Tag Archive for: Advent

Lenten Journey Day 33 – Worrying about Tomorrow

Lenten Recipe

Recipe 33: Grilled Red Pepper and Eggplant Sandwiches

 

Lenten Journey Day 33 – Worrying about Tomorrow 

We end this fifth week of Lent with a meditation about apprehension, anxiety and worry about the future. Certainly anxiety comes into play when we are confronted with uncertainty. Even more, this coming Sunday is the Sunday of Advent, when we reflect on the second coming, which in its turn produces new anxieties and new worries of tomorrow.

Jesus warns us not to be anxious. He speaks directly against anxiety and against worrying about tomorrow. Anxiety and the fear that causes it are the opposites of faith. If we have faith we have trust. If we have trust then we diminish the power of anxiety and completely submit to God, so that “Thy will be done” will be done in our lives. Of course this is much easier said than done.

Let us look directly at the instruction that is given to us by our Lord Jesus Christ. Herein is the greatest lesson that we have regarding faith. It comes to us from the Sermon on the Mount, from the Gospel of St. Matthew, quoting Jesus:

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also…

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Our Lord Jesus Christ plainly explains that trusting God means to completely submit to His will. It means to allow Him to be God. It means to enjoy the life that He gives us and to fly with the birds, and be clothed like the lilies of the field. Enjoy all that God has given us. It requires us to have complete and total faith in Him, by allowing Him to be Father. Remember, in the old covenant God was known as Lord, but Jesus set up a new relationship, unlike any other, so that we dare to call God, “Father.” Our Father who art in heaven… If we believe He is our Father then as a heavenly Father, He takes care of every single part and aspect of that universe.

Certainly we will always have fears and apprehensions of tomorrow, but we need to diminish them and the only way, the only cure for that is faith. To strengthen our faith, to really look at the examples that He gives us, let us look for all of the examples that are plainly around us. Alongside the birds of the air and the lilies of the fields are the simple smiles of our children, the warm embraces of our loved ones, the monumental signs of the mountains, the crashing waves, the moon and stars, each of them telling us, as Albert Einstein says, “God does not play dice with the universe.” Life has not haphazardly come into being. We are not here by accident. God loves us and takes care of us.

Reduce your anxiety, eliminate your fears and trust in God.

Today we conclude with a prayer from Russian writer, Alexander Solzhenitsyn:

How easy it is for me to live with you, Lord! 
How easy it is for me to believe in You! 
When my mind is distraught 
and my reason fails, 
when the cleverest people do not see further 
than this evening and do not know 
what must be done tomorrow – 

You grant me the clear confidence, 
that You exist, and that You will take care 
that not all the ways of goodness are stopped. 
At the height of earthly fame I gaze 
with wonder at that path 
through hopelessness – 
to this point, from which even I have been able to convey 
to men some reflection of the light which comes from You. 

And you will enable me to go on doing 
as much as needs to be done. 
And in so far as I do not manage it – 
that means that You have allotted the task to others. 
Amen

Into Place

Into Place
Next Step #757 – December 8, 2022 – Things falling into place during this Advent Season, on a stream to Peace. Included: Vahagn Setian Grove dedication, the Theodicy and Advent, Cathia Hamparian Children’s Memorial Service, Personal loss as a prelude to ministry, John Lennon 42 years, Armenian Earthquake 34 years, Russian Priest talks about peace: Putin vs. the sermon.
Cover: Armenia Elevator 2019 Fr. Vazk01
Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for https://Epostle.net
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Advent Adventures

Advent Adventures
Next Step #756 – December 1, 2022 – First steps toward the mystery of God’s revelation at Christmas, here is the Advent primer. Einstein mathematics: 50 days hath Easter as does Christmas. Jesus’ warning on the “fool.” New series on Epostle with Dr. Ani exploring monasteries. Armodoxy you won’t find in a museum. Healing at Christmas. Alchemy for Armenia: Jewelry to benefit Etchmiadzin renovation project. In His Shoes: How Jesus sees us. All on this episode.
Cover: Dog with Christmas Tree, EnvatoElements
Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for https://Epostle.net
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Staying on Track

Armodoxy for Today

Staying on Track

Our Advent Journey continues and our first stop is confronting the parable of the ‘Rich Fool,’ as told by Jesus Christ in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 12.

“The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.  But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then who’s will those things be which you have provided?’ So is he who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.” – Jesus (Luke 12)

Remember, Advent is a time of preparation for Christmas, to understand the holiness of the holy day. Right off, Jesus tells us the preparation is about laying treasures and uses this parable to illustrate the importance of not losing sight of the prize. We are on a journey to Christmas when we proclaim that Christ is born and revealed among us. Along the way, it will be easy to be sidetracked. The rich man of the parable begins as an entrepreneur who uses his wisdom and knowledge to bring him profit. When his work yields a bumper crop, he loses sight of the purpose of his labor and falls into the trap of losing sight of the destination. Further, Jesus gives him the designation of a “fool” because he had labored and not set aside treasures beyond himself.

St. Paul refers to the love of money as the root of all evil. Money itself is merely a tool. It has value when it is used, otherwise it is merely a figure of lines, circles, dots and dollar signs on a ledger somewhere. When money is used, an in particular to the aid and benefit of others – your children, your parents, your loved ones, your community, your church, and yes, to those who you don’t know – it picks up value because now, it can be measured by the terms that are understood by others beside yourself.

It always amazes me when I hear someone boast of himself or of his child, proudly proclaiming that they “know the value of a dollar.” In fact, a drug dealer knows the value of a dollar. So what? The parable is about finding true value for money which translates to the value of life.

We pray the prayer of St. Nersess the Gracefilled, from the 23 hour: All-merciful Lord, have mercy upon all Your faithful, on those who are mine and on those who are strangers; on those whom I know and on those whom I know not; on the living and on the dead; and forgive all my enemies, and those who hate me, the trespasses that they have committed against me; turn them from the malice which they bear towards me, that they may be worthy of Your mercy. Amen.

We continue tomorrow, on the Advent Journey. I look forward to being together to take the next steps.

Advent Cue

Armodoxy for Today – Advent
Advent Cue

Advent, means “coming.” The coming of the Lord was foretold centuries before his birth. His coming was announced by the angel of the Lord, “I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (Luke 2:10-11). And for the last two thousand years we celebrate his coming as the Nativity, as the Revelation of God and of course, as Christmas.

Christmas is much more than the celebration we know of today. To better appreciate the celebration of Christmas, the Church has set up a period of preparation, which uses the name “Advent.” In other words, in preparing for Christmas, we focus on Christ’s coming to us in Bethlehem 2000 years ago, and into our lives today.

The first Sunday of Advent with its unique Gospel reading sets the pace and cues up the general tone for the days ahead. We find this parable which Jesus spoke in the Gospel of St. Luke (12)

“The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.  But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’ So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

This then is the starting point of the Advent journey. If necessary, read the parable again, paying attention to the words of the man. This is the starting point of our Advent Journey. We return tomorrow to continue.

Birthing Vision

Birthing Vision

Next Step #755 – November 24, 2022 – From Thanksgiving to the beginning of Advent, more than just a calendar season, here is a primer on a new look at an ancient subject. Death before Birth: The importance of preparedness for life events and spiritual awakening. Up close and personal: Reflections on the iAct vision of Gabriel Stauring & Katie Jay Scott, one year after their passing. Picking up the “Cross” as a metaphor to keep the vision alive and working.
Links
Cover: “Pregnancy & Generation,” Envato Elements
Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for Epostle.net
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Advent: Preparing the New Wineskin

Next Step #598: An unexpected gift at Christmas, wrapped and delivered to your living room. Fresh Christ: New Homes. Changing the habits of old with a fresh approach to Christmas and the Theophany – the Revelation of God – for us. Here is an Advent-primer to use the next 50 days heightening spirituality. Puzzle solved: Why Jesus tells the healed, “Tell know one!” Pope Francis on the plague of fundamentalism. Passing from “tolerance to peace and coexistence” and arriving at the IHS page!
Children’s Lord’s Prayer (Gomidas) – Isabel Bayrakdarian
Pope Francis on Fundamentalism
Priest killed by ISIS
Advent Season Explained
Khatchkar at Sevan Monastery
Cover: Armenia Countryside
Engineered by Ken Nalik
Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for http://InHisShoes.org
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Advent: Sin, Faith and Duty

Next Step #549: Sin, Faith and Duty are the lessons of this week in Advent in preparation for the Christmas celebration. Losing the Self and Ego, to make room for God. St. James of Nisibus. Violence in the world. Also In His Shoes programs for the season.
Blind Boys of Alabama
Albert’s Go Fund Me page
In His Shoes Toy Drive
St. Gregory of Narek Prayer
In His Shoes: www.InHisShoes.org
Luke 17:1-10
Cover: Canadian Bear Ranger, 2018 Fr. Vazken
Technical Engineer: Ken Nalik
Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for InHisShoes.org
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Discovering the Gospels of Advent

Next Step #443: Discovering a set of Gospel readings that bridge the road to Christmas. It’s a revelation that’s easy to miss, so you won’t want to. “Mock Kissing”: Evolutionary discoveries inside the Church – participant and observers in the worship practice of the Armenian Church. Where is your church on the evolutionary scale? …and more in the episode. First part of two: Luke 11:1-13; 12:13-31; 13:1-9 – Prayer, Abundance and Repentance.
Spirit of Christmas by Element Band & Ara Dabanjian
Advent Season Opener
Youth Rally & Christian Conference: www.Embracing-faith.com; Subscribe for updates!
In His Shoes: www.InHisShoes.org
Engineered by Ken Nalik
Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for InHisShoes.org
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Venting Advent

Next Step #393: The Advent Season is one of preparation for Christmas. Here Fr. Vazken discusses the season and Christmas as a living expression for today. First a look at how the stories evolved over time from Bethlehem to Rudolph from a one-liner about the Inn to a Technicolor movie with barmaids and patrons. The Winter Solstice and the January 6 / December 25 shift. Definitely a Christmas primer – filled with information and spirituality.
Cover Photo “Solstice at Sevan” by Fr. Vazken
Spirit of Christmas by Element Band
Ring Solstice Bells: www.JethroTull.com
Martin Luther King Jr. Christmas Eve Sermon (text) (audio)
Does God Have a Bicycle? by Ida Nalbandian
Engineered by Ken Nalik
Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for InHisShoes.org
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Look for The Next Step on blubrry.com
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