Author: David Short

2 Timothy 1:8-9

Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began.

Personal Challenge…

Am I living my life as a prisoner of Christ? Am I living it so that I am not ashamed of Him or His message? Am I living it as one who has been saved from death and given a holy calling? Eternity is now and I am called to live eternally now.

In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.

Personal Challenge…

If Christianity could be boiled down to one word, if the manifestation of my life could be exhibited and summed up in one word, what would that word be? LOVE! Am I living my life in Christ in such a way that everyone sees God’s love through my love? Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Psalm 116:1-2 (114:1-2 LXX)

I have loved, because the Lord Shall hear the voice of my supplication;For He inclined His ear to me,
And in my days I shall call upon Him.

Encouraging Words…

God the Almighty, the Lord of all creation, inclines His ear to me. He hears my supplications and responds to me. What an amazing thing this is that God loves me and the rest of His creation so much that He would send His Son to be born so that He could die. It was this death that allowed Jesus to arise victorious over death. And what does He ask of me? To die to myself for Him. It is through this personal death, and His power and grace, that I too can arise victorious over death. Christ is risen! Indeed He is risen!

John 20:25

The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.”So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”

Personal Challenge…

The human will is a strong thing. Here we see Thomas, one who knew Christ well, walked with Him, saw Him perform His miracles, choosing to doubt His ability to defeat the hold of death. Our Lord loved us so much that He created us with the ability to believe and the ability to doubt.

I love how Olivier Clement puts it…

UNITING DIVINE AND HUMAN WILLS

“As we read in the Prologue of John, there is light, but there is also darkness. God’s omnipotence is in love. And since love cannot be imposed without thereby denying it, this omnipotence—capable of creating beings that can reject it! – is also ultimate weakness. It can act only through human hearts that freely allow its light to shine through them. God respects human freedom as he respected that of the angels. But in order to keep that freedom from succumbing to the darkness, He becomes incarnate and descends into death, into hell, so that there could be a place where the will of man might unite itself to the divine will. That place is Christ. In Christ, the human will became painfully and joyously united to that of the Father. In the Risen One, seated at the right hand of the Father, the will of God is done on earth as it is in heaven.” (Olivier Clement, Three Prayers: The Lord’s Prayer, O Heavenly King, Prayers of St. Ephrem, pg. 24) (Thanks to Fr. Ted Bobosh and this entry in our parish bulletin.)

John 1:12-13

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

Encouraging Words…

Christ has offered to each and every person His light, His truth, and we have the choice to receive it as a gift from God or reject it. For those who choose to receive this precious gift we are given the right (not an inalienable right) or authority to become children of God through His adoption. This comes from believing in Him and trusting in Him. This receiving is an active ongoing relationship with Him. Our adoption does not come through our ethnic decent as with the Jews of old, nor by natural birth through our parents, nor by our own will, but by God’s grace, through faith, and in the Holy Spirit. This adoption is manifested in the sacrament of Holy Baptism.

Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen!

My dear friends and family. For those of us around the world who practice our Christian faith through the traditions of Eastern Orthodoxy tonight at the stroke of midnight we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Today we join our other brothers and sisters around the world, and from generation to generation, those who have already celebrated the resurrection of Christ on the Western calendar, and those of us who celebrate now on the Eastern calendar, to proclaim: Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen! He has come to this world to be the victor over death and to set the prisoner free. As the prophet Isaiah says…

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because of which He anointed Me. He sent Me to proclaim good news to the poor, to heal the brokenhearted, to preach liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind; to declare the acceptable year of the Lord, the day of recompense, and to comfort all who mourn; to give those who mourn in Zion glory instead of ashes, the oil of gladness to those who mourn; the garment of glory instead of a spirit of indifference. They shall be called generations of righteousness, the planting of the Lord for glory. They shall build the ancient deserts, raise up those formerly abandoned, and renew the desert cities that laid waste for generations.” Isaiah 61:1-4.

May you be blessed by his living presence in your live and throughout the days of your journey toward eternity.

John 13:34-35

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Encouraging Words…

Today is Great and Holy Friday (Good Friday) in the Eastern Orthodox Church. There are many readings in the scriptures for the day and these verses are in the first passage. What a special way to kick off the day that we observe to remember the passion of Christ…teaching us to love others as Christ has loved us. Is this not one of the main reasons that Christ came to earth as a man and walked the path to the cross…because of His love for His creation. He has shown us how to love and has given us a Helper to be able to love this way ourselves.

Job 4:24

But hear me, O Lord, that I also may speak.I will ask You, and please teach Me.

Encouraging Words…

By the grace of God, Job was able to go from hearing God to seeing God. Because of his righteousness God revealed Himself to Job. This is encouraging to me because I believe in the same God as Job did and He is never changing, therefore as I journey through my life desiring to be righteous, to be holy before God, He may someday reveal Himself to me as He did to Job.

Matthew 22:31-32

“But concerning the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was spoken to you by God, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.”

Encouraging Words…

Why in the world would I ever petition a saint? Here Jesus reminds us that those whom have gone before us are alive and in God’s presence. Why wouldn’t I reach out to them to speak to God on my behalf, to present my petitions to Him for me. I do not pray to the saints hoping that they can answer my prayers…only God deserves that honor and only He can answer my prayers. I reach out to the saints as if they are here and can pass my words on to God. It is only God that I worship, it is only Him that I fall down before in fear and trembling. Glory be to God!

Ezekiel 1:29

This was the vision of the likeness of the Lord’s glory. I saw it, and I fell down on my face, and heard the voice of One speaking.

Personal Challenge…

Since I have converted to Eastern Orthodoxy I have found that my favorite service is the Canon of St. Andrew. We use this service during Lent and it is full of prostrations. My first time of going through this service I found myself being proud and not willing to bow down that way. Then it struck me that every occurrence in the scriptures of God revealing Himself into the lives of our patriarchs and prophets resulted in faces being planted on the floor before the Holy of Holies. Who am I to stand up tall in the presence of my King? I am a sinner, impure and unworthy to be in His presence, and I must bow before Him in awe and respect for He is so glorious. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.