Properly Valuing the Whole World
What is this whole world, with all its continents, its past, present, and future? What does it amount to? Nothing! I resonate with a statement from one scholar who once said: “When I was a child I saw myself in comparison to the world as a small speck of sand on an endless beach of an endless ocean.” So what if someone lives in any given city within a specific country, which is part of a specific continent, which in turn is a small part of planet Earth, itself just one of innumerable planets? What would that mean? It is nothing. What does this person turn out to be? He says: “When I was a child, I saw myself as a small speck of sand on an endless beach of an endless ocean, but now I know that I am the endless ocean and the whole world is a small speck of sand on my beach.”
What is this world?! One who sits to think of the world finds that it is frivolous. If you asked him, “What is the world?” he would say, “A small speck of sand on my beach.” And if you asked, “What is your endless beach?” he would reply, “This is the beach leading to eternity.” If you see yourself as the image and likeness of God, then what does this world amount to? With all its noise, struggles, desires, and status, what does the world amount to? Nothing. This is a person’s valuation of the world.
—H.H. Pope Shenouda III, Monastic Treasures for All of Us
Author: SO GOOD QUOTES
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Even all the incidents you experience are permitted by God so you can gain a spiritual benefit from them…
There are those who become nervously, psychologically or mentally affected by incidents. Others are affected spiritually by whatever events they experience; everything that happens to them makes them closer to God….
The people that you meet, are sent by God. Passing your way, they are for your own spiritual benefit, if you know how to benefit from them.
The righteous present you with an example and a blessing, while you benefit endurance, patience, and forgiveness for others from evil.
—H.H. Pope Shenouda III, WORDS OF SPIRITUAL BENEFIT VOL. II
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Truly God has many solutions… We think of our problems, using our human mind, which is limited. As for God He is unlimited in His knowledge and His wisdom. When matters become complicated, their complication is relative for us human beings. As for God nothing becomes complicated, everything is easy and the solutions are many. God interferes at the right time and in the suitable way. It could be a solution that never crossed our minds, one that we never thought of or expected…
—H.H. Pope Shenouda III, WORDS OF SPIRITUAL BENEFIT VOL. II
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153. YOUR COMFORT AND THE COMFORT OF OTHERS
A noble person does not build his comfort on the weariness of others. But the noble one is he who sacrifices his comfort in order to comfort others.
A mother might feel comfort in having her son by her side while the son, at the same time, might find comfort in being far from home. He might travel, migrate, become a monk or live on his own with a wife. Here, the noble mother would let him go without insisting on her comfort by his side.
—H.H. Pope Shenouda III, Words of Spiritual Benefit Vol. IV
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Many take actions that they later on regret, either due to its bad results or because their conscience troubles them and turns against them. It could also be that they fail to put matters back to the way they were before taking these wrong actions.
The regret increases more as the person realises the horror of his sin and the greatness of his guilt, just like Judas, and as Cain said, “My punishment is greater than I can bear.” (Gen. 4:13).
The regret also increases when one realises that it is of no use. For example, a word is said and nobody can get it back, or take it out of the ears of those who heard it, no matter how the person apologises.
Wrong deeds that one regrets could be the result of rashness, hastiness and lack of consideration. It could also be due to lack of consultation before taking such action. The terrible and wrong deed could also be the outcome of anger, inner revolution, loss of self-control, ignoring the results or not giving them a thought completely.
As one regrets what he does hastily and without consultation, he may also regret giving in to his desires and passions, without putting God before him and without considering his dignity as an image of God.
One may also regret not taking the future into account when he acted carelessly in a light, and lazy manner.
Nevertheless, regret has its benefit, as it leads one to repentance, correcting his lifestyle. It also has another benefit, as it leads one to a life of humility and contrition. That is what happened with the prophet David, who every night, drenched his couch with his tears. It also happened to St. Paul, the Apostle, who says, “… I am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the Church of God.” (1 Cor. 15:9).
Regret could be of benefit here, but in eternity it turns into torment. There wouldn’t be repentance, as the time of repentance would be over, “… and the door was shut …” as in the parable of the foolish virgins who heard the Lord saying, “I do not know you.” (Matt. 25:10). The regret here turned into “.. weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matt. 25:30).
Struggle then while you are on earth before it is too late when regret wouldn’t be of benefit. That is the share of those who do not labour now, as the poet says:
If you did not sow and watched a reaper –
You shall regret for wasting the time of sowing.
—H.H. Pope Shenouda III, Words of Spiritual Benefit Vol. IV -
Some cannot wait for death, and some are terrified of death. This becomes a marker for which life I’m walking.
—Fr. Mina Dimitri -
We are called to reflect the light of God, we are called to reflect His light—not to be preoccupied with darkness. We’re actually called to be preoccupied with light, to be so focused, so obsessed with light, that we spread that light everywhere we go. And because of this, we often think that being modest means that we should hide that light—that if there are some fruits in me, that I should hide it. I’m very careful about what I say. I’m so scared that perhaps my pride will get in the way. I’m so scared that perhaps I’ll be judged if I speak about my Christianity, if I speak about the love of God in the world, and we hide it, but this is exactly what Jesus is saying we shouldn’t do because if we never use those fruits, and we keep them hidden under our bed, those fruits begin to rot.
SO GOOD QUOTES 