, I was sanctified through the giving of the Holy Spirit in the oil of chrismation. In Him, I am justified through my faith. Glory be to Jesus, my Lord and Savior.