Words from the Saints -- July 8, 2021

"A man wanted to do evil, but first prayed as usual; and finding himself prevented by God, he was then extremely thankful." --St. Mark the Ascetic

"The Lord seeks a heart filled to overflowing with love for God and our neighbor; this is the throne on which He loves to sit and on which He appears in the fullness of His heavenly glory." --St. Seraphim of Sarov

"Patiently endure the distressing and painful things that befall you, for through them God in His providence is purifying you." --St. Thalassios the Libyan

"When a man severs himself from evil, he gains an exact understanding of all the sins he has committed against God..." --St. Isaiah the Solitary

"If you want spiritual health, listen to your conscience, do all it tells you, and you will benefit." --St. Mark the Ascetic

"When you hear that Christ descended into hell in order to deliver the souls dwelling there, do not think that what happens now is very different. The heart is a tomb and there our thoughts and our intellect are buried, imprisoned in heavy darkness. And so Christ comes to the souls in hell that call upon Him, descending, that is to say, into the depths of the heart; and there He commands death to release the imprisoned souls that call upon Him, for He has power to deliver us. Then, lifting up the heavy stone that oppresses the soul, and opening the tomb, He resurrects us--for we were truly dead--and releases our imprisoned soul from its light-less prison." --St. Makarios of Egypt

"A true man is one who understands that the body is corruptible and short-lived, whereas the soul is divine and immortal and, while being God's breath, is joined to the body to be tested and deified. Now he who has understood what the soul is regulates his life in a way that is just and conforms to God." --St. Anthony the Great