Saturday, October 28, 2017

XXI Pentecost! Married and Called?

XXI Pentecost! Married and Called?
                                      







Greetings in Christ Jesus

Sunday October 29, 2017


Epistle: 1Timothy 3: 1-13
Gospel: Luke 16: 1-13
Psalm:  Psalm 112/113

Friends,

(About Bishops: “if a man desires the office of a bishop, he desires a good work.” Bishops should be blameless, husband of one wife, sober, prudent, good behavior, chaste, given to hospitality, teacher, not given to wine, no striker, modest, not quarrelsome, not covetous, one that rules well his own house, children in subjection with all chastity, not a neophyte, having a good testimony. Also Deacons. Also women.)

So what is it in this epistle today that St. Paul is saying to us? It starts with saying that the desiring of the office of Bishop is a good work and then he speaks on what makes a good Bishop; blameless; this does not mean to be sinless as this is impossible, St. Paul is stressing that the man should live an upright life in honesty, high integrity and not be the subject of scandal. Next we see that he is to be the husband of one wife; this will automatically exclude polygamists, one wife is also taken to mean that he should have been married only once not married, divorced and remarried.

Does it also mean that being married is a requirement of the office? For those who forbid the marriage of a Bishop (which of course goes against the scripture) they will say that this is not a command or requirement and of course they will say this because they refuse the office to a married man (which again goes against the scripture). Of course we realize that it is not an actual binding requirement because not all of the apostles were married. 

However I do find it ironic that the two largest groups of Christianity who claim ancient apostolic descendancy refuse marriage to a Bishop and one of those two actually forbids it. These two ancient groups of apostolic descendancy do not even agree on apostolic teaching or understanding, each has excommunicated the other, each claims that the other withdrew from the true church and yet anyone who is called to preach, who fasts, studies his lessons, listens to the Holy Spirit and lives a life dedicated to Jesus Christ teaching only that which has been taught since the apostles and the church father’s but was not born and raised into either of these groups and is married is not recognized as a teacher of the word, even though the two cannot themselves determine between them what is truth.

If one has been called by our Lord to teach, studies, fasts, prays, teaching according to the apostles and the father’s then no one has anything to say regarding this one’s calling. “Master, said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in Your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not accompany us.” “Do not stop him,” Jesus replied, “for whoever is not against you is for you.”…  Hmm. Perhaps the true church would like to monopolize the people of the earth and claim all for themselves instead of for Jesus Christ. Perhaps power has gone to the head and they have become drunk with pride and arrogance. I do not know but I do know that I am tired of those who would attempt to bar the gates of heaven to those who are of a different fold even though they may teach the same doctrine.

If you have been called then you must answer. I myself was married and had children when I received the call. Even though there was a calling and a desire within me at a very young age, I did not fully respond until I was married and had children and yet the calling persisted. I remember distinctly saying to the Lord, “O.K. Lord I am ready, test me and prove me to see that I am ready and make me to become what it is that you are calling me to do.” Since I uttered those words well over forty years ago I have had three hit and run drivers in my life who have driven off leaving me for dying.

Also there has been two shotgun attacks and one pistol attack. During these times I have seen an angel come, intervene, and go leaving me to live in spite of my pistol attacker, once while lying in the hospital and not expected to survive the night the Holy Virgin, the Blessed Mary the Mother of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ visited me and spoke with me. This was attested as true to me and not just a dream because the night nurse came bursting into the room and turning on the light asking how was it that I was awake and talking and who and where was the woman that she heard talking to me. So I know that it was not a dream as I lay supposedly dying.

One must answer the call; I have been called from my sleep at 2:00 a.m. to pray for the soul of a man who unknown to me at that moment was burning to death in bed over 50 miles away. I learned of it later that morning when I received a phone call. Listen, each and every one of us can reach someone that no one else can reach, even if only one it is still worth the effort and attacks from the evil one. Hardships will not cease, I have lost four homes during my lifetime as well because of the relentless adversary. Amazingly I am alive and well, still working at physical labor (although soon to be retired from the secular workforce), still have a wife, food on the table, and a roof over my head. It has truly been an amazing adventure.

Is God calling you? The rest of the epistle speaks on Deacons and women serving as well, these are to meet the same requirements as the Bishop or Priest, Pastor, Elder, Deaconess, or whatever name one chooses to use. Answer the call.

Rich man with a steward, and the steward reduces the bills of debt so that the debtors will receive him into their houses. Jesus says to make friends of the mammon of iniquity that when you shall fall they may receive you into everlasting dwellings. Faithful in the least…No man can serve two masters; you cannot serve God and mammon.

The gospel talks about a not so wise steward who misused the master’s money and so was fired from his job. He immediately went out and reduced the bill of what was owed to the master by the master’s debtors in order to win favor with them so that they may take care of him once he was completely gone.

We do not know if he cut the master’s itself down in order to reduce the size but this may not be likely since the master praised him for his ingenuity. He may have over charged the debtors from the start and simply reduced the bill to cost or he may have completely given up his own commission on the debt in order to reduce it.

However, let us see the master as our Lord Jesus and we are merely His stewards of what He has given us. Nothing is ours, everything is a gift that we are to use wisely and if we do not use it wisely we will be called in to answer for it. As for the parable; if the earthly master commended his steward for acting shrewdly after he had squandered his master’s goods, how much more will our heavenly master commend us if we do not squander but use our gifts wisely? Answer the call.

“Praise the Lord, you children: praise you the Name of the Lord. Blessed be the Name of the Lord: from henceforth now and forever. From the rising of the sun to the going down of the same, the Name of the Lord is worthy of praise. The Lord is high above all nations: and His glory above the heavens…”

As the Psalmist say; praise, praise the Lord, bless His holy Name, the rising of the sun and the going down does not refer to simply a block of time but since the sun rises in the east and sets in the west it covers the whole earth. This means that everywhere, every land, every nation, every person, all of life everywhere should be praising the Lord.


If one does not have love for the soul of mankind and the desire that all come to the truth than one does not have Christ in them fully.

Little children, love one another; because this is our Lord’s command and if you fulfill this, nothing else is needed. Through love and because of love we will follow all of the commandments that we have been given. They are written on our hearts by the hand of Almighty God. We simply need to see them within us and follow.

Remember; if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all iniquity.
In Christ.




Member of the Autocephalous Orthodox Catholic Church 


of the Americas

Many Blessings!
+William


Saturday, October 21, 2017

XX Pentecost! Tradition and the Called!


   
                                   

Greetings in Christ Jesus

Sunday October 22, 2017


Epistle: II Thessalonians 2: 13-3:5
Gospel: Luke 13: 18-30
Psalm:  Psalm 110/111

Friends,

(Hold the traditions that you have learned. Not all men have faith, but God has faith. “And the Lord direct your hearts, in the charity of God, and the patience of Christ.”) What are we seeing here in this scripture? Before I expound on it I will place another one here that according to many is contradictory to what the church teaches; 2 Timothy 3:16-17 KJV, all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

Two sides of the argument are presented here; what are they? The first scripture is held by all of Catholicism even back through the Church Fathers as instruction in holding onto the oral traditions taught by the apostle as well as the written word. The second scripture from 2 Timothy is used by all non-catholic to say that once scripture was completed it contains everything needed including proper tradition that is to be followed and that if it isn’t in the Bible then it isn’t true.

So, does scripture contradict scripture? According to the argument from two sides it does but is this really Christian? No! Why does the Body of Christ argue with one another and slap our Lord Jesus in the face with this nonsense? There are many written words that contain truth that are not placed in these sets of books that most call a Bible, so why do we have the ones that we have? Scripture has gone through many changes throughout time but the reason that it even exists in the first place is to be a guide. This Bible was put together to serve the worship practice of the church which was and is liturgical.

The worship service has prayer, praise, singing, reading, and expounding and it follows an order of teaching, this teaching is liturgical; which means it follows a particular pattern in method of praise and in teaching throughout the year in which all of the people join in. It is a public worship centered around the Eucharist or Holy Communion of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. The method or tradition of worship is not defined in the Bible, it is spoken of and alluded to but not specifically defined. This is tradition, this is how it has been and is done.

Holy Scripture was placed where it is in order to follow this tradition of worship and teaching, there is no contradiction. The scriptures give us truths that we are to live by and the worship and the use of this scripture is from tradition. In worship we stand before Almighty God Himself, the entire heavenly host stands with us in worship, the communion of the saints is not just a phrase to be bandied about, it is truth. We do not tap dance on stage for entertainment when worshiping God. We do not entertain the people as worship. We face almighty God as one people and we worship, praise, petition, sing songs to, and partake of the Body and Blood as one body, one mind in Christ.

Hear the words of our Lord when He says that the kingdom of God is like a grain of mustard seed; think on this, Jesus is that grain of mustard seed buried in the tomb for three days and then rising. He became a tree when He ascended into heaven and He overshadows all of creation in the branches where all of the birds of heaven rest; these are the powers of heaven and all who raise themselves up by good works as commanded by our Lord. The apostles are the branches to where we take our flight on the wings of Christian virtue; we sow this seed of Christ in our hearts so that the grace of good works may flourish. Or like leaven hid in three measures of meal or flour till the whole was leavened; we as Christians are the flour who receive the Lord into the inner parts of our soul till we are all inflamed with the fire of His heavenly wisdom.  Try to enter by the narrow gate; Jesus also said that  many will come from the east, together these words are saying that many indeed shall be saved through the narrow gate but the true numbers as compared to all who have dwelt upon the earth shall be small.

There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth…last that shall be first; and they are first that shall be last. Understand that many came to Christ early in life but through time they have lost some virtue and some have lost all virtue, they are saved, they have become complacent with their station in life and they believe that they have a great reward because they have been in the church since the cradle, others came late in life, some even in very old age or near death, these latter will also receive the reward of eternal life because they did indeed come and they came with all of their heart whereas those who have been around had a less full heart through pride and complacency. We must strive to the very end, all are called at different times, as St. Paul said; when it pleased Him who separated me from my mother’s womb. When did it please god to call Paul? When Paul was ready to be called as our Lord does with each and every one of us, He calls when we are ready to hear. The call never stops throughout time but to the individual it comes when he is ready to hear.

So let us along with the psalmist say; “I will praise Thee, O Lord, with my whole heart: in the council of the just, and in the congregation. Great are the works of the Lord: sought out according to all His wills. His work is praise and magnificence: and His justice continues for ever and ever. He has made a remembrance of His wonderful works, being a merciful and gracious Lord: He has given food to them that fear Him…” 

If one does not have love for the soul of mankind and the desire that all come to the truth than one does not have Christ in them fully.

Little children, love one another; because this is our Lord’s command and if you fulfill this, nothing else is needed. Through love and because of love we will follow all of the commandments that we have been given. They are written on our hearts by the hand of Almighty God. We simply need to see them within us and follow.

Remember; if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all iniquity.


In Christ.







   
























Member of the Autocephalous Orthodox Catholic Church of the Americas

Many Blessings!

+William

Saturday, October 14, 2017

Pentecost XIX! Pray without Ceasing!













      
     Greetings in Christ Jesus
            Sunday October 15, 2017



Epistle: 1 Thessalonians 5: 9-28
Gospel: Luke 12: 2-12
Psalm: Psalm 108/109



Friends,

God has not made us for wrath, but purchasing of salvation through Jesus Christ; whether we watch or sleep we may live together with Him. [Pray without ceasing] Jesus Christ is faithful to you and will do it. Friends what does it mean ‘whether we watch or sleep’? Scripture is speaking of the living and the dead here. Whether Christ comes while we live or are in the grave doesn’t matter, if we are His then we are His eternally.

Understand that there is order in the church, this epistle tells us to rebuke the unquiet, and that is those who are disorderly. Another reading is to rebuke the unruly, so within the church there are those who call themselves Christian and yet their lives are disorderly or unruly and not conformed to the teachings of our Lord, for these we are to rebuke. It is up to those Christians to heed the rebuke, love everyone; as this epistle says to comfort the feebleminded or fainthearted, support those who are weak; this could be said for both the physically weak but even more so for those who are spiritually weak. We all have faults and we need to support one another.

Do not commit an evil act to someone because that one has committed an evil act against you. Follow that which is good towards one another, rejoice always, and be constantly in prayer and do not extinguish the spirit that was given to you. Prove and hold fast to that which is good, in today’s world just as in the days of the apostles the false prophets abound, many people are deceived or end up in endless debates that are fruitless and waste time that should be spent seeking Jesus, these endless debates are most often things that have nothing to do with salvation and serve no real purpose but are given some purpose by the deceiver and spread throughout Christendom as a means to take up that precious time.

Hear the prophets but investigate and prove all things whether they are true. Give thanks for all things and stay away from anything that even has the appearance of evil. How many Christians do this today? We have so many excuses and we can come up with any number of reasons why something is o.k. that has every appearance of evil. We are told to stay away. May the God of peace Himself sanctify you in all things: that your whole spirit, and soul, and body, may be preserved blameless in the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. How will this happen when we do not abstain from the evil?

There is nothing covered that shall not be revealed. Do not fear those who can kill the body. But I will shew you who you shall fear: fear him, who after he has killed, has power to cast into hell. Yea, I say to you, fear him. Confess me before men, him shall the son of Man also confess before the angels of God. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him: but to him that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven. The Holy Spirit shall teach you in the same hour what you must say.

How much is needed to be explained here? Confess Jesus and Jesus will confess us. Be careful in one’s judgment, as the Pharisees claimed that Jesus was working through the spirit of the evil one they were condemned. Be very careful in one’s condemnation of another and of the words used; choose one’s words carefully as we all shall answer for every word spoken by us. If we do indeed depend on the spirit alone then we shall be given wisdom and the words that we must speak. There are many among us who earn a good living by condemning others and calling them the antichrist. Be careful. Those who constantly speak in this manner may very well be condemning themselves. I am speaking of the condemnation of those who claim to be speaking in the name of Jesus. Truth and falseness must be proven not just conjectured by and through prejudice and pride.

O God, be not silent in my praise: for the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful man is opened against me. As this Psalm states; God will take care of all who would speak against the spirit. God will have mercy on all who call upon His name in truth and love, all others will be as dead, even now as they attack the Holy Spirit by attacking Jesus they are already dead, they are a dead man walking until such time as they repent and confess, on the other hand it is us who must pray for them so that by the mercy of God they may believe and become saved through Christ.

If one does not have love for the soul of mankind and the desire that all come to the truth than one does not have Christ in them fully.

Little children, love one another; because this is our Lord’s command and if you fulfill this, nothing else is needed. Through love and because of love we will follow all of the commandments that we have been given. They are written on our hearts by the hand of Almighty God. We simply need to see them within us and follow.


Remember; if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all iniquity.


In Christ.







Member of the Autocephalous Orthodox Catholic Church of the Americas







Monk Michael's videos; http://www.youtube.com/user/HieroMonkMichael

Many Blessings!
+William

Friday, October 6, 2017

Walk Worthily of God!

XVIII Pentecost! Walk Worthily of God!
                                      






Greetings in Christ Jesus

Sunday October 8, 2017


Epistle: 1 Thessalonians 2: 9-19
Gospel: Luke 11: 14-26
Psalm:  Psalm 106/107

Friends,

In our epistle today we see that we are to walk worthily of God. Friends, this is not simply mere belief, our very life should reflect Jesus Christ. Everything that we say and do should reflect Jesus. What are we told? Avoid cursing, flee from fornication, do not lie, do not cheat, love God first and love our neighbor as our self. These things are necessary for us who claim to be a friend of Jesus. We also see in this epistle that even this great apostle, St. Paul, was hindered by Satan. We see that those who choose to follow the way will be persecuted; the world is becoming even more insane, slowly spiraling downhill into the pit.

This is a planned and a well executed strategy to bring mankind into complete degeneration of spirit, mind, and body. Far too many people simply close their eyes and continue to be concerned with comfort and games, excitement, the things that we somehow deserve and while we are doing this the world is destroying humanity while humanity is accepting this with open arms and an excited mind because of all of the great creature comforts that it will have and the completely free lifestyle that it may live without fear of chastisement or ridicule.

This wickedness is not new to the world; it has been around since the beginning. It shows itself in many different ways but always with the same goal in mind. Almost immediately after Paul preached the persecutors would arrive, the persecutors followed Jesus Himself around ridiculing and questioning. None of this is new. The church allowed the evil in even in the beginning; Paul’s letters are proof of this. The body of Christ is so split that it mocks Jesus simply by its existence. There are many who come to believe of course but there are many who refuse to believe and many who leave because the Body of Christ is so divided that there are those who will kill others simply because they have a different manner of worship.

In our gospel today Jesus is accused of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebub, can you imagine that the savior of the world who came to His own people who were expecting Him to come would be accused of using the power of darkness? This is still happening today and far too many people believe it. What are the words of the Lord in today’s gospel? Every kingdom divided against itself, shall be brought to desolation, and house upon house shall fall. And if Satan also be divided against himself, how shall his kingdom stand?

Is this any different for the church? No it is not. We must destroy our pride, we must become humble and truly seek the truth, and we cannot simply determine that we already know all truth because obviously we do not. There are too many different doctrines taught, too many false prophets followed, too many accusations of heresy, yes there is true heresy; if one denies that Jesus is God then that one is a heretic but if one understands the Holy Trinity, if one believes that Jesus is from God and is God who came in the flesh and truly loves Jesus and is also making every attempt to live as Jesus would have him to live, how can this one be called a heretic.

We all have error in our understanding; the Body of Christ needs to begin acting like the Body of Christ. Far too many are concerned with riches in this world by making money on their attacks on another. Admire who you want but our every action and our every word will be held accountable. There will be no one to blame but ourselves for this.

It is good, as we learn in today’s Psalm; that God is good and merciful. He will forgive us of our sins if we repent of them and give thanks and glory to God. But this is what we must do. The idea of loving our neighbor is not simply a New Testament concept but something that is from the beginning. The so called Old Testament is full of the same teaching and understanding, one just has to simply read it to see and understand it. This is the true law of God, love. Until one understands this then one will always be in error.

If one does not have love for the soul of mankind and the desire that all come to the truth than one does not have Christ in them fully.

Little children, love one another; because this is our Lord’s command and if you fulfill this, nothing else is needed. Through love and because of love we will follow all of the commandments that we have been given. They are written on our hearts by the hand of Almighty God. We simply need to see them within us and follow.

Remember; if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all iniquity.

In Christ.




   

































Member of the Autocephalous Orthodox Catholic Church of the Americas









Many Blessings!

+William

Saturday, September 30, 2017

Be Instant in Prayer!



                    
  

XVII Pentecost! Be Instant in Prayer!

         







  


Greetings in Christ Jesus

Sunday October 1, 2017


Epistle: Colossians 4: 2-18
Gospel: Luke 9: 57-62
Psalm:  Psalm 104/105

Friends,

How does today’s Epistle apply to us in this day and age? Read the first few verses; 2 Be instant in prayer; watching in it with thanksgiving: 3 Praying withal for us also, that God may open unto us a door of speech to speak the mystery of Christ (for which also I am bound;) 4 That I may make it manifest as I ought to speak. 5 Walk with wisdom towards them that are without, redeeming the time. 6 Let your speech be always in grace seasoned with salt: that you may know how you ought to answer every man.

What wisdom is here in these few words alone? Be instant in prayer; friends just look around you, we live in a world that embraces faithlessness, a total lack of loyalty not only to our nations but to even our own families and to Jesus Christ Himself even among those who call themselves Christian. How many truly meditate on the word of God and make attempts at living it? I say attempts because we will and do fall flat on our faces every day. This is a struggle, run the good race as we read in the scriptures, why does it say that? Because it is a fight between the flesh and the spirit and between the spirits of good against the spirits of evil, it is a daily struggle, and a moment by moment struggle, do not remain passive in this.

Even sports figures and entertainers are idolized and everyman is a god unto himself. The world chooses to be entertained rather than to seek God. One who calls himself Christian yet chooses entertainment everyday and only one hour per week doing his duty to worship God is only fooling himself. Yet this is the way it is today, people have become self righteous, proud, all believing that somehow we deserve some luxurious living, comfort and expensive, fancy lifestyles, elegant and regal because we are so special in our own eyes.

We are a world of foolish people who have forgotten our Creator and our Lord. Think about where we are headed and cut this off within ourselves immediately. Be instant in prayer; guard you heart, your soul, and your mind from the evil that is prevalent throughout the world. Watching in it with thanksgiving; do not forget to thank the Lord for the good that He has in fact done for and to us.
But pray not only for yourself but for others also so that they may have a guarded heart, soul, and mind so that all may gain the wisdom from the Lord that all may speak wisely to others the truth without fear, seek that peace and learn to also remain silent when it may be prudent to do so. Remember the words of our Lord; greet others with peace and if they do not accept this peace, if they do not choose to hear your words; walk away and shake the dust off of your feet. Not all want to hear the truth and it cannot be force fed to anyone. But protect your own heart and maintain that peace within you.

Our gospel tells us how to make this all happen; we are to first of all seek God above all worldly understanding and knowledge as well as pleasures, seek the Kingdom of God first, learn to do His will first and then we shall be capable of walking about in wisdom knowing that many if not most will choose not to hear, but through our own lifestyle; living the truth, living the peace, loving the soul of another and remaining in constant prayer and worship of Almighty God; there will be those who shall be converted. Preach Jesus Christ by the way that we live and then use words when appropriate.

As the Psalmist says; 1 Alleluia. Give glory to the Lord, and call upon his name: declare his deeds among the Gentiles. 2 Sing to him, yes sing praises to him: relate all his wondrous works. 3 Glory in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the Lord. 4 Seek the Lord, and be strengthened: seek his face evermore.

If one does not have love for the soul of mankind and the desire that all come to the truth than one does not have Christ in them fully.

Little children, love one another; because this is our Lord’s command and if you fulfill this, nothing else is needed. Through love and because of love we will follow all of the commandments that we have been given. They are written on our hearts by the hand of Almighty God. We simply need to see them within us and follow.

Remember; if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all iniquity.

In Christ.



   


































Member of the Autocephalous Orthodox Catholic Church of the Americas

Many Blessings!

+William

Friday, September 22, 2017

Calling Sinners to Repentance!


XVI Pentecost! Calling Sinners to Repentance!









                                      


Greetings in Christ Jesus,

Sunday September 24, 2017


Epistle: Philippians 1: 12-20
Gospel: Luke 5: 27-32
Psalm:  Psalm 102/103

Friends,

People say that the Lord works in mysterious ways. This is in fact truer than many realize. In today’s epistle we see that the Apostle St. Paul is writing while in chains. While imprisonment was meant to stop his preaching it only allowed him to continue and along with his continuing while in chains others received courage to begin preaching as well as others continuing their own preaching. Some preach the gospel out of love for Jesus and the preaching of the gospel while others preach the gospel out of envy and contention not from sincerity but under the idea that their preaching will only infuriate the authorities even more against Paul. But what does Paul think about this? His heart is glad about it, he rejoices in this, if those who are preaching out of contention are preaching the truth then in fact the truth is still being preached which continues to spread the true gospel.

In today’s gospel we see that Jesus has called a publican, a tax collector, a position that was much hated by most Jews and considered these people to be great sinners. Yet Jesus calls this man to follow Him. So the man does, we can see that we cannot ever judge the heart of any one person by this example. We do not know at any time who will hear and take the word to heart and who will not hear and take the word to heart. We are not the ones who decide this. We preach the word for al to hear but as Paul says to the Corinthians; I give you milk still because you are not yet ready for meat. We are told to not cast our pearls before the swine. This does not mean that we do not simply preach the truth to all, but there is meaning in depth here; in the Eucharist or Holy Communion, in the partaking of the Body and Blood we need to be careful. Those who hear but do not understand, those who refuse to believe the truth as in the fact that Jesus was indeed the Word of God in the flesh, true God of true God, begotten not made, has no part in the Body and Blood. They participate to their own downfall. These pearls we do not cast before the swine who are those in this saying are the ones who preach that Jesus is not God from God.

So in today’s Psalm we see that we are to bless the Lord in all things with all that we have, our very being is to bless the Lord. Regardless of our circumstances we are to bless the Lord. Paul blessed the Lord and continued preaching and serving even though in persecution, chains, and in prison. What is our excuse today? The world continues to degenerate, spiraling downhill and going out of control. How many will believe or who will believe? We do not know these answers. We know only this; in living out our lives here we are to be examples of the love of Almighty God. When the opportunity is there we are to speak on the saving grace of our Lord Jesus the Christ. Back biting in the Body of Christ is not acceptable. It is a disgrace and needs to stop. Love for humanity is the only way.
If one does not have love for the soul of mankind and the desire that all come to the truth than one does not have Christ in them fully.

Little children, love one another; because this is our Lord’s command and if you fulfill this, nothing else is needed. Through love and because of love we will follow all of the commandments that we have been given. They are written on our hearts by the hand of Almighty God. We simply need to see them within us and follow.

Remember; if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all iniquity.

In Christ.



   


















Member of the Autocephalous Orthodox Catholic Church of the Americas









Many Blessings!

+William