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Carrying the Cross

Carrying the Cross

adapted from a sermon by Fr Mark Basily

The feast of the Cross is an ancient feast that the church has held for seventeen years.

After Emperor Constantine accepted the Christian faith in the 4^th century, his mum, Queen Helena, wanted to protect the Holy sites in Jerusalem. Her method of protecting the Holy sites was to build churches over them.

She went to Jerusalem and identified the place of Christ’s crucifixion and His burial and she built a Cathedral over these holy lands. She invited the Patriarchs of the churches to consecrate the church of the Holy Sepulchre (the church of the Resurrection) and they brought the Cross of Christ.

Amongst them was St Athanasius of Alexandria. This celebrate began of the consecration of the church and the laying of the Cross of Christ was in this church. This marked the feast date of the Cross.

The Cross was once a symbol of torture and the means of execution of the worst criminals in the Roman empire, now it has been adopted as the identity of Christians.

When people see the cassock of Orthodox priests, it can appear off-putting – a very Arab garment. It is only on closer inspection and when the Cross becomes visible, that people are comforted.

As I was walking in the shopping centre, there was a lady coming toward me that appeared afraid but as soon as she saw the Cross, she was reassured. Another lady came and sat next to me and said, “you know I wasn’t going to sit next to you.”

I asked why and she replied, “Only when I saw the Cross did I feel safe enough to sit next to you.”

What is it about the Cross that makes people feel safe and comfortable?

An interaction between Christ and His disciples begins when He asks them the question- “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” (Matthew 16:13).

Who do people say that I am? What do others think of me?

The disciples respond with a range of names including John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.

Christ pushes them asking, “But who do you say that I am?”

Peter responds, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Christ being impressed with this answer says, Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

The Catholic and Orthodox churches interpret this response very differently. The Catholic church read that Christ was building the church on Peter; on the person, Peter. Thus, the successor of Peter will always be the head of the church.

The Orthodox church believes that it wasn’t the person of Peter that Christ built the church on but the faith within him. The church is built on the proclamation of faith given by Peter. Faith in Christ, as the Son of the living God, that is the cornerstone of the church.

If you go down a little bit further and the dialogue continues, Christ declares to the disciples that He must suffer and be killed and finally raised. Peter responds, “Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!” A natural response to the upcoming ill-events of a loved one.

Christ responds, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.”

This is a sharp contract to the praise He gave him just before, calling him the rock on which His church shall be built. Within minutes, He refers to him as Satan.

How did we go from the rock of faith to Satan? The reason we have this shocking response was because Peter did not understand the Cross. Christ was telling them about the Cross to come. Peter could not fathom the Cross and so was, rebuked as Satan. The faith he uttered without understanding or living the Cross was meaningless.

The Cross was central to Christ’s mission, ministry, life and expression of love to the world, and if this cannot be understood, then faith is nothing. Everything was about the Cross.

“If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it” (Matthew 16:24). The Cross was not only a part of Christ’s life and ministry, but a requirement for Peter and the disciples understanding. Furthermore, it serves as a constant reminder for us to carry our Cross with Christ. Without the Cross, there is no Christianity, there is no life. This is what makes a Christian- the Cross. Living a life of carrying our Cross with Christ.

Part of our calling as Christians is to carry the Cross, happily, joyfully, faithfully, with Christ. Not only do we carry our Cross but we help others carry their Crosses. The Cross becomes a model of sacrifice, selflessness and love that we bestow upon those around us.

Real Life Stories of Faith from the Mission

Real Life Stories of Faith From the Mission

By Fr Abraham Fam

Originally seen on goCoptic blog

God is working in the little things every day. From time to time he does beautiful, unexpected things as well. He wants us to know He is there and He is alive and working and is caring for our every step. The following stories were collected from the mission in Africa to encourage and inspire us to learn to walk in faith and trust that God is working even when we can’t see. This was clearly stated in the Gospel this past Sunday:”Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20:29)

We need to trust him more and ourselves less. I realized when collecting these stories that I don’t give God enough chance to work in my life. That I go ahead of Him and try to solve the problem instead of allow Him to work as He loves to do.

Sometimes having wealth can be a stumbling block if we allow it. People I deal with every day are living pay check to pay check and sometimes they wonder if they will eat tomorrow, pay the rent, and pay their children’s school fees. I see first-hand every day the beautiful people of Africa, their stories, their trust, and their perseverance to hang onto God throughout the trying times.

I learn so much from them and now I realize God didn’t just send me to help them, but sent me to Africa for them to help me. I am so grateful. I encourage all to read these stories and share your own below in the comments.

Life of Faith Story 1: God is Listening

One priest shared with me that because of unexpected expenses, there was no food at home. He told His family God will provide and to pray. So, they prayed and he went to church to serve. As he was in Church, he found the oldest, poorest lady of the Church saying I have something for you. She said I have a mealie meal bag for you (this is the staple food for most African Countries). The priest said no I should be bringing food for you. The Father refused to take it because she was a very poor elderly lady. However, she explained that she had unexpectedly received money from a family member. And she had a dream that night that the Father didn’t have food and to go and give to him. He received the food with great amazement. God answers on time and from the least expected person. To show that God is listening to this priest’s cries, He brought it from the poorest, not the richest person. When I heard that story, I felt bad for ever doubting that my God wouldn’t take care of me.

Life of Faith Story 2: A Choice to Make

A different priest had a wife who was pregnant and about to deliver and had severe headaches so she went to the hospital. They told her to stay longer because it looks like complications and she needs to deliver right away. They called the Father to come to hospital immediately and the doctor told him you have to make a tough choice: to save the mother or save your baby? What would you say in that situation? He refused to make the decision but as the Priest and Tasony talked and prayed they decided that they knew God will save both. Doctors tried to warn them and said that this is not one of the options. They insisted God will save both. To make it worse: before they could continue, the hospital asked for money for the procedure and at the time the Father didn’t have any money. Other doctors and staff working there were kind enough, without even knowing him, to give him what he needed because they were amazed by their faith. They started the procedure and by the hand of God both mother and baby were saved. The next morning the Father received money unexpectedly and went to return it back to those who gave. Let us trust God when emergency strikes. The Father told me that now He really knows God is alive. He knew it, but didn’t experience like that before.

Life of Faith Story 3: Power of Prayer

I wanted to ask the Bishop his experiences, so he told me a story of faith. Bishop Paul’s story was when he was priest in Canada. He was a new priest still not knowing what to expect. The economy was really bad and no one had jobs and they all asked him to pray for them to get jobs. So as a new priest he felt he was in trouble. If he prays and nothing happens, they will lose hope. He asked to be taken back to Africa, but the elder priest of the area gave him advice. Pray a liturgy every day and let people write their names and their problems and put it on the altar. Bishop Paul was afraid that maybe God wouldn’t deliver and he would look bad. But he proceeded to do it and pray liturgy every day with all his heart and faith. One by one, God answered their prayers and the people got jobs. He had to risk and trust and God answered.

Life of Faith Story 4: Blessings of Service

One leader said he couldn’t pay his school fees for his sons and they couldn’t take the final exam to pass for the year. These were critical exams and if the amount was not paid, then they will have to retake the entire year again. He and the family were disturbed if they didn’t pay by 11, they would have to wait one year. In the final hour, the Bishop requested he come for a service but he was reluctant because he was looking for the money. He went to the service anyway. After the service, the Bishop gave him a small blessing that was the exact amount he needed to pay the school fees. God delivers in the most critical hour and He never forgets when we serve Him and His children.

Life of Faith Story 5: More Blessed to Give

Another person from the Church in Africa had no food and was coming home with 5000 franks to help the family. This was the only money he had. Before he left the Church, a lady came running into Church crying that her baby was sick and needed prayers and money to visit the hospital. At first the man hesitated to give her knowing the money was for the food for his own family. However, somehow, he knew God would take care of him. On the way home, he knew his family would be disappointed. As he was walking, he ran into a man who was deeply disturbed and crying because his daughter got pregnant outside of marriage. This person advised him and started to continue on his way, but out of gratefulness the man gave him 10,000 franks which was double what he had before. He went home and right on time God provided all his needs for him and his family.

Life of Faith Story 6: Don’t Give Up

There was a woman who was frantically going from one hospital to another searching for anyone to save her baby, who was not responding. Every hospital she went to told her it was too late and that the baby will die. She came to Coptic Hospital and the doctor refused to give up. As the doctor was crying, he called the priests to come quickly and pray for the baby. They came and prayed and life came into the baby. The faith of the doctors and faith of the priests saved this child.

Life of Faith Story 7: Communion and Life

A priest had a young deacon who was sick and fell into a coma and was thought to be dead. The priest went to the hospital numerous times and it didn’t look good. Finally, he decided to attempt to give the young deacon communion. He touched his mouth with communion and breath was let out and the doctors said he must have just passed away. The priest insisted for the doctors to wait and he prayed. It was life being breathed into the boy by God not out of the boy. He finished taking communion and was awake but not talking. After a few days, the priest came again and gave him communion and once he took again he said his first word, “Abouna!” All the doctors clapped. The priest gave all the glory to God not himself.

Life of Faith: More Stories from the Deep Bush of Congo

Many times, in the middle of the remote areas in our long journey to our village churches, cars would break down and in one instance the car engine would catch on fire. Many times, I thought that was it. Over and over again, God would save.

We would see demon possessed people crying out for help and may times the Bishop and other priests would pray Psalms with all their heart and saying other prayers and spray Holy Water on them and demons would come out and later they would be baptized and follow Christ.

Sometimes because of civil war, a soldier told an elderly priest not to wear the black robe or he will be shot and killed because rebels were also wearing black. But he knew he could not remove the robe because it is his identity as a priest. They kept telling him to take off his uniform but the priest refused. The civil war finished and the priest remained unharmed by the protection and grace from God. The soldier who threatened the priest was actually put in prison and the priest was protected by God.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I can never forget the verse by St. Paul in Hebrews 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”

God always takes care of us. I pray these stories will encourage you and remind you of all the beautiful stories and events God is doing in your life. When things look difficult as we face this pandemic and death, look to Christ, the Lover of mankind. To encourage you more, I mentioned a few of these stories in this sermon about Believing.

To trust in God means to confide to Him our life, our fate, all our future, and to wait with confidence for the fulfillment of His promises. Hope proceeds from faith, as the plant from the seed, or the stream from the Source. – St John of Kronstadt

Mission Assignment: Tell your experiences with God that helped grow your Faith. Share them in the comments below – we would love to hear them. Share them with your children, relatives, and friends to give them hope and renew your Faith in God.

Put Off Doubt, Put on Faith

Put Off Doubt, Put on Faith

By Louise Makarious

Having faith sounds simple. It’s something we’re taught to do early on and as Christians we pledge in every liturgy to have faith in the Christian paradigm – that is, Christ’s resurrection and our salvation, with eternal life. If I believe in Christ, then I gain eternity, simple.

“But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name” – John 1:12

Personally, I have spent a lot of time trying to make logical sense of Christianity. How can Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection actually save us or how does the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ during each liturgy, and so on? These were typical questions of doubt, from a faith not yet fully grown. “We walk by faith, not by sight” – St Paul teaches us this in 2 Corinthians 5:7. It is not unusual to presume that faith is blind based on this verse. On the contrary, faith is to walk with spiritual eyes, and not our earthly vision. Doubt is warranted, and should be explored. If God did not want His children to question, He wouldn’t have given us free will.

Hebrews 11:1 describes faith as “confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Faith is complete belief and trust without a seemingly logical explanation. Daniel was a great prophet that many could see God dwelling in his humble being. After presenting him with a series of visions that were interpreted by Gabriel, the messenger of the Lord, he was left with a final sentence – “Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.” – Daniel 12:9. Our doubts are not ignored by the Lord, He listens and He answers, but there will always be a limit to how much we can handle. Not even in the greatness of faith of Moses could He witness the glory of God. Ultimately, our God is incomprehensible, eternal and comparable to none and this is where our faith comes in.

God speaks to our hearts in our every day lives, pushing us along the path of salvation, but He is not the mighty wind, nor the earthquake, nor the fire, but the still small voice (1 Kings 19:13). He will guide each of us along the path for as long as we are open to hearing His voice amid a world of tumult and tribulation. Through it all, we know that He is in control in ways we may not fully know, but we trust based on His providence to this date that He will leave us nor forsake us.

Slowly, I’ve learnt that having complete faith in God isn’t something of the head but of the heart. It does not require the struggle to try and comprehend Him, a power too divine for us to understand, but to trust in Him despite the unknown.

How can we practice faith in our everyday lives? Whenever we’re struggling with a dilemma, unsure of the future or going through a rough time, the most common advice we hear is to “have faith” or “God’s got a plan”. At the time, it usually seems like pretty useless advice, but what does it really mean to “have faith”? How can we trust in “God’s plan” for us, if we can’t see any plan that would relieve us from our problems or stressors? Again, doubt. Doubt often makes us feel alone in our problems and responsible to find our own solution, contributing anxiety and worry. Faith, on the other hand, means we are never alone and there is always a solution, even if we can’t see it.

One way for faith to practically change our lives everyday is by prayer. Psalm 138:3 says, “In the day when I cried out, You answered me, and made me bold with strength in my soul”. Making our worries and concerns known to God gives us inner strength that we will never experience turmoil alone. Like David, who had faith in God to help him defeat Goliath and deliver his people, we too can practice faith in situations that may seem unlikely or impossible to us. Faith allows us to act on what we have not yet experienced and trust in God’s plan when our situations seem hopeless.

With practice, faith becomes less of a vague, unreachable religious concept to a more practical, tangible and incredible experience everyday.

Hidden Warfare

Hidden Warfare

Adapted from a sermon by Fr Jonathan Ishak

Passage Matthew 12:22-37

“Or how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? – Matthew 12:29

This verse on its own is a parable that the Lord eloquently presents to us. If a person wanted to enter the home of a strong man, they would first need to consider binding the strong man so that they would be successful.

We have something good concealed within our hearts. Satan would like to take this from us. In order to defeat us, he first finds ways to bind us so that we are restrained from fighting back. If we are strong, we are untouchable to Satan, but if we are weak, he can steal and destroy as he pleases.

The most valuable thing we own is our faith and the devil wishes to plunder our faith and void our hope. He cunningly seeks out our destruction through a variety of methods. We would be foolish to think that the devil would leave our faith to flourish undisturbed. His aim is to make us believe that we do not have a place in heaven. For every step of faith, the devil fight to pull us back to where we started.

The question remains, if the devil wishes to plunder our houses and our goods, how can we be strong? A certain youth once answered this question with three main attempts;

I can work on my physical strength
I can grow in knowledge and respond in wisdom
I can use weapons

Spiritually, we can do the same. We can be physically strong as Christians so that we fight against the attacks of Satan. Mother Teresa was once asked, “why do you serve in the poorest and sickest of areas?” To which she responded, “Because I love Jesus.” She didn’t give a nice, worldly answer, that is she kind, or altruistic, or it’s a service to Christ, but a simple answer that shows her spiritual strength. Her motivation and goal is to love the Lord our God. Her motivation never faltered, if you love the Lord, you will have strong faith that will compel you to walk on the path of Christ.

When speaking of his book, The Imitation of Christ, Thomas Kempis says, “the most beautiful thing I found in this book is the title because it contains the name of Christ.” When we go to heaven, our Lord will give a summary of our lives on earth as an example of how much we love Him and how much effort we made to grow closer to Him. This is how to be a strong Christian. Satan cannot plunder a heart that loves God.

When the Lord came to Peter after His Resurrection, He only had one question for him; “Do you love Me?” (John 21:15). He didn’t ask him why he betrayed Him or why he denied Him. Only after he said that he did love Him could he be a shepherd of Christ. In everything you do in the church, love the Lord. Measure your Christianity by the amount of love concealed within your heart. If you grow in loving the Lord Jesus Christ, your house is built on a firm foundation.

Next, we must have a strong mind. I can fight back if I can think and mentally prepare for the battle. This preparation comes from the Bible and applying the teaching of the Lord. Read the Bible, know the teaching of the Lord and apply this to the battle that befalls you. When Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce Joseph, he applied the wisdom of the Lord. Even if it meant defying her authority, he knew the words of God and remained pure. The word of the Lord was clear before his eyes.

In life, we too, must have the word of God at the forefront of our minds in all our actions and deeds. Those around us have their own thought processes but we remain strong in the Lord. We do not follow the teaching of the world, but the commandments of the Lord. Pope Kyrillos VI during the liturgy was sitting inside and fell asleep. A person was brought to him who was demon possessed. Even while asleep, the demon immediately fled from the man in the presence of Pope Kyrillos. This reveals the power of the Word of Christ within him.

The Lord said, “in vain they worship me, teaching the doctrine of men” (Matthew 15:9). If you would like to be strong, apply this teaching. Never follow the teaching of the people for they lean on their own understanding.

The final thing is to arm ourselves with weaponry. Our weapons are the sacraments of the church. Pope Shenouda III once said that you cannot stand strong against the attacks of Satan without the sacraments. These are Holy Communion, confession and a spiritual canon that you follow without fail. Ask your father of confession to give you a spiritual canon that you can stick with. These are our weapons in the Body and Blood of Christ, in our repentance and confession. Together, these make us strong against the adversity of the devil. This will make the devil flea from you.

When we look at the secret place of our hearts, is it open to attack, or have we armed ourselves with the strength of our faith, the knowledge of the Bible and partaking of the sacraments? At any point when we sway towards things of the world, we let our guard down in the face of adversity. Continual nourishment of these three elements helps us withstand the wiles of the devil. Let us make our homes full of prayer, full of almsgiving, full of blessing, full of love for the Lord and a welcome space for Christ to dwell. Be strong in the Lord so that the devil cannot snatch your faith and claim your eternity.

How Great is your Faith?

How Great is your Faith

Adapted from a sermon by Fr David Shehata

Passage Luke 5:17-26

The Paralytic Man is read in the gospel of Luke 5, but also in Matthew 9 and Mark 2. It is very commonly confused with the miracle recorded in the gospel of John which recounts a paralytic man that was 38 years old and sat by the pool of Bathsaida. This is usually because Jesus says to both, “rise, take up your bed and walk.”

There are key differences between the two. They are definitely not the same person and when we look at the differences, there are a multitude of benefits that reveal how Christ treated them according to the depth of their faith.

Jesus was in a house in the gospel of Luke and the man was brought to Him, while in John, Jesus sought out the paralytic man. The man in Luke had friends around him while the man by the pool of Bethsaida had no one.

It can come across as insensitive that the Lord – who is all-loving, all-powerful, all compassionate – would allow this man and his friends to go through so much trouble to reach Him. St Mark recounts the extent of the difficulty they had when he writes, “many gathered together, so that there was no longer room to receive them, not even near the door” (Mark 2:2).

He emphasises a house that would have had so many people that they were flooded out the door. There was no room, so the four men looked upon this situation and decided to enter through the roof; “And when they could not come near Him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where He was” – Luke 2:4.

If we pause at this verse and put ourselves in this situation. If I was one of the four men in this situation or the paralytic man himself who had come to see Jesus in faith because I have heard of what He has done for others, how do I react to the obstacles in my path?

This applies to every time we want to spend time with God, but find an obstacle along the way. I am making my way to church, I have planned ahead and booked a spot because of the current Covid restrictions. I find rain, storm, cold… what next? Do I wait for the next mass?

Or I come to pray at night at my designated prayer spot but just before I get there, I find the room is cold and I remember the warmth of my bed… what next? This is a question we ask ourselves. What would I do in this situation; when Christ is so close but there is an obstacle in my way?

Do I presume that it’s just not God’s will for me to go to church on that day? There is nothing wrong with waiting, Jesus will still be around when I eventually pray the next day, or the day after that. There are so many ways to justify turning back at the first obstacle we see.

But in Mark, the four friends saw that they could not enter through the door so they created their own entry point through the roof. It seems irrational and beyond the logic of society to enter through a closed roof instead of an open door.

It is not the faith of one alone in this situation but the combined faith of the five men. They had to carry the man to the roof, they had to uncover some of the tiles so that they could lower him into the house. The greatness and difficulty of this task was exemplary of the greatness and unwavering faith of these five men.

The understanding of Jews at the time was that in major disease or illness was the result of sin. Either their own sin or that of their parents, just like in the gospel of John when the disciples asked Christ in front of the man without any fear of whether he would hear them or not, “Who sinned, this man or his parents?” This is an insight into the culture at the time. The paralytic man was seen as a sinner, deserving of his punishment of paralysis.

The life of a paralytic would have been extremely difficult, they had no social security, were unable to work and moreover, they were blamed for the state they were in. No one had compassion on them and they were likely to grow irritable and resent society. This man showed willingness to become a public spectacle, to be judged and condemned as a sinner, for a chance to reach Christ and be healed. This was all irrelevant to him compared to what he was about to gain. His gain in this process was far greater than any criticism and social stigma. This is a lesson in faith we can all learn from.

How many times do I sacrifice time with God for momentary praise or pleasure? How many times do I, in my own life, say that I will speak to God later?

When the Lord sees the faith of the paralytic man and his friends, He says, “your sins are forgiven.” This is so powerful and gives us insight into the nature of Christ. The Lord prioritises the man’s sins over his paralysis. This was the more important of the two in the eyes of the Lord. Heavenly healing lasts for eternity, while healing of the flesh is irrelevant to the hereafter.

Perhaps we can learn to prioritise similarly; to work harder on the forgiveness of my sins, to work harder in speaking to my father of confession, to work harder in partaking of the sacraments and finding time alone with God.

God wants to approach Him similarly as Fr Yacoub Magdy points out – “the trust of the beggar, compels the giver.” We learn to approach the Lord in unworthiness, in helplessness and that compels God to come to our rescue, for He is our only hope.

We cannot say we have finished breathing for the day, so we can not say that we have finished praying for the day. Prayer is a continual and ongoing relationship with the Lord. The four men approached the Lord and encountered an obstacle but they kept striving to reach Christ by any means possible. They persevered with greater effort so that they would see the Lord and have the life changing encounter that they hoped for.

One reason why the Lord ensured on that day that He would be so far out of reach was to highlight the extent of their faith on that day to benefit those that witnessed the miracle and even to us, 2000 years later.

The question we then ask ourselves is how much effort do I make to meet the Lord? Is it beneficial to me? I need to keep asking, I need to keep seeking, I need to keep knocking, until I encounter the Lord, whatever it takes.

“Do not be foolish in the requests you make to God, otherwise you will insult God through your ignorance. Act wisely in prayer, so that you may become worthy of glorious things. Ask for things that are honorable from Him Who will not hold back, so that you may receive honor from Him as a result of the wise choice your free will had made. Solomon asked for wisdom (3 Kg 3:8-14) – and along with it he also received the earthly kingdom, for he knew how to ask wisely of the heavenly King, that is, for things that are important.”
St Isaac the Syrian

We have the King of Heaven and Earth before us and He is willing to give us all that we ask for. Ask, and ask for big things. Don’t ask for meaningless things that you would never put before a king. Even if you don’t receive immediately, keep praying for your begging will compel the Hand of God to give.

Seaing is Believing: The Tides of Belief

Living by the Sea: Part 1 – Seaing is Believing: the Tides of Belief

By Monica Monir

Have you ever wanted to live by the sea?

I have, for my entire life. In fact, I still remember my first trip to Cronulla beach at the ripe old age of four (it was love at first sight, no big deal). My motto quickly became “If there’s H2O, then it’s time to go!”

Maybe some of you already live by the sea (um, sick invite). Or at least, you think you do…

What if I told you living by the sea wasn’t about your postcode? What if I told you living by the sea simply meant living out your belief in everyday life? Hear me out for a second…

We all go through cycles in our belief, in the same way the tide rises and falls, and when they said you have to “sea” to believe they weren’t kidding…

Seek

Encounter

Adjust

This is the cycle of belief. We seek Him, we encounter Him and we adjust our ways…we seek Him, we encounter Him and we adjust our ways. SEAing is believing. Over the next few posts in this series we’ll dive deep into how to apply each of these three letters into our lives, but for now, what does seaing even look like?

Seaing is the woman who sought the healing of her demon-possessed child (Mt 15:27), it’s the bleeding woman who touched the border of Jesus’ garment in faith (Lk 8:43), it’s when Mary kissed Jesus’ feet and washed them with her tears (Lk 7:37) and it’s the healing of the paralytic man at Capernaum because his friends lowered him through the roof in faith, knowing that they must get to Jesus (Lk 5:19). All of these people lived by the sea because they not only sought after Jesus, but they let Him change their lives.

“But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins” – He said to the man who was paralyzed, “I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.”

Immediately he rose up before them, took up what he had been lying on, and departed to his own house, glorifying God.” – Luke 5:24-25 (emphasis added) The man sought Jesus, he encountered Him and he adjusted his ways, glorifying God as he went home.

And in the words of St. Augustine of Hippo, “To fall in love with God is the greatest romance; to seek him the greatest adventure; to find him, the greatest human achievement.”

Well that’s all well and good in theory, but does this all still apply today? 100% yes. Nick Vujicic is an Aussie born with no arms and no legs. During childhood he attempted to take his own life, it’s the darkest place anyone could end up. Today he shares the message of Christianity on a global scale, saying, “Adjustments are necessary along the way because life isn’t always rosy, but it is always worth living.”

Whatever the problem, whatever the cause, the solution is the same. We seek Him, we encounter Him and we adjust our ways…we live by the sea.

So how do we live by the sea? Well there are a number of ways, most of which will be discussed in upcoming posts, so stay tuned! But for now just know that we seek Him in prayer, we encounter Him in the Bible and during the Liturgy and we adjust our ways by being humble enough to hear His quiet voice amidst the screams of tribulation.

Life has its twists and turns and the forecast doesn’t always tell us what we want to hear. We can get caught up in a swell and pretty soon our life seems shipwrecked as we wash up on the shore cold, isolated and lonely. We’ve all been there, we’ve all felt beaten down by the storm at sea. It’s in these moments we must remember that seaing is believing, and continue to live by the sea (seek, encounter, adjust). Because let me ask you this, if seaing wasn’t believing, then why does the deceiver always send a storm to capsize us?

“And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!”

Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm. But He said to them, “Where is your faith?”” – Luke 8:24-25

Don’t be deceived, continue to believe.

So, do you live by the sea?

Shield of Faith

Armour of God: Part 3

By Ereeny Mikhail

Each day, when we wake up, we don’t know what to expect. As humans, we can’t predict the future and the reality is, life is never going to run smoothly. Life throws many obstacles, tribulations and trials. With this we are confronted with one question; what do I do in the face of war? St Paul, in Ephesians 6:13, instructs us to take up the ‘armour of God’. There are many parts of an armour made to protect each part of the human body. However, logically, the impact of an arrow or bullet will still do some damage to the body through an armour. Thus, an essential part of armour is a shield. The shield that St Paul instructs us to take up, as soldier’s in the battlefield that we call life, is the ‘shield of faith’ (Ephesians 6:16).

According to the Cambridge Dictionary the definition of the word shield is “something or someone used as protection.” To need protection, one must face an attack or tribulation. We face these every day, whether it be disease, spiritual warfare, or problems we face in our daily life. It is inevitable that we come face to face with a bullet or an arrow. But as we said, when a solider is faced with a bullet or arrow, they hold up their shield to prevent extreme impact. Our shield is our faith. Hebrews 11:1 says this about faith; “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” We may not see God, but God is present in all things. We must have faith that He will protect us.

St Paul emphasises the importance of the ‘shield of faith’ by saying ‘above all’ we should take it up to conquer in battle. But again, I ask the question, what do I do in the face of war? When all seems lost, how do I hold up my Shield of Faith? Honestly, the answer is quite simple. It is the only way. There is no worldly solution. Things cannot be controlled by worldly means. Therefore, they need to be controlled by our faith in God. I say this with confidence from my own experiences.

I reflect on an experience I had a few years ago, during my years of studying Optometry. I was an organised student who downloaded all my assessment notifications at the beginning of semester. We had a group research assignment that my group had written up together. The assignment consisted of 2 portions to submit; the first was the main assignment and the second was signatures of all the group members saying they acknowledge that everyone did an equal amount of work. The semester before we also had a group assignment with the same 2 portions. That semester one person submitted the signatures on behalf of the group, but each group member had to submit the main assignment separately onto a portal. The notification for this semester also instructed us to do the same thing. So, I submitted the main assignment whilst a friend of mine submitted the document with the signatures. 2 weeks later all my friends got their result. My portal had 0% written next to the assignment. I was very confused considering I had done a huge chunk of the assignment for my group. Approaching my friends, I said it looks like there’s a glitch in my system. Then one of them pointed out that only one of us was supposed to submit the main assignment and everyone to submit the signatures document. I was sure we did the opposite the semester before and quickly, finding the notification of assessment document, I pointed out that it said the opposite as well. I went back to the place I downloaded it at the beginning of semester and to my dismay, this document had actually been updated but since I had downloaded it very early on it said I had already viewed this and didn’t notify me of updates. Additionally, the unit chair had written a status to tell us of this change which I missed as I was on placement and very tired that week. Very upset, I approached the unit chair, to ask her what had happened. She confirmed my suspicions. I misread it all.

Angrily, I went and drafted an email to challenge this. I didn’t think it was fair, seeing I had submitted the main assignment which is where all the marks were allocated, and seeing that I had provided my signature. I then went and spoke to my spiritual guide; someone I was quite close to who for most of my life provided me with wise spiritual advice; before I sent the email. They told me to plead with the lecturer persistently but with kind words. Thinking about this, I knew this was the right thing to do. Our faith teaches us, in Mathew 7:14, to enter from the ‘narrow gate’, “because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” It is easy to tell someone off, to be angry, to use harsh words but to be kind in the face of tribulation is holding up the Shield of Faith. King Solomon teaches us in Proverbs 15:1, “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” I rewrote my response to my lecturer again, this time approaching her with kind words. Again, she rejected my request. I reminded myself of what my spiritual advisor said. Be persistent. Perhaps, if I was like the ‘Persistent Widow’ in Luke 18:1-8; “And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily,” she will be merciful. In the end, she still rejected my request. Defeated, I let it go.

A few years later I came to apply for a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), where the cut off was based on the average marks throughout my Optometry degree. On calculating my mark, I noticed I was 0.075% below the cut off. I didn’t think much of it, thinking such a small percentage below the cut off was insignificant, until I asked my supervisors if I could round up my mark in my application. They looked at me blankly, telling me it was impossible for someone to get in below the cut off and the cut off was extremely strict. This was not like an undergraduate degree where some leniency is given. On hearing this, I broke down in tears. I said, “If only I had got that 5% in that assignment that my Optometry lecturer gave me 0%, I would have got in.” I drove home from work that day with tears in my eyes. It felt as though there was no hope. I went home and read the same gospel and Luke 18:27 says; “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.” Although I was told it was not possible, I chose to apply. With a small bit of faith, I carried on working for the next few months. Until one day an email popped up on my browser. I got accepted. The lesson I learnt, is in the face of a problem, I held up my Shield of Faith. I was kind, persistent and had faith. God, no matter, the arrows and bullets that attacked me, protected me and because I held up the Shield of Faith, he manifested His power and made the impossible, very possible. God fights for us.

I recall another experience where I learnt that the Shield of Faith was the only option. I met the Bishop of Kenya, Bishop Paul, at the age of 18, before I entered university. I remember being in awe of this man. Listening to his faith in times of tribulation was just amazing. He talked about how he went to communities affected by Ebola to pray for them and had faith that the Lord will protect him. He told us more amazing stories, and all I could think was, I want to go to Kenya. I want to learn from this man. I want to experience the work of God. With this in mind, 3 years later, a few months prior to finishing my Optometry degree I booked my flights. I finished my final exams and with a month to go, the anxiety kicked in. What if I get Malaria? What if I drink the water and get Cholera? What if I eat the food and get some random disease? I spent the whole month before flying to Kenya with these thoughts running through my mind. They built up so much to the point that I almost cancelled my flights. I then remembered the faith that Bishop Paul had in the face of Ebola and with that faith I decided to go. During my time there, I learnt that no matter what you fear; whether it be disease, or violence, you must face it with the Shield of Faith. Every time I ate, I signed the cross, and had faith nothing would happen. Every time I entered a place where I felt in danger, I prayed. ‘Above all’, I had faith that God is the one who protects us. God is our Shield.

I’d like to end with this note; no matter how difficult a situation is, no matter how afraid you are, and no matter what obstacle, tribulation or trial you are faced with, hold up your Shield of Faith. Love as Christ taught us, and Pray as Christ taught us. He will fight for you.

“He sent from above, He took me; He drew me out of many waters. He delivered me from my strong enemy, from those who hated me, for they were too strong for me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my support.” – Psalm 18:16-18

The Stories We Tell Ourselves

by Sandra
Original post by Becoming Fully Alive blog site

The cross must have looked like a failed mission.

I think of Good Friday, of the Son of God breathing His last, of His followers watching from afar in dismay and horror as the gruesome events unfolded one by one. I think of them looking on in disbelief as they held their breath and held on to some last hope that things wouldn’t end that way, that there would be a dramatic turn around of circumstance and the sky would rend open as the Father’s power and majesty thundered and delivered the Son in a grand display.

Yet, His head hung low and He died.

I wonder how everyone felt at that moment; the teary eyed knocked breathless, the disillusioned riled up with anger. As the disciples lay hidden in fear, the smell of bread and wine from just one night before lingering in their lungs. As His followers walked away from the scene and returned to their homes, His words still running through their minds. Could they have gotten it so wrong? Could they have misread all the signs? Surely His words were true? Surely if He was God’s Son they couldn’t have killed Him? What comes next?

Confused, restless, crushed.

Waking up numb and blindsided to a dark Saturday morning and remembering all over again what they witnessed on Friday. How he’d gone just as quickly as he’s come into their lives. How everything would go back to the way it was without him. How nothing will ever really change and they must face this hopeless reality as their permanent reality.

Anxious, disappointed and defeated.

How many of us are living in Saturday? We were promised deliverance, we were hanging on to His words that it’s His good pleasure to give us the Kingdom and yet we think of certain points in our pasts, certain relationships, certain failures and disasters and we feel so far from that sanctification we longed for, and that newness of hope we were sure was coming.
How many of us look back and see an empty cross and Jesus is still buried in a tomb when we think of those Friday nights of our past?

We look now on the cross and we think of redemption, reconciliation, and salvation. But on that Saturday with Christ hung high, the choice words must have looked a lot different, a lot like: shame, disappointment and despair.

Will we live out our Saturday till the dawn of Sunday? There’s always two ways to tell the story of the cross. Will we choose to tell it way we know to be true? Will we choose the story that ends on Sunday morning with Christ risen trampling death and our past and our shame in the tomb instead?

“The past is just a story we tell ourselves.” Because we are not our past, yet we cannot deny the story existed, and we existed in it. But we can choose how we tell this story to ourselves. We can chose whether it becomes our whole story or just part of our story. We can tell it to ourselves in a way that the darkness turns into a canvas for all the foolish pride and vain idols to lose their grip as our saviours as we learn to grope in the dark and grip onto Him, finding our heart’s true desire. We can tell it so that our words pave a path through darkness – a path of letting go, a path of abandoning oneself, losing oneself, and in so doing ultimately finding what is real.

“Heaven is God and God is in our heart” so we are living in the eternal now, with the sacred inside. Wherever we go we can bring the Kingdom. And when our mind travels down memory lane and our hearts beat heavy and our spirits falter fast we can bring our stories of old into His kingdom and His eternal story

An eternal story of calmed fear and restored hope
An eternal story our deep and irrevocable communion with the Divine
An eternal story of all that was once corrupted with fickle inconsistencies and restless unfaithfulness restored to their heavenly natures.

And when we tell our story in this way to ourselves we can begin to transcend ourselves on our way to reunification with God. To see God is to see His energies and light through everything and everyone – through our past and our shame. We are a light of love eternal and St Symeon the New Theologian once said: “God is light and all those whom He makes worthy to see Him receive Him as light”

So endure the dark night, it is a guiding night and a night more kindly than the dawn. And let the night leave you vulnerable to God to recreate you as you were made to be: lovers of God and one another. Love is the law. “Let Love come first, it should be the beginning of, and the reason for everything.” So that wherever you go you may see Light.

Will you tell the story of your past in a way that frees you? The pieces of your past and every last wound must no longer be buried with Him and sealed with a stone beyond reach.

It is Sunday morning.

There is an empty cross, there is an empty tomb and there is a risen King. A risen King who is telling a new story of our past – broken homes, broken hearts and all. A risen King who is the Word so He gets the last word. For He gathers all the broken words in every line of every story we’ve strung along and unites all of our words to all of Him, giving them Life. “That is the good news of the Incarnation. The Word becomes flesh and thus a new place is made where all of you and all of God can dwell. When you have found that unity, you will be truly free” Henri Nouwen

And we will run, living testimonies of the great Love story.

“because of the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.” Luke 1:78-80

“oh as you run, what hindered love will only become part of the story” Bethel

Original blog found at – http://becomingfullyalive.com/the-past-is-just-a-story-we-tell-ourselves/

Faith and Works

Faith and Works

by Shenouda Girgis

“Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?”– James 2:5.

The opening chapters of St James’ epistle reveal the importance of being a doer of the Word and not just a hearer. We strive for a strong and steadfast faith to guide our Christian life. We must be genuine; What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? (James 2:14)

In the beginning, God, out of His great love, created us, everything around us and set us over all His other creations. And as if such a gesture of love wasn’t enough, He blessed us with free will – the ability to make our own decisions – but simply asked that we be obedient to His word.

As we all know, it was this very ability to make our own decisions that led to the demise of humankind as we know it. Surely God knew that His gift of free will would be abused and that we would disobey and fall from grace.

Why did He allow this to happen knowing the consequences of sin was death? Why would He allow such a void to form between us and Him? The answer for this is God Himself, love. What we sometimes don’t understand is that our relationship with God is unlike any other relationship – the strongest relationships are the ones that are not one sided – where there is mutual love. That’s why God gave us our free will, He wants us to chose to be in a relationship with Him and not force us into just doing the right thing.

His love for us is unique in that, despite our numerous and infinite infidelities, He is always willing to accept us and is waiting for the day that we consciously choose Him with the free will He gave us. As Christians, our faith is established on the very thing makes God, God: love! Surprised?

Out of His love, He sent His Only Son to bear the punishment of our sins and through the death and resurrection of Christ we have been given eternal life. But just like our fall, our fate is in our own hands and the hands of the free will that God blessed us with. All of this is important to know because this is the foundation from which the strength of our faith can grow.

Our works are the true measure of our faith. But what do the Saints mean when they say works? Put simply, works are the proof of faith; it doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to dedicate your entire life to service but if our faith is strong then we naturally have ‘works’, when out actions reflect Christ and people can see Christ in you then these are the true works that the saints are referring to. Are you inclusive of others as Christ was inclusive? Are you quick to anger or do you have the patience we are taught to have? I think St Francis of Assisi says it perfectly:

“Preach the gospel at all times and if necessary use words.”

Further reading: James 1-3, Romans 4-5, Galatians 3, Ephesians 2 & Proverbs 1

The Reality of Our Faith

The Reality of Our Faith

by Mirette Ibrahim

If we need a physical building in order to pray, we’re doing something wrong.
If we can’t speak to our Maker, without being surrounded by our loved ones, we’re doing something wrong.
If we can’t taste and see our Creator’s goodness in the confines of our own rooms, we’re doing something wrong.
If we need to be spoken to by our leaders in order to feel like we’re hearing our Lord’s voice, we’re doing something wrong.
If we can abstain from food but can’t abstain from seeing our friends, we’re doing something wrong.
If we can’t feel our God’s grace being poured on us outside of the church walls, we’re doing something wrong.

If I think my Father’s voice is only found in the crowds and not the stillness, I’m doing something wrong.
If I have limited the Unlimited to a physical space, I’m doing something wrong.
If I have confined the Almighty to a single place of existence, I’m doing something wrong.
If I’ve put my Master into a box and made Him my God according to my own preferences and criteria, I’m doing something wrong.
If I’ve failed to see my neighbor struggling while I selfishly stock my shelves and offer them my prayers, I’m doing something wrong.
If I can’t see the blessing disguised in this time of solitude that some can only dream of, I’m doing something wrong.
If I can’t call on my Saviour during this time of mass drowning, but have time to sit behind my screen and condemn the leaders for their obedience and guidance, I’m doing something wrong.

So…

Let’s pray in the stillness.
Let’s contemplate in the solitude.
Let’s experience Him in the silence.
Let’s hear Him in the quiet.
Let’s be filled with Him in our abstinence.
Let’s feel Him reaching out to us.
Let’s know Him in our obedience.
Let’s be there for each other.
Let’s help out our brother.
Let’s lay down our lives for our neighbors.

Let’s do Lent and life right.