How to strengthen faith: ten instructions of the Athonite elders
On the first Sunday after Easter, St. Thomas week, Antipascha, the Church remembers the appearance of the risen Lord Jesus Christ to the apostles and the assurance of the Apostle Thomas. The Lord did not reject Thomas’s doubts, he comes to meet him, shows him His wounds, offering him to touch them. At the same time, the Lord opens the highest path to faith: “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed...”
The editors of the Russian Athos portal have collected ten instructions from Athonite saints and elders on how we can strengthen this one of the highest virtues - faith.
1. If a person completes his life’s journey with faith, without hesitation and seeks help from God, then gradually miraculous events begin to happen to him - first small, then more important - and his faith deepens. Having learned the Divine mysteries from his own experience, a person becomes a theologian, because he does not touch them speculatively, but actually experiences them. His faith is constantly growing stronger, for he exists in another dimension, in the sphere of Divine events. But in order to know the mysteries of God through your own experience, you must defeat the old man within yourself and, as it were, return to the state before the Fall. You must have a simple and meek heart so that your faith is unshakable. We must believe without a doubt that nothing is impossible for God. And do you know how then it will upset you that someone does not believe in God’s help? Anyone who has great faith can do a lot. Only a true believer lives a real life and is truly a man of God.
Venerable Paisiy Svyatogorets
2. – Geronda, I don’t have strong faith and I feel weak.
- Do you know what to do? Cling to God like a child grabs his father’s neck, hug Him and don’t let go, so that He cannot distance you from Himself. Then you will feel reliable and strong.
Venerable Paisiy Svyatogorets
3. Unbelief comes from pride. A proud person wants to know everything with his mind and science, but he is not allowed to know God, because the Lord reveals himself only to humble souls. To humble souls the Lord shows His deeds, which are incomprehensible to our minds, but are revealed by the Holy Spirit.
Venerable Silouan of Athos
4. Pride prevents the soul from entering the path of faith. To the unbeliever I give this advice: let him say: “Lord, if You exist, then enlighten me, and I will serve You with all my heart and soul.” And for such a humble thought and willingness to serve God, the Lord will certainly enlighten... And then your soul will feel the Lord; she will feel that the Lord has forgiven her and loves her, and you will know this from experience, and the grace of the Holy Spirit will testify to salvation in your soul, and then you will want to shout to the whole world: “How much the Lord loves us.”
Venerable Silouan of Athos
5. Initial faith is born, as the Apostle Paul says, from hearing the word of God, the “word” that answers the deepest searches of our spirit. Following this faith, we strive through repentance to cleanse ourselves from sinful passions, thanks to which abundant grace is sent down to us. This experience confirms our faith, but the experience is almost never perfect, and we may be subject to wavering days of paralyzing despondency and relaxation. Now, Peter hesitated even after the Tabor revelation. But if even in severe suffering we do not lose trusting love for God, then it (love) through the influence of the Spirit of God can become as sure as death. Such faith is truly perfect. The one who finds it fits into the “book of life.”
Archimandrite Sophrony (Sakharov)
6. Faith, like any gift from above, becoming a state of our spirit, also depends on ourselves. God never rapes us: in our freedom we accept His love or refuse. God stands at the door (of our heart) and knocks. “If anyone hears His voice, he will open the door, come in to him and dine with him, and he with God” (cf. Rev. 3:20). So, if someone himself opens the door of his heart and mind, he will receive both faith and, following it, an indescribable wealth of heavenly gifts. “Whoever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith” (1 John 5:4).
Archimandrite Sophrony (Sakharov)
7. The Lord, as we mentioned above, indicates that “all things are possible to him who believes” (Mark 9:23). Those of us who need courage in the struggle ahead must grow deeper in our faith. She is the source of courage, just as courage strengthens her in turn.
Elder Joseph of Vatopedi
8. Only faith is the key that opens the treasury of Grace to help people. And faith is called upon by prayer.
Elder Joseph of Vatopedi
9. Blessed and blessed is the man who fears the Lord. From this divine fear comes faith in God. And a person believes with all his soul that since he has completely devoted himself to God, then God also provides for him entirely. And besides food and a covering, about which, again, He encourages him to take care, he has no other care. But, following the will of the Lord, he submits to it with all simplicity. When this faith takes root, that knowledge is completely abolished, which gives rise to doubt in everything and reduces faith, and often takes it away, for it has the power of nature, since we are brought up on it. However, when, after many trials, faith wins, it returns back and gives birth, or rather, it is given the gift of spiritual knowledge, which does not oppose faith, but flies on its wings and explores the depths of the mysteries, and these two are faith and knowledge, knowledge and faith - are now inseparable sisters.
Elder Joseph the Hesychast
10. Unbelief is illness, grave, pain and fear. A person thinks that he is free, but he lacks something. He is torn by contradictions. He doesn't know true joy. The simplicity of the Church gives help to souls. It drives out anger and gives a person the opportunity to experience true joy. Faith is simple, unbelief is complex. … Thomas leads us in a brotherly way to the source of faith. In fact, he was not an unbeliever at all, but he had sufficient faith. We thank him for leading us to a source that can quench our thirst.
Monk Moses Svyatogorets
Faith of Abraham
When Abraham was a hundred years old, God promised to give him a son, Isaac. But when Isaac grew up, God ordered Abraham to offer him as a burnt offering. There are many people who may think that God acting in this way is too far from human understanding, and they may even think that if this kind of trial befell us, we would certainly try to argue with God. However, when Abraham was confronted with this, his reaction was completely opposite to what we might expect. Not only did he not argue with God, but he was able to truly submit to Him, truly and truly returning Isaac to God. As the Bible says: “Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took with him two of his young men and Isaac his son; He chopped wood for the burnt offering, and got up and went to the place that God had told him about... And they came to the place that God had told him about; And Abraham built an altar there, laid out the wood, and, having bound his son Isaac, he laid him on the altar on top of the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand and took a knife to kill his son” (Gen. 22:3, 9-10). All people are made of flesh, we are all too sensitive, and when we encounter something like this, we probably suffer, experience pain. But the reason Abraham was able to refrain from trying to bargain with God and was able to obey God's command was because he knew that Isaac was originally given to him by God, and now God is taking him away. He obeyed God justifiably, such was Abraham's faith in God. He truly believed in God and submitted completely to Him - even if it meant giving up what he valued above all else, he still offered to return Isaac to God. Ultimately, Abraham's true faith and obedience to God received His approval and blessings. God allowed him to become the forefather of many nations; his descendants prospered and multiplied, and became great nations.
Don't limit God
(Judges 1:4)
And Judah went, and the Lord delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hands, and they slew ten thousand of them at Bezek.
In the beginning they were liberators - it was one victory after another. But then they could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley because they had iron chariots.
When you limit God, then victory is also limited. It will always show up. An area where you don't trust God will certainly show up. Of course, you need to accept help, but talk to the Lord first. Ask God before consulting with a person, even a righteous one. Humans can make mistakes, and your life is too precious to waste on mistakes.
(Judges 4:1-3)
When Ehud died, the children of Israel again began to do evil in the sight of the Lord. And the Lord delivered them into the hands of Jabin, king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor; His commander was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-goim. And the children of Israel cried out to the Lord, for he had nine hundred iron chariots, and he cruelly oppressed the children of Israel for twenty years.
And again iron chariots.
Jephthah made a promise to God
(Judges 11:30-31)
And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord and said, If you will deliver the Ammonites into my hands, then when I return in peace from the Ammonites, whatever comes out of the gates of my house to meet me will be to the Lord, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.
When you don't have a relationship with the Lord, you will have a barter system. "God! if You do this for me, then I will do this for You.” Jephthah showed weakness of faith.
(Judges 11:34-35)
And Jephthah came to his house at Mizpah, and behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and faces: she was the only one he had, and he had neither son nor daughter. When he saw her, he tore his clothes and said: oh, my daughter!
you struck me down; and you are among the disturbers of my peace! I have opened for you
before the Lord and cannot deny you.
Samuel
(1 Samuel 8:1)
When Samuel was old, he made his sons judges over Israel.
Samuel had only one mistake - his sons did not walk in his ways. They turned to self-interest, took gifts and judged wrongly.
Joshua and Caleb
Joshua and Caleb
Joshua grew old, but Caleb did not. The Scriptures record the death of Joshua, but nothing about the death of Caleb.
(Joshua 13:1)
When Jesus grew old and entered into
old
, then the Lord said to him: you have grown old, entered
old
, and there is still a lot of land left to inherit.
In the next chapter, Caleb says to Joshua:
(Joshua 14:10-11) T
now, behold, I am eighty-five years old; but now I am as strong as when Moses sent me: as much strength as I had then, so much now do I have to fight and go out and enter.
Caleb did it alone. What a contrast between those who believe in God and those who limit God by relying on people.
Sarah laughed when she heard that she was going to be a mother. Therefore, they named their son Isaac, which means laughter.
Moses' Weakness
This happened to Moses because of his weak faith. God initially called him alone to appeal to Pharaoh.
(Exodus 4:13-14)
Moses
said: Lord! send another whom you can send. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and He said, “Have you not a brother Aaron, the Levite?” I know that he can speak, and behold, he will come out to meet you, and when he sees you, he will rejoice in his heart.
Aaron was not God's chosen one, so Moses had to speak.
When God calls you, He provides you with everything you need. Even iron chariots will not stop you.
Moses subsequently served for almost 120 years. He died without a single sore or weakness. His eyes did not dim, his strength did not dry out.
What changes if you realize yourself as an eternal soul, as part of the spirit of the Creator himself.
Firstly , you understand that nothing is yours in this world . Everything belongs to God. You only use everything temporarily.
Secondly , in your actions you are guided not by personal gain, but primarily by the benefit for your soul . And such actions will bring joy and satisfaction not only to you, but also to all those for whom you will do all this. Such actions make you truly better, when your soul grows and strengthens, and not your body, which exists today and is unknown tomorrow.
Thirdly , you calm down. You stop striving to change this world for yourself, to change people. What is good is good, what is bad, so be it. You learn to let go and not get attached to things, people, or events .
Praise is ahead
(Judges 1:1-2)
After the death of Jesus, the children of Israel asked the Lord, saying: Which of us will go first against the Canaanites to fight with them? And the Lord said: Judah will go; Behold, I have given the land into his hands.
Judas - praise.
In any trial, the first thing you need to do is glorify the Lord. The first thing that ascends to the Lord is praise.
There were twelve tribes in Israel, but the enemies had to be delivered into the hands of Judah.
(Judges 1:3)
Judah said to Simeon his brother: Enter with me into my lot, and we will fight with the Canaanites; and I will enter with you into your lot. And Simeon went with him.
God did not ask to take Simeon with him, but Judas limited the Holy One of Israel. He wanted to enlist the support of the flesh.
We all want that, to have someone nearby.
