Friday, February 20, 2009

preparing for Lent

Two things should be uppermost in our minds and hearts this Great Lenten Season which is about to begin: first, God’s love is given in abundance, so if we don’t feel it deeply, it is our own lack of receptivity and openness that causes this loss of understanding and feeling of love. Secondly, “the Kingdom of God is within” said the Lord. We must go deeper and deeper inwardly in prayer and heartfelt petition, in silence and in self-restraint, and in the spirit of generosity in order to touch and find this inward Kingdom where Christ is manifest. As we move through this Holy Season, let us open ourselves in our inner poverty, and ask persistently that Christ come to teach us the sacrifice of a contrite heart which He will not despise. O Lord of Life, teach us how to prepare for Thy sacrificial and life-giving Death, and Thy glorious and most bright day of Thy Holy Resurrection.
(Fr. Simeon, Abbot of St. Isaac of Syria – http://www.skete.com)

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