Unnatural associations
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- Опубліковано 23 тра 2024
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The video 'Unnatural associations' was recorded by Fr Seraphim (Aldea) at Iona Monastery (The Orthodox Monastery of the Dormition of the Mother of God and All Saints of Iona), on the Isle of Iona.
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May God bless us all!
Father, I’ve recently found Christ, and have been telling it to all my friends, and at first I thought it was a good thing, but the more I learn the more I realize how foolish I’ve been. I’ve been judging and condemning other on purpose or accident, it doesn’t matter, and all my friendships are strained, and I’ve been lead astray by my own thinking. Please pray for me father, for my own humility and spiritual journey. Your videos are very helpful! Thank you father!
“Acquire the Spirit of Peace and a thousand souls around you will be saved.” -St. Seraphim of Sarov
“Make peace with yourself and both heaven and earth will make peace with you.” -St. Isaac the Syrian
I am so sorry, dear one, I am so sorry to read this. The monastic Elders have a saying that no one should open their mouths to teach anyone anything until they have been in the monastery for at least ten years. This allows us to grow roots, to no longer be reactive to what our (sinful) mind tells us and what our (sinful) heart makes us feel. During that time, we have seen ourselves, we know the depth of our own sin and we are no longer able (let alone willing!) to judge anyone, because our only hope of salvation has become the Lord's word: 'judge not, so you may not be judged'.
Focus on yourself, my dear one, and let your virtue (in due time) to do the missionary work in the world. Otherwise, we risk simply scandalising people and driving them further away from Christ because they associate our judgemental attitude and lack of love with Christ Himself. Focus on yourself and your own sin and that will lead you to your salvation and, if God so blesses, this newly found Light of yours will also - automatically, with or without your intention - lead those around you to Christ as well.
@@mullmonastery thank you father
So many of us make this mistake. I fight (and fail) often. The evil one and his trickery are so nasty and pervasive. Humility truly is the root of all virtues. Let us beg of the Mother of Our Lord to be granted the virtues of humility, charity and patience, for ourselves and for all Christian people.
Does meekness have a role to play in all this?
Im asking God to put his words in my mouth for those around me and my family that commit sin against God. I trust He has the holy words/the right seed for them and has me to delivery it.
I needed to hear this today. Thank you, Father. Was literally contemplating this very thing all day. The Lord knows our needs. May He have mercy upon us.
Amen. I pray that the Lord will grant wisdom, discernment and all other necessary virtues to us all. Please pray for me. It would be a great blessing to overcome this issue, which I've struggled with for quite some time!
Amen!
May God bless you, dear one. May He grant you the wisdom and the grace for which you are praying, and may He lead you to His Truth.
Amen, Father Seraphim. I am 49 years old and it has been three years since I was baptized into Orthodoxy. But more than twenty years ago I was already searching and interested in Christianity. I remember on a discussion forum there was an Orthodox priest who was vocally fighting against abortion by loudly reciting psalms outside the maternity ward and disturbing the women in labor. On that forum, this priest every time someone famous and well-known died who was not Orthodox and had lived a sinful life, such as being a homosexual or even committing suicide, this priest would write posts like, "XY is now in hell!"
It seemed to me that he was perhaps even happy about it. I preferred to run away and then fell into the snares of the occult for a long time. If I had met someone like you in the online space back then, I might have been Orthodox long ago... God bless you! I will be joining your on-line community soon. Money is tight, but I have found a job that will hopefully allow me to do so. In Christ, Kyprian
Also often, especially in the online space, perceived by some Orthodox emphasis on faith and the absence of hope and love. I am glad to have come across you in the midst of my catechumenate. My priest at the time didn't have much time for me and it was you and another (Czech) priest who initiated me into the mysteries of Orthodoxy, who also had interesting videos on UA-cam. Thank you very much!
I remember you every day when I pray for my spiritual fathers!
Thank you Father. May all Christians be one!
So well said, Father. One problem in the age of social media is that we all feel an unnatural necessity to give the world our opinions on everything. Contra to that, the desert fathers teach us to be silent most, if not all the time. It seems to me that we Christians must first learn this holy practice of silence before we can begin to understand what and when to speak. Otherwise we are just one more voice yelling into the cacophony of yelling voices, with no one listening and each one hearing only what they want to hear. I believe I am summarzing what you have said in the past.
Thank you brother Abbott Christ is risen truly he has trampoline deaths by death 🙏☦️
Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tombs (myself, all of us, in our personal tombs of sin) He has given Life. May we all partake of that one Life, my dear one.
You're so correct! Grey areas are growing exponentially and it seems like the truth is being cornered but patience and perseverance always endure till the end for the truth to shine. This is from a personal experience.
My dear one, Truth WILL definitely overcome evil, because God is Truth and there is nothing creation (be that the world or the devil) can do to defeat the Creator. The pain is that we do not last that long, our lives are short and our eternal fate is determined by our reactions during this short life we have. The overall arch of history will, of course, lead to Christ's Second Coming and to His victory over all evil, but our lives - billions of small, short human lives - are all lived here, under that overall arch of history. It is these many billions and their salvation that concern me, as well as my own salvation.
I’m so grateful to have found your channel ❤
Thank you so much father Seraphim for your words. There were very clear but it is not so easy to find the right position between too much aggression and to much kindness. But when our ego calms down, Christ can speak in or out of us, then Peace can reign.❤
God bless you
I DO NOT TRY TO UNRAVEL THE CONFUSION. I LIVE SIMPLY PLAINLY AND THIS FOR ME IS WITH MY CHURCH SPIRITUAL FATHER AND MY LITTLE TINY FAMILY UNIT✝️
Heavy tears for all better less talk and go by my unhurtful living as a Greek Cypriot Christian Orthodox ✝️ Bless you Father Seraphim for your kind words always ✝️🕯️🙏📿🕊️❤️😭🇬🇷😢🇨🇾🙏
Hristos a înviat!
Mulțumim Părinte Serafim!
Dumnezeu sa ne dea puterea de a ne iubi semenul,de a ne depasi pe noi înșine!
Rugați-vă pentru noi,si pentru mine păcătoasa!
Avem atata nevoie de rugaciune!
Doamne, ajută!
Fiti binecuvantat,Parinte drag!
God hear my prayers. I’m a single mom raising my two children with special needs. I’m overwhelmed at times because they are all I have. I recently started homeschooling my sons because they were having so many issues in school including bullying. So my hours to work are limited. Every month I’m struggling, struggling to pay rent, struggling buying groceries, struggling to do it all. Yet God gives me strength. He will provide I have faith. 💕
Dear syster - Thanku for being such a BeautyFULL mummy - I send you love and prayers - and hope your days unfold in grace and abundance - 🙏🏽🙏🏽
Father this shared homily is powerful, impactful - thankyou 🙏🏽
Please return to this topic flow, our BeautyFULL children and young people are being purposefully confused, misinformed, and groomed into an ideology that is fed by satanic forces - prayer is our grace and sanctuary 🙏🏽🕯️
"Certain tribes". Key words.
“If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.”
Thank you dear Fr Serafim for your words of love.
I am one of those who often makes the error of saying nothing through fear of causing offence. I always think of the saying of Our Lord:
“..how do you say to your brother, 'Let me cast out the chip from your eye', and behold, a plank is in your eye?”
But I understand through your words of advice that we must do the work of increasing love in ourselves by the grace of God, so that we can be a light in the darkness of the world’s deception. It’s not enough to think that there is nothing we can do except pray for our brothers and sisters who are lost of the fog. We must be a light in the world, by the grace of Christ. This means that we must do the inner work in cooperation with Christ to be that light. And I think that involves giving our consent for our self to be consumed by that fire of love. ❤️🔥
That is absolutely right, dear one. Glory be to God for your words, they are clear and to the point. As we grow in Love (manifested in small acts of love), we grow in Christ, because Christ is Love. And when Christ comes and dwells in our hearts, we cannot help but speak the Truth in Love, because Christ is both Truth and Love, impossible to divide or separate.
Christ is Risen!
Thank you for your words. I think people are loosing love, everybody wants to be right and nobody listens. It is not that difficult to speak the truth when you love, and as you said, nothing should be said out of hatred. I live in Slovakia- an extremely polarized country. Please, pray for us! Thank you for this video - you have given me courage to stick to Christ's truth and love. God bless you!
🙏 God bless us all ! Let s pray for the weak brothers and sisters more !
Father thank you for your timely message. We are living in challenging times! God be with you & members of your community 🙏
Thank you, Father. This is a lot to think about, and so important. And the fact that it makes our heads hurt, means we really need to think about it! Thank you! ☦️♥️
You are a blessing dear father!
Beautiful. You nailed it.
It was communicated and clearly.
What an inspiration..
I'll be praying on this topic on how to speak to others and uplift them in Christ. 🙏💒🕊️🕊️🕊️
Thank you, Father. I needed to hear this today when I am preparing for a week of being very much in the world and praying for God to grant me the grace, wisdom, and love to be a light and blessing to all, and to guard my heart and lips to be able to stand in His truth and represent him well as a humble and loving servant. Thank you Father, and God Bless you for the good and important work you are doing in the world. ❤🙏❤
God bless you, dear father.
🙏🙏🙏
I admit with sadness that judgement and especially over-critical of self too, has been my greatest challenged to overcome, even when it feels like it comes from a place of kindness it's difficult to determine truth and helpfulness to those that do not have the ears to receive it, and untangle the judgement of my own self first. So I stay silent in an effort to feel where this judgement arises from which is often conditioning of family, religion and society. In hope that the judgement does not grow within but dissipates.
Thank you again Father. My heart tells me that you might worry about being online, and I feel that you might fear the perception of monks and saints past for being online at all. It is adjacent to so much evil. I just wanted to say that I love you and your content. Opening youtube on my lunch break and seeing this here was a great blessing. I am scared to pursue orthodoxy and I am afraid of simple things like haircuts or meetings. Humbly I beseech you for any advice you might have about joining an orthodox church from a protestant background. Please pray for my understanding, courage, and for my way back home. God bless you father.
Go to a vespers on a Wednesday is my advice
If you are already here, my dear one, if you have written these words, your heart is already home. It is just a matter of your mind to follow; that may take more time because the mind is fearful and it sees reflections of past abuse and pain in everything the future has to offer, so it hides and rejects everything. But - if your heart, the engine of your being is already moving in the right direction, sooner or later the rest of you will also follow.
That may be a good idea, yes.
Thank you Fr Aldea. I pray that I move further into being His image bearer, and that you do too, and that in this way we will share in something beautiful together. I am more grateful for your reply than I probably should be, and more grateful than you may know. I will follow this advice and your words will stay with me for a very long time.
Dear father, pleaaaase pray for
me and all of us. Thank you very much for your deep words and Love!
Greetings from Slovenia (Ljubljana)!❤
Teresa
Thank you Dear brother that you have mentioned that topic. It is very important but not obvious to our consciousness.
❤
Thank you! ❤❤
So true. And difficult. I loved the part where you spoke about the love of the other, even to the extent of being willing to sacrifice oneself for that other. I can't say that I am at that point but I understand the desire to be there and to live from that place.
That desire is in any authentically Christian heart, my dear one, because our souls naturally crave to be like our Maker, like Christ God Himself, and He is Love Crucified on a Cross. When you look at an icon of the Crucifixion, you are actually looking at your true self, the person God created you to be, reflected back to you.
You have communicated this very well, Father. Bless you.
Father, perhaps slightly off-topic, but I've recently been conflicted about the world, its conflicts, and how we Christians should behave regarding Palestine and Israel. These conflicts seem to be a clash between Western civilization and friction of the increasing immigration from predominantly Muslim countries, particularly in Europe and North America. As an Ethiopian☦, we are no strangers to people of different faiths attempting to impede our practice of Christianity but been a Christian nation since the 4th century and have no plans of changing that. However, I must admit that there are many radical elements within Islam globally, with many Muslims actively targeting Christians more and more. Even in Nazareth in Israel radical Islamists are targetting Christian homes and shopes and force them to pay Islamic taxes if they want protection. This is 2024, and Israel allows it.
What should we do spiritually and what type of reaction shoudl we have in face of evil? I am aware that there is also a substantial wave of apostasy in Islam, with many individuals turning to Christ. For instance, Somalis are embracing Christianity in the hundreds of thousands, with many finding transition into the Ethiopian Orthodox Church somewhat easier than into Protestantism.
I think your question is very good. I dont want to hate anyone but im seriously worried about islamization too and sometimes the situation angers me. Im catholic in a country where this is the majority. Sadly most are just baptized and only go to Church for weddings and funerals. God bless you.
God bless you. You know, I work at a large company in Manhattan, NY, a city filled with sin. If my managers and coworkers ever knew I was watching this video, they would probably try to get me fired! The truth usually remains hidden in this god-forsaken world but sometimes shines through when the right time comes, when He wills it.
My dear one, I do understand you, because I am not blind and I am not an idiot. I can see the evil you mention in the word. But the world, evil as it is, is never God-forsaken. God came into this evil world and allowed this evil world to crucify Him precisely in order to open a path to salvation for this very world. Each human being you see in your life was made by the same God, out of the same Love He had when He made His Saints, with the same purpose: for us all to choose Life over death and be saved in Him.
Don't let this world poison your heart with hatred against it, because then the world has won and you have lost. Nourish the Love in you and slowly, gently move through the world like a loving, healing, quiet breeze.
@@mullmonastery Thank you, Father. What you are suggesting is one of the hardest things to do in this life, especially in this current time. I will definitely meditate on your healing words. God love you.
Thank you Father for your passionate heart to see Christ glorified in His Body and speaking Truth to us with clarity. I am very grateful for you and this channel.May God continue to use you and this community to strengthen one another and bring His Salvation to ALL.🙏❤️🕊️
Amen
Thank you Fr Seraphim. Pray for me as I try to find this balance. I desire to lead people to Christ but constantly fall short.
May God bless you, dear one. If you focused more on yourself and your salvation, that would deepen your calling for those around you, your words would have more weight and they would follow you more readily. It is a paradox, but the more you focus on your own inner life, the more your words resonate with those around you.
Thank you father
Pray for us - we are all so confused - « Christians’ »included
It’s so hard father, surrounded by all cultures and faith to relay the message of Christ including speaking the real truth when needed . I pray that people see true Christian love within us and that in itself will lead them to the truth 🙏✝️🥰
May Christ hear your prayer, dear one, and may He lead and guide us all to speak His Truth in the only way it can bring forth fruit: in Love.
Thank you Father for your words. I will listen again as you illuminate so much here in this video. May God bless you all 🙏🙏🙏
Very important
Great widsom here, resonates with what I see. Thanks for sharing! I'll pray for you and your monastery, father!
God bless you father 🙏🙏🙏
Dear Father, thank you for this. I have family members who are gender-conflicted but not Christian. I would like to speak the truth in love-that God made them and God doesn’t make mistakes-but don’t know how to begin this conversation. Please pray for me, a sinner!
Me too! I have the same situation. Let's pray for each other.
I loved your last message and really understood it. This one is making my head hurt. Around 8:20 what is described, now this is why my head hurts. We live in an age where so many people are living in and experiencing completely different realities. I've said things to people in the past that are so gentle and they freak out. One person says something they think is kind and loving and the other hears abuse and oppression.
A few years ago I really just stopped talking anything more than small talk with most people unless I got the sense we saw things similar. I think the people that are really into the tv and all the mainstream media and government social and political issues are wound tight.
I find it hard and I struggle with engaging with them anything more than superficial small talk because I have had many times where my opinion has upset them. So I just say little. As I said its making my head hurt because I don't know what else or what more to do.
You have no idea how much I share in that head hurt, my dear one. I also struggle to draw that line between speaking the truth and not offending, but I know with absolute certainty that the reason for this struggle is my own lack of Christ-like (self-sacrificial) love. When one has that Love in one's heart, one has Christ in one's heart, because Christ is Love. And once you have Christ in your heart, you can only speak Truth from Love, because Love and Truth are both the same: Christ is Love and Truth, and one cannot divide Christ. This failure to speak the Truth in Love is primarily mine - how the world would respond to it is not mine to judge; but this failure is my own.
@@mullmonastery Father Bless. Thank you for your response to me. After reading it, I understand your message more fully. It makes more sense and is more clear to me. Thank you.
Dealing with exactly the same. Trying to get colleagues to "just leave me out of it" is harder than one would think. And without being too rude, there's no point in debating anything with people who are essentially strangers and who get their ideas off the latest thing they read on Facebook rather than from study, thought and prayer. Not that I'm anything but a terrible Christian (RC). But this video caught my attention partly because it's from Mull and I think part of my problem is that I come from a long line of people who aren't very good at "expediency", to put it politely and it's quite hard to explain this to my employers who I believe to be very fond of expediency despite our "values" (long story short I'm contemplating leaving work and having some difficult conversations so all this is on my mind). Keep on keeping on.
Thank you dear P.Seraphin ! There are a lot of bright things here ! it feels great to hear the truth, something to meditate on deeply... Glory to God for your presence, your word...
You are so right Father!
Thank you father
AMEN✝️
this is all i needed to hear! thank you Father.
Dear Father thank you for sharing this message with us. Some of it I understand, but, much of it I did not. This is the first time I have not understood you ever. Perhaps the enemy is involved and blocking my comprehension of it. God Bless you and your communities. I send my love to you and my prayers. Sorry to be stupid on this occasion.
You are never stupid, my dear one, please don't say that again, at least not because of something I said. I am certain that the issue is that I have not been clear enough. I need to pray more about this and I shall address this topic again. You are in our prayers, please keep our monasteries in yours.
Thank you, Father. I find that, as I am today, I'm able to speak the truth with love only to children and not to adults. Please pray for me, that my love for children may expand into a love for their parents as well. Please pray that the Lord may forgive me for judging these men and women who hold the sacred office of fathers and mothers to these children.
This is difficult. This is easy for God and Christ, but it is difficult for the human heart to want it.
The last 6+ mo father I started dabbeling in learning of demonic interference. It has been depressing to see how much is being twiddled with.
As I research I find methods or practices that help squelch it(I research so as to not waste my money) I’ve gotten a lot of push back from priests blessing things. For example I was told blessing more then one candle in my house doesn’t matter.
The more I apply practices and defenses towards Christ the better things get for not only me but my children too. They’ve noticed i’m doing different things but I’m not making them privy to everything, I want them to enjoy their chapter in life before adulthood washes in.
This was beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing
All we can do is speak the truth in love. Truth without love is ineffective. Ultimately it is not up to us to control how others interpret that. The truth is painful and sharper than a two edged sword. All we can do is pray for them and hope that God will change their minds. It’s up to them to decide what to do when the truth offends.
When Truth is spoken in Love, dear one, it never causes offence, it causes life-giving pain of heart, self-awareness and repentance. People may still reject the Truth, as they have rejected the Incarnate Truth, based on their own free will. Truth and Love cannot be separated, because Christ is both and one cannot divide Christ.
@@mullmonastery Yes and Amen Father Seraphim. 🥰🕊️😇
Well my friend the answer is Love with Christ as you said. If we speak because we love, our words will not condemn but will challenge our notions of what strength love has. Love conquers all ideas if love is understood. We see the hatred of ideas and actions and we can conquer them with kindness peace and understanding. Bravery is required.❤
This is a very hard topic to explain. Maybe because of the same reason for all the confusion we are experiencing like you said. But you explained it wonderfully. I find my self struggling with confusion so much it’s hard to explain myself and know if I am letting Christ speak for me. Amen
thank you!
If others speak against us there is the temptation to speak back against them in retaliation. But if actual abuse has taken place it is our duty to speak out otherwise we perpetrate a lie, and others will then fall into the same trap that we kept quiet about. The way abusers operate is they discredit the characters of their victims, making it the victim's "fault".
Thank you, Father. This video was for me. I have become such a hypocrite. Please pray for me.
May God bless you, my dear one. Don't be too harsh on yourself. Do the hard work of growing in your Love (focus on your own sin, do not judge others, learn a drop of humility etc) and that Love will teach you how to speak Truth. Christ is both Love and Truth; once you have one, you also have the other. Move forward with hope, dear one.
@@mullmonastery thank you, Father.
"In the confusion there is profit", I took it from a movie.
Too many people who call themselves Christian have one foot in the world and one foot (on Sunday) in Christianity, as if it's something you do instead of what we ARE. We must LIVE Christ and LOVE Him more than anyone or anything else, as that is the only way to let go of the things of this wretched world.
I understand that better now that I am older too. How should I communicate that to people younger than I am who believe they must control me given whatever they have been told otherwise? How should I communicate that to people older than I am whom I have never been introduced to in person outside of a hospital room who have at first sight upon seeing me has decided that I am to be regarded only at best as an oddity that was based on lies. When young when being treated like that it was so very hard. It is easier for me now to cope with that sort of thing. Why is it that so many of us now are feared while it is being surmised that we may be presenting a false image of ourselves? Is that only because of our past injuries which have healed not according to only what they want to believe instead? One person is not the whole world. I am not equipped to save the soul of someone. Only god can.
My wife is not Orthodox my sister is Muslim and my brother is transgender. I wish there was a way to speak to them about truth but they reject it and I don't want them to reject it more because I'm challenging their truth. Pray for me and if you have any advice that would be much appreciated. Thank you Father.
See Fr. Seraphim's reply to @elliotwiist8478 a few comments above yours. That may help you.
Father, please tell me what to do. I want to do and say the right things
Thank you, father! Can you please make a video about ways to communicate the truth from a place of love? It's so difficult to find the right words sometimes without appearing like we act 'smart' in front of others who may not yet have found Christ. Especially in a world where there is so much emphasis on 'individual truth', whenever you express your point of view you receive an answer along the lines of 'well, this is your truth, not the absolute truth, I have mine, and it's no less valid than yours'. Also, what if we fear we are not 'worthy' Christian examples ourselves, so as to feel confident to express our belief to others.
You speak, the one who wants to understand will do. The one who doesn't will not. The one who are not able will pray to Christ to help him to understand
This was a good topic for me today. I have been working on trying to love people more, especially strangers, and those I disagree with. Finding that true Christ like love for those who sin and are often angry and hateful, because they want to keep their sins, and live in them, even though they often harm them, in both the long and short term, because they get some gratification, an idea of freedom, and a mindset that they are not hurting anyone, so should be left alone, even when hurting themself. I was in this type of sin myself, and want to be clear this is not judgment on those living in and pushing for the acceptance these sins, but an understanding that my desires, were not Christ's desires for me, and I often put those above Him, without really meaning to.
I do think the goal here, once I find that better form of love, would be to always speak the truth, but try to do so in a way that is respectful and understanding. Let them talk and listen, try to empathize, and understand where they are coming from while telling them why is it sinful, and they should repent, and doing so would most likely make them feel better, as I know for me, it was quite freeing when I quit trying to push for my desires, but instead, put Christ first, and started to trust his desires foe me. Since I am not quite at the level of love yet, I have learned to not rebuke people, nor engage, unless I know and trust them enough that I have a good love for them, and can try to be careful and not judge, nor harm them as I try to guild them towards a better path.
Father can you please make a video on how to be more humble. Ive understood that without humility there is nothing. And i do not have even a fraction of it. Can you please make a video on feeding and growing humility
My pride is so deep
Pride and the ego is very loud and quick to voice it's opinions ive found. I fail often but i try to be patient in my responses with others lest i drive them away with my sin and ignorance.
I’m not sure why but I feel like I have only understood the surface level message and there’s a much deeper level that is opaque to me. Father bless.
Yes it does seem that Jezebel is in a lot of churches nowadays. We must approach her in the only in the revealed truth of Christ that Elijah and the jews did not yet have.
🥺😔🙏💔❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Values are different than morals. I think
Thank you. Truth is rooted in Love. Hence if we speak Truth without love is it Truth then?
There is no such thing as Truth without Love, my dear one, because Christ is Love and Truth. When we speak of truth outside love, we actually reduce Truth to the 'truths' we get from books and intellectual concepts - these can be uttered from a place of hatred, as we see from the Garden of Eden (when the snake told Adam and Eve the 'truth' that they would become like God; that was a 'truth', God did create us in His image and likeness, but it was a truth spoken out of hatred and it lead to death).
The only Truth Who is also Life-giving is Christ Himself, and He is Truth and Love, impossible to separate.
Thank you! May we live in the Truth and Love of Christ.
We are seeing the downfall of the RC church unfold, the acceptance of abortion and the rainbow sin becoming terms for the ability to bank, shop, and more. I pick Christ, and if that means I am cut off from things, so be it.
What terrible times we live in.
I am so sorry. It is terribly painful to watch what is happening in the RC church. I have found the Orthodox Faith to be a calm refuge for myself from a church that left true Christianity and is actively preaching another gospel. If you can find a church to attend and talk to a priest, you may find comfort and healing. You will certainly find people who are sinners in the Orthodox Church, but hopefully you will also see that all are trying to repent and be healed. All the goodness of God is poured out to me through participation in the life of the church. May you be comforted and blessed.
I believe I understand what you are, trying to say as you remember, Stephen, the first martyr allowed the mind of Christ to fill his mouth and tongue with the truth. The world reacted as it always reacts to truth they want to stop it and kill it but you still have to open your mouth because you love those people, Jesus told his disciples don’t take anything with you when you go preach no parchments which match scripture but the Holy Spirit will put in your mouth what I want to say we must come to that fairy point of dying to flesh and our own logical mind it doesn’t mean to throw logic away it means to be in Christ and him and you more and more. This is the only way we can love the world. Love you Lord and do as we are commanded. Jesus says I am going away but I’m not leaving you comfortless I am sending the Holy Spirit we are asked, according to scripture to seek The gifts of the spirit, I don’t think people know what that is what discernment is one of the gifts going to be silent and when to allow the spirit to speak through us, I have subscribed to your podcast channel. I feel that the spirit is speaking through you, but like all of us, you have some struggles with your own thoughts , another Bible verse, says cast your cares upon him and leave your life upon him. Your major concerns for others Hass to be in Christ through his Holy Spirit. Please excuse the lack of punctuation. I have to use the microphone, and I am not always sure where to put in the correct punctuation , thanks again and God bless your ministry in Jesus name, and in the name of the father and the name of the son and then the name of the Holy Ghost Amen
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