Wisdom of Solomon 8:7 [Orthodox Study Bible]
Therefore I decided to take her [wisdom] to live with me, knowing she would give me good counsel and encouragement in cares and sorrows. Because of her I will have glory among the multitudes and honor in the presence of the elders, though I am young. I will be found keen in judgment and be admired in the sight of rulers. When I am silent, they will wait for me, and when I speak, they will give heed to me; and when I speak longer, they will put their hand over their mouth. I will have immortality because of her and will leave an eternal remembrance for those who exist after me. I shall govern peoples, and nations will be subject to me. Dread tyrants shall be afraid of me when they hear of me; Among the people I will show myself to be good and courageous in war. When I enter my house, I shall find rest with her, for association with her has no bitterness, neither does living with her have any sorrow, but only gladness and joy. When I considered these things within myself and thought about them in my heart, that in kinship with wisdom there is immortality, and in friendship with her there is good pleasure, and in the labors of her hands there is unfailing wealth, and in the shared training of her company there is discernment, and in the fellowship of her words there is good repute—Thus I searched about that I might take her for myself. As a child I was good by nature and received a good soul. And much more, since I was good, I entered an undefiled body. Yet I knew otherwise that I would not be self-controlled unless God gave me wisdom, and that it was a mark of discernment to know whose gift she was.
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Therefore, do not let yourself be troubled by what’s happening. And stop beseeching this or that person for help, and running after shadows—for this is what human assistance amounts to—and instead, ceaselessly beseech God, whom you serve, simply to give a nod; and in one moment of time everything is brought into proper order. But if, in beseeching him for help, this does not come about quickly, this is how He often works—not crushing the evils immediately, but when they come to a head, when they increase, when there remains almost nothing that has not been ravaged by the evils of the enemies, then all at once he changes everything to tranquillity, and leads things to an unexpected stability. For He is able to accomplish not only what we expect and hope for, but what is much more, and what is infinitely greater. Therefore Paul says, “to the One who is able to do more than everything, even exceedingly more than we can ask or think.”
—Saint John Chrysostom, Letters to Saint Olympia -
“If you want spiritual health, listen to your conscience, do all it tells you, and you will benefit.”
—St. Mark the Ascetic -
When we do these tasks – to pray, to repent and confess faithfully, to read the scriptures, to read the fathers, to come to church and partake of the eucharist, to serve faithfully, to be faithful to our spouses, to be faithful to our children and our parents – these are the things that manifest God in our lives. They relieve my anxiety about discerning whether or not I’m fulfilling God’s will; I’m doing whatever He is telling me to do, whatever He is picking my conscience to do.
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Each person has his own inner world. As far as how each person lives, that is a matter of conscience. Sometimes the conscience becomes calloused, and one does not realize it. He is in a deep sleep, saying, I do everything well and pleasing to God; my conscience does not convict me. But when a person is spiritual and prays unceasingly, entreating God, God will not leave the darkness of his soul without illumination, but will open the eyes of his soul.
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Do not do anything that your conscience prohibits, and do not omit anything that it says to do, whether great or small.
—St. Theophan the Recluse -
If you do not know what you ought to do, stand still until you do. And when the time comes for action, circumstances, like glow-worms, will sparkle along your path; and you will become so sure that you are right, when God’s three witnesses concur, that you could not be surer though an angel beckoned on you.
—F.B. Meyers, The Gift of Suffering
SO GOOD QUOTES 