Your enemies have not fallen asleep, and night and day they do not forget to set traps for you. Do not seek after honors, then, so you will not be humiliated to the great joy of your enemies. Seek rather humility. — St. Pachomius the Great (5th C)
Do not accept any thoughts of pride suggested by Satan, but constantly criticize yourself, for that evil rascal has defiled us with disgraceful passions, so how can we be proud? We need weeping and a river of tears to wash away our filth and sores. Bear in mind the humility of the Crucified Lord: “Learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Matt. 11:29) Only by achieving true humility shall we find true tranquility and peace in the tempestuous state of our soul. — Elder Ephraim
A Father gave this counsel: “Whenever you want to subdue your high and proud thoughts, examine your conscience carefully: Have you kept all the commandments? Have you loved your enemies and been kind to them in their misfortunes? Have you counted yourself to be an unprofitable servant and the worst of all sinners? If you find you have done all this, do not therefore think well of yourself as if you had done everything well but realize that even the thought of such things is totally destructive.” — From the Lives of the Desert Fathers:
The Sign of the Cross as a blessing from a priest or a bishop is an expression of the blessing or of the favor of God to a person in Christ and for Christ’s sake. What a joyful, significant and precious ceremony this is! Blessed are all who receive such a blessing with faith! How attentive should the priests themselves be in bestowing their blessing upon the faithful! “And they shall put My name upon the children of Israel, and I will bless them” (Numbers 6:27). — St. John of Kronstadt
We must learn to bow down before the will of God and not insist on our will. Obedience to the will of God is carried out through obedience to our elders, parents, teachers, and supervisors at work. . . If we have obedience we will understand what is required of us.
God, by His Divine Providence, has established it so: we attain eternal life by our voluntary death. If you will not die a voluntary death, you cannot attain eternal life and you will be dead. He who does not die a perfect death by cutting off his own will, shall not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. — Elder Thaddeus of Serbia
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