An excellent ramble on Discipleship and the Cross can be found at Forty Days in the Desert blog, stemming from Dietrich Bonhoeffer's book The Cost of Discipleship. I encourage you to read the whole post, but here is a passage that hit home for me…Most of the suffering in my life is self-wrought and fairly deserved. Where it is not deserved, as a good American I quickly want to cry "unfair!" But it is as this moment that perhaps I should be looking to see a cross flung down in my path to pick up and bear.
Perhaps it is my lot this day to bear the false accusation of another, in love, for Christ's sake.
Perhaps it is my lot this day to bear hatred from another in humble silence, for Christ's sake.
Perhaps it is my lot to be ridiculed unjustly, for Christ's sake.
Perhaps it is my lot this day to bear being cheated by another, for Christ's sake.
Perhaps there is even a cross which has been flung down before that I have refused to take up, unwilling to bear the burden because I have been unwilling to forgive "in the power of the cross of Christ in which I now share," as Bonhoeffer suggests.
Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.
St. Paul to the Galatians, 6:2
And he said to [them] all, If any [man] will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
Gospel According to St. Luke, 9:23
I realised very recently that although it seemed to me that I was doing my duty as an Orthodox Christian, I was still sitting on the fence in reality.
ReplyDeleteI realised that I don't love my brothers, rather I love myself.
Instead of taking pity on others less fortunate, I pity myself. I think to myself, 'Why is this person talking to me? He is wasting my time' When I do not realise that they might desperately need someone to talk to. My heart is partial and I do not see everyone as a brother or sister and I do not give freely of myself. I think to myself,'How can this situation benefit me? How can I deceive this person into thinking I am doing it for them?'
Such is my state.
We must show love and compassion to one another no matter what the other person's circumstances are, and no matter what our circumstances are.
These are not 'optional extras'.
This is a verse from a Greek song that we sing at fellowship:
...Mia kai moni fronditha eho,
den einai gia ton eauto mou,
ena endiaferon eho:
Auto pou einai gia kalo sou...
Thank you also for putting my name in the sidebar under your family. I am honoured and humbled by this act.
O Theos panta mazi mas!
Παντελής μου, σας αγαπώ. Έχετε μιλήσει την αλήθεια.
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful and true, and this can be true only when Christ is our strength! Thanks for sharing this, brother Romanos.
ReplyDelete"We must show love and compassion to one another no matter what the other person's circumstances are, and no matter what our circumstances are". Ameyn! Ameyn! You speak the truth, brother Pandelis!