Palm Sunday 

Phil. 4:4-9; John 12:1-18

Who did not meet the Lord when He triumphantly entered Jerusalem as a king; and who did not cry out then, Hosanna to the Son of David? (Matt. 21:15)? But only four days passed, and the same crowd cried with the same tongues, Crucify Him, crucify Him! (John 19:6). An amazing change! But why should we be surprised? Do we not do the very same thing when, upon receiving the Holy Mysteries of the Body and Blood of the Lord, we barely leave the church before forgetting everything-both our reverence and God's mercy toward us? We give ourselves over as before to self-pleasing deeds-at first small and then also large. Perhaps even before four days have passed, although we do not cry, "Crucify Him!" we will crucify the Lord within ourselves. The Lord sees all of this, and endures it. Glory to Thy long-suffering, O Lord!

-From St. Theophan the Recluse

Monday (Sixth Week of Lent)

Is. 48:17-49:4; Gen. 27:1-41; Prov. 19: 16-25

Thus says the Lord: I am thy God, I have shown thee how thou shouldest find the way wherein thou shouldest walk.And if thou hadst hearkened to My commandments, then would thy peace have been like a river, and thy righteousness as a wave of the sea. Thy seed also would have been as the sand, and the offspring of thy belly as the dust of the ground: neither now shalt thou by any means be utterly destroyed, neither shall thy name perish before Me. Under what condition should all this come to pass? Go forth of Babylon (Is. 48:17-20). 

Babylon is an image of all-around sinfulness. Abandon sin and turn to the Lord with all your heart. He will not remember your transgressions, and will consign of all your unrighteousness to oblivion. You will enter again into His mercy-and then you need only to walk the way which He will teach you, and your inner peace will be like river; the good thoughts of your heart, like the sand; and the fruits of your good works, like the dust of the ground. 

-From St. Theophan the Recluse 

Monday (Fifth Week of Lent)

Is. 37:33-38:6; Gen 13:12-18; Prov. 14:27-15:4

The eyes of the Lord behold both the evil and the good in every place (Prov. 15:3). Oh, if only rational creatures would always keep this in mind! Then not only would they not dare to commit excesses openly and to give themselves over to dissoluteness of the flesh, but neither would they inwardly, in their thoughts and in the movements of their heart, allow anything unpleasing to God. They would then stand like soldiers at the front before the king, with all attention and strictness toward themselves, that they not be found ignorant of their orders, nor be subject to the king's wrath and punishment. The orders given to rational creatures are the commandments of God, which determine the proper form of their thoughts, and how their feelings and dispositions ought to be. 

-From St. Theophan the Recluse

Saturday

Heb. 10:32-38; Mark 2:14-17

“I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance (Mark 2:17). Through the mouth of Wisdom the Lord called the foolish to Himself (Prov. 9:4). He Himself, sojourning upon the earth, called sinners, Neither the proud “clever ones” nor the self-willed righteous ones have a place with Him. Let the intellectual and moral infirmity rejoice! Let proud intelligence and practicality step aside! Total weakness that acknowledges itself as such and hastens with faith to the Lord, Who heals the weak and fills the impoverished, will become strong both intellectually and morally, but will continue to acknowledge both its intellectual poverty and evil inclinations. The power of God, under this unprepossessing cover and made perfect in weakness, invisibly creates a different person who is mentally and morally bright. This brightness is often manifest here, but it is always manifest there, in heaven. Behold what is hidden from the wise and prudent and is revealed only to babes (Matt. 11:25)!”

-From St. Theophan the Recluse

God calls all people to come to Him. But he especially welcomes the hurt, brokenhearted, and sorrowful sinners to rest in His grace. God is our strength and we rely on Him during our dark times of weakness. Our faith in Him will be restored in this way and He will make us new and perfect through Him.

Written by Jackie Loupakos