My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our Only True Lord, God, and Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.
GOD’S SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
Who has blessed us with EVERY SPIRITUAL BLESSING IN
THE HEAVENLY PLACE IN CHRIST, just as He chose us in
Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be
holy and without blame before Him in love” [Ephesians 1:3-4].
Indeed, God blesses His creation unceasingly and with unconditional love. We too are His creation and therefore we are blessed by Him. We are in existence as a result of His Divine blessing and He bestows upon us His spiritual blessings which is primarily the work of the Holy Spirit. God blesses and so is “blessed.” Everything good comes from God and everything should be drawn back to God’s initiative, especially that of the Father but also from that of the Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
His blessings to us humans abound. Man’s response to His abundant blessings bestowed upon him ought to be, “Sing praises to the Lord, you saints of His, and give thanks at the remembrance of His Holy Name” [Psalm 30[29]. How often does one offer praises and thanksgiving to our Loving and All-Merciful God? Shouldn’t everyone acknowledge His generous and countless gifts to us day and night? And yet, most are remiss. Most neglect to take the time to express not only in words but in actions how grateful they are to God. In ancient Greece, the Greek of course, had come to feel both the duty of gratitude and the sin of ingratitude. Shouldn’t one express gratitude to someone who is kind to him or her?
Our Lord Jesus Christ cleansed ten lepers and after they were cleansed “one of them returned, and gave with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet GIVING HIM THANKS” [Luke 17:15-16]. And “So Jesus said, “Were there not ten, cleansed? But where are the nine?” [v. 17]. Our Lord has no need of anything that we have to offer, however, it is the righteous thing to offer thanks to Him Who has so showered us with His countless gifts. The nine lepers showed themselves ungrateful and did not return from the path of their own foolishness to give glory to God Who cleansed them and saved them.
One of the causes of ingratitude is one’s spiritual blindness. Man tends to be overwhelmed by his/her life’s obstacles, concerns, and problems and neglects to see the abundance of blessings in his/her life. The blessings always out weigh the problems of life. God knows everything about us, He knows our struggles, He knows our strengths and weaknesses, and knows what we need and He will provide it to us. But we must have confidence in Him and trust Him. We all depend on His Divine Wisdom for everything.
It is foolish for us to believe that He is unaware of our situation and to surrender to pessimism and faithlessness. We should feel His presence in the abundance of His blessings to us. When we acknowledge this fact to ourselves we will find the courage and strength to overcome all the negative experiences in our lives. Saint John Chrysostom reminds and exhorts us to offer “Glory be to God for all things!” Every experience in our lives is beneficial, both good and bad. The person’s personal struggle makes him/her stronger and more resolute. Saint Paul writes: “Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God Who raises the dead, who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us in whom we trust that He will still deliver us”[2 Corinthians 1:9-10]. We are never abandoned by God but He will allow us to even suffer, if by these means, we will triumph and strengthen our faith in Him.
How does one prove his capabilities if not through testing? We are constantly challenged and tested to see how good we are intellectually, physically, mentally or psychologically, and spiritually before anyone assumes any kind of responsibility. Testing is necessary and important to make sure that one qualifies for any job or profession. One prepares himself to be the best that he can be by going through rigorous training whether be an athlete, physician, soldier, teacher, priest, firefighter, scientist, a government official, pilot, engineer, architect, a student, etc. However, without the proper testing the wrong people may take charge and bring about a disaster. Our whole life is one of preparation, examination, and achievement. The Christians test of faith is when he/she is facing persecution, suffering, and death. To reach the joy and blessing of Eternal Life in Christ, one will first experience all the earthly afflictions common to all. After all, our temporal life is unpredictable and can be one of trial and tribulation.
The sights of the Orthodox Christian must always be set on Christ. He first suffered for our sake and sacrificed His life on the Cross to save all of mankind. He, through His Glorious Resurrection triumphed over death and evil. The Christian too, by His grace, can also triumph over all adversity and painful challenges of this world. As our Lord Christ fearlessly faced His tormentors, death, and hell, so we, through Him, can confidently face our adversaries–and bring Christ’s Light to them. My father, of blessed memory, always said that life is “a viopale” [Gr. βιοπάλη] meaning life can be compared to a wrestling match or a struggle for a living. Any human being can attest to the fact that one finds that life is a constant struggle and that it is unavoidable. The holy Apostle Paul says, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” [1 Thessalonians 5:16-18].
God’s abundant blessings bring us hope and the confidence to continue our good fight here on earth. It is unthinkable to ever forget or ignore His Life-Giving gifts to us. A person of faith remains hopeful and optimistic knowing Who it is Who watches over him/her. We are humble indeed by life and the unpleasant experiences which we face, however, humility is the foundation of virtue and sanctity. Face all difficulties head on and remain steadfast in your faith. Be thankful to God for all things and bless His Holy Name. Amen.
A Prayer of Thanksgiving
By Saint Basil the Great
I thank Thee, Lord, and I glorify Thee, for showing to me, the unworthy one,
Thine great and unbounded love for mankind. While I on my own account
betray myself each day to the devil because of my carelessness and
negligence. Thou protected me and saved me and snatched me away from
the snares. I thank Thee and glorify Thee, Lord, for giving me the will to repent
for my sins and for granting me many opportunities and occasions to turn away
from sin and return to Thee. I thank and glorify Thee, Lord, because, while I am
weak in soul, Thou supported me in my weakness and did not allow me to be drawn
away into sin and to fail; rather, Thou extended Thy helping hand immediately from
above and secured me again beside Thee. Amen.
___________
“Glory Be To GOD
For
All Things!”
– Saint John Chrysostomos
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With sincere agape in His Divine and Glorious Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
+ Father George
The Eastern Orthodox Christian Ethos 