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Wisdom of Sirach 30:21-24 LXX

Do not give yourself over to sorrow,
And do not distress yourself deliberately.
Gladness of the heart is the life of man,
And rejoicing by a man lengthens his life.
Love your soul and comfort your heart,
And put sorrow far away from you;
For sorrow has destroyed many,
And there is no profit in it.
Envy and anger will shorten your days,
And worry will bring premature old age.

Personal Challenge

One of the challenges that we have in our modern society is that we have a pill for almost everything that can come up in our lives. Granted, there are definitely good aspects of modern medicine and health practices. In many respects, these are miraculous gifts from our Father above. However, there are many things that happen in our lives because of our choices and our responses to the consequences of these choices. Here we have Ben Sirach reminding us that if we give ourselves over to sorrow there will be all kinds of negative consequences. He does not say that we will not have situations where grieving and sorrow are appropriate. God created us to grieve in times of loss and to be sorrowful at times of pain and suffering in our lives or the lives of those around us. We are being told here to not let that sorrow consume us but to deal with it from a heart that can rejoice in the love of our God and the love of those around us. This not only applies to sorrow but to all of the passions in our lives. It is our responsibility to our God and to each other to control our passions and to not let them control us. Glory be to God!

Wisdom of Sirach 28:2-3 LXX

Forgive a wrong done you by your neighbor;
Then your sins will be pardoned when you pray.
Can a man preserve wrath against his neighbor
And still seek healing from the Lord?

Personal Challenge

Our Lord has called us to take our eyes off of ourselves and to set them upon God and our neighbor. He did this when He commanded us to follow the two great laws: love our God and love our neighbor. Part of doing this is the act of forgiving others for the offenses that they have done to us. Without sincerely doing this, giving true forgiveness to another, then we cannot fully receive the forgiveness that God want to give to us. This is not because God does not have the power to give us this forgiveness but it is because if I do not forgive another I cannot be humble enough to receive the forgiveness being offered to me. And as modern science has begun to bear out, if I do not forgive others and let go of my wrath towards them, then I will begin to suffer illness in my body. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Wisdom of Sirach 25:1 LXX

There are three things beautiful to see,
And they are beautiful before the Lord and men:
The harmony of brothers, friendship between neighbors,
And a wife and husband well-adjusted together.

Encouraging Words

Unity is such an important aspect of a committed Christian life. Jesus prayed for it. Paul prayed for it and wrote about it. And throughout the scriptures and teachings of our fathers, it is held in highest regard. Why is this? Unity has its roots in eternity Our God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is the perfect example of unity. Three in one, and one in three, each with their own role and yet all with one role. This is what we are called to do, to be in unity with all around us, even to the point of sacrificing ourselves and our desires. Glory be to God!

Wisdom of Sirach 2:27 LXX

Who will set a guard over my mouth,
And a prudent seal over my lips,
That I may not fall because of them,
And that my tongue may not destroy me?

Personal Challenge

I need my Lord to be the guardian of my mouth because left to my own capabilities I cannot properly bridle my tongue. It may not be harsh or profane words that I speak, but if I enter into conversations a bout another, or participate in gossip, then my tongue has become offensive. Once a word is spoken then it is impossible to bring it back in, so it is important to learn how to speak deifying words or to not speak at all. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Wisdom of Sirach 21:1-3 LXX

My son, have you sinned?
No longer add to them, but pray about your former sins.
Flee from sin as you would from the presence of a snake,
For if you approach it, it will bite you;
Its teeth are like lion’s teeth, destroying the souls of men.
All lawlessness is like a two- edged sword,
For there is no healing from its wound.

Personal Challenge

When Jesus would forgive people of their sins and heal them of their infirmities He told them to go and sin no more. He does not chastise us when we confess our sins to Him. He forgives us and tells us to stop committing the sin. This is what repentance should be in our lives. When we sin we should run to Jesus for forgiveness and then do everything we can to run away from those conditions, those thoughts and attitudes, anything that will lead us back into this sin. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me the sinner!

Wisdom of Sirach 20:5-7 LXX

There is a man who is silent but is found to be wise,
And there is a man who is hateful because he talks too much.
There is a man who is silent because he has no answer,
And there is a man who is silent because he knows when to speak.
A wise man will keep silent until it is the right time to speak,
But an arrogant and undiscerning man will speak out of turn.

Personal Challenge

As I progress further and further along the journey of my life and try harder to understand the ways of my Lord and who He wants me to be, the less I am becoming interested in politics and the things of this world. This is so because I am not a citizen of this world but an ambassador of another kingdom. I do exercise my responsibilities because as an ambassador I am to be a good representative of my homeland abiding by the laws of the land in which I live. This passage causes me great concern as I survey the decrepit state of our political system as it is today. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

St. Ambrose of Milan stated, “Now what ought we to learn before everything else, but to me silent, that we may be able to speak? Lest my voice should condemn me, before that of another acquit me, it is written: ‘By thy words thou shalt be condemned.’” Oh, how much we, as a people who call ourselves a “Christian” nation, have forgotten these teachings and have become so enamored with rhetoric, self aggrandizement, and putdowns of this around us.

Wisdom of Sirach 18:18-20 LXX

Before you speak, learn,
And before you get sick, take care of your health.
Before you make a judgment, examine yourself closely,
And in the hour of visitation you will find atonement.
Before you become sick, humble yourself;
And at the time of sinning, prove your conversion.

Personal Challenge

There are two ways that we can live our lives: reactively or proactively. Since our culture has made us so comfortable with instant gratification we have become a people that live our lives reactively. I don’t have to plan for anything because I can usually find something to fill my need that is prepackaged, fast, and disposable. I don’t have to be responsible for my actions, or inactions, because I expect someone else to be responsible instead. But as God’s children we are admonished to live our lives proactively and with personal responsibility. This does not mean that we are to be controlling or always focusing on the future, almost to the state of being fearful. It means preparing our minds and hearts so that we can appropriately deal with situations as they arise. I must invest time in learning the ways of my Lord, studying His teachings, praying to Him, forming my life into His image before I can speak words that glorify Him and edify my neighbor. I must constantly be examining my heart before I can speak into the life of another. I cannot avoid temptations and sins in my life if I am not practicing humility and following in the footsteps of my Lord. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Wisdom of Sirach 18:4-6 LXX

Who will measure His majestic power with a number,
And who will add to this measure
While describing His mercies?
There is no one who can add or subtract,
And there is no who can search out the wonders of the Lord.
When a man completes his search, then he starts over;
And when he stops, he will still be perplexed.

Personal Challenge

As followers of Christ, we desire to know Him and to live our lives like His. We do this by pursuing Him, praying to Him, studying about Him, amassing as much knowledge and understanding about Him with the hope that we can fully know Him. However, as we proceed through this life on our journey to theosis we find that the more we get to know Jesus, the more that we realize that we do not know Him at all. And then our journey begins again. It is a mystery and one to be marveled at. Glory be to God!

Wisdom of Sirach 17:24-26 LXX

How great the mercy of the Lord is,
And His atonement for those who turn to Him.
For all things are not possible for man,
Because a son of man is not immortal.

Encouraging Words

There is nothing that I can do to earn or generate atonement for my sins. Only through the great mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ can atonement be provided. He is both the High Priest and the Sacrificial Lamb and it is through Him that the great love of our God is poured out on us and all of His creation. Glory be to God!