This Daily Devotion is to help our members and others reflect on the understanding of Christian service to our Lord.
Devotion for Thursday, February 8, 2024
The Rt. Rev. Archimandrite, Msgr. George Appleyard
An Invitation to Prayer
Look! He comes upon the clouds
and every eye shall see him! Rev. 1:7a
—The one who loves us
and has washed away our sins in his blood! Rev. 1:5:b
Psalm 15/16:1-6
Protect me, Lord, because I put my hope in you.
I said to the Lord, you are my Lord,
for I have nothing good except through you.
As for the “holy ones” in his land, the “wonders,”
this is my will for them:
that those who hurry to them
have their infirmities increased.
I will in no way join in their bloody assemblies,
neither will I take their names upon my lips.
The Lord is my allotted share and my cup,
for he restores my inheritance to me:
the boundaries were fixed for me in the best places;
yes, my inheritance is excellent.
From Basil’s “Lakizois” Homily
The enemy opposes us out of sheer contentiousness, trying to drown out our words by the din outside, but we are wise to his methods. Let us tune our ears and minds to what is said here and feel sorry for those outside who cannot hear it. We should not let our minds wander outside! Instead, let you heart be where your body is. Please call to mind the lessons of the Spirit read to you this morning, the teachings so beneficial to the soul, which also heal it. Remember the lessons provided by the Psalms. Gather the advice from the Proverbs, and investigate the beauty of the histories. Add to all of this the exhortations of the apostles and crown it all by remembering the sayings of the Gospels. In this way each will return home with an added advantage gained from them all, with something beneficial from the Spirit as an added weapon against those passions to which we are too prone. Generally, in a group of many people in a church there are as many different passions as there are individuals. There are as many sins as there are ages. The devil’s methods are very diverse and cunning. He seduces different people in different ways. He discerns what an individual is inclined to, and then adds his own enticements to it.
A Prayer
O Holy Wisdom of God Most High! Gather my straying thoughts, Lord Jesus, as you gather straying sheep and bring them back to the fold of my mind. Then give me the grace to assess them, to set aside those that are not to be taken seriously and to follow the course of those that are mature. Do not let me daydream with foolish fantasies so as to miss the treasure of the real world you set before me, especially when you illumine them with your radiance. Amen.