Others fear failure:
Whenever such a person thinks of doing some business, he fears it may fail or face hindrances, plotting of competitors, or dishonesty of partners. If he is poor he fears becoming needy, and if rich fears robbery, and in all cases he keeps afraid.
Some people fear dangers.
If such a person takes an aeroplane he fears some calamity would happen, and he remembers such things published in newspapers. In any means of transportation he is in fear of accidents. All dark memories come to his mind in this respect and this makes him always afraid.
There is a type of people who fear their own weakness.
Such person fears his inability, his forgetfulness, his weakness before the power of his competitors or adversaries, and his inability to withstand. This makes him lose his self-confidence, the spirit of bravery, and the power to take an initiative. The image of inability and failure is always before his eyes. He even fears sin and feels unable to resist it.
Such fear causes a person confusion, disturbance and trouble, and may paralyze his ability to work.
It will have a bad effect on his soul and nerves. Fear will appear on his features, on his looks, on his voice and on his movements. He will tremble, become pale, and his heart beats increase. Everybody will see his fear which appears in his behavior, his hesitation, his inability to take decisions, and his seeking protection.
Fear may lead some to dejection. They put before them the words, “anyone who finds me will kill me.” (Gen 4: 4). A spiritual person, on the other hand, does not fear, but peace reigns over his heart, giving him confidence.
—H.H. Pope Shenouda III, Fruits of the Spirit
Category: BEST OF
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One may feel afraid from some people though they do not think of doing him any harm at all.
King Saul, for instance, used to be afraid of David, and pursued him everywhere to kill him, though David never thought of doing him harm. Even when Saul was in his hand, and David had the opportunity to kill him, and his followers advised him to do so, nevertheless David said, “The Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, to stretch out my hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the Lord.”.
‘And David rebuked his servants and did not allow them to rise against Saul (1 Sam 24: 6, 7). And see what David said to the king, “After whom has the king of Israel come out? Whom do you pursue? A dead dog? A flea?” These words made Saul lift up his voice and weep and say to David, “You are more righteous than I.” (1 Sam 24: 14, 16).
—H.H. Pope Shenouda III, Fruits of the Spirit
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The saint sees that one hour of sleep per day is sufficient for a monk. While many people see that a person must sleep for eight hours per day, some specialists and those who have experience assert that the body, through habit, may be satisfied with less than that, without any effect on the productivity of the person, just like the stomach which gets used to being small or large in size.
Abba Arsenius The Tutor of the Emperor’s Sons
Bishop Macarius -
God forms character in obscurity. Right now you might feel forgotten. Do not despise the hidden season. Hidden years are not wasted years.
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Clement possessed all the characteristics of the talented master: a flashing intellect, a fiery enthusiasm, and an ever youthful soul. He believed that teaching was a divine mission, and gave himself wholeheartedly to it. He went as far as opening his School to all who came, regardless of age and sex. And the people from all walks of life crowded to hear him: the rich and learned aristocrats; the women of high rank, powdered and perfumed; young “ne’er-do-wells,” coming from sheer curiosity, philosophers and rhetoricians. A medley of a crowd, if ever there was one. A cynic, looking at such a crowd, might well have declared that it was void of all good.
THE STORY OF THE COPTS
THE TRUE STORY OF THE CHRISTIANS OF EGYPT WHO HAVE LIVED THE BIBLE FOR 2,000 YEARSBY IRIS HABIB EL MASRI
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Always keep the same measure of self-control; otherwise through irregularity you will go from one extreme to another.
—St. Thalassios the Libyan -
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
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“If you want it to be private, don’t let it leave your lips.”
—Fr. Tadros Malaty
SO GOOD QUOTES 