Avoiding the twin temptations of fear and wishful thinking.

The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus confronts us today about a real change in the way we think. Only the courageous will comply!

Matthew was a hated tax collector for the occupying Roman Empire. His encounter with Jesus Christ changed him forever. It is this life changing encounter that invites us today to further renew the spirit of our minds about just what is this Christian life anyway!

Jesus uses seemingly harsh language when a father brings an epileptic son to the Lord for healing. But it's only because it's only this kind of language that can break past the selfishness of our own hearts to teach us how to have faith the size of a mustard seed!

A Servant owes his Master millions and he's forgiven. Then this wicked servant turns on a fellow servant who owes him a few dollars and he throws his co-worker in prison! The Master is not happy and takes His servant he had forgiven such a great debt and throws him into prison too! So shall the Father do to everyone who doesn't forgive "from the heart."

Why does the Orthodox Church celebrate the Elevation of the Holy Cross? A device meant for torture and a grizzly death is held up, venerated, and even kissed! Why? Well, because what humanity meant for evil, God transformed into Victory and Life!

There wasn't a Jew within the sound of Jesus' voice when He said if any man would be my disciple, he must take up his cross... You see, there's only one use for a cross, and that's for an execution. The Christian message invites us not only to follow Christ but to die to everything that isn't like Christ in our lives. That's what it means to "bear your cross!"

The Gadarene Demoniac was possessed by a "Legion" of demons. His spirit was so fractured and divided that he was not only his own worst enemy, but he was a threat to all around him.

So, why, on the Sunday before Christmas, does the Church call us to read this lineage of Jesus? Because there's an irreplaceable power to community memory. And more so for we moderns who have sacrificed our attention span for entertainment!

The crowd followed the Lord into a "lonely place" knowing full well there was no food there. But heir courage and desire for Christ overcame their fear of physical hunger. Does your love and desire for Christ overcome your fear of lesser desires?

The Feast of Pentecost celebrates the Coming of the Holy Spirit on the first disciples of Jesus. But why? As followers of Christ, we too, have been given the grace of the Holy Spirit in our lives as well. So, does the closeness of the Spirit in your life reflect a reality or an untapped resource?

Jesus promised His disciples that He would transform them from fishermen to "Fishers of men." How does that apply to us today as Orthodox Christians? In fact, why are you Orthodox?

On the Sunday of the Samaritan Woman, we are confronted with the commun hunger of all humans, the common thirst of all of us: to be loved and to love. But how do we avoid the traps of trying to fulfill this hunger and thirst in the wrong way? How do we avoid wrecking our lives by bad choices?

The Sunday of the Myrrhbearers shows us some courageous women who, even when faced with an impossible task (who will roll the stone away) nevertheless kept on going to minister to the Lord. But even when they were confronted with the empty tomb and the news of the Lord's resurrection, they left the place afraid! Our world is facing some impossible tasks as well and we traditional believers are confronted with the societal earthquake of a changin moral climate. When faced with these realities, what kind of example will we leave our children? Will we allow society to silence us? Or will e face a scary time with determination and faith?

The Apostle Paul reveals the central purpose of our Christian life together as Church when he tells the Ephesians that all the ministries of the Faith are meant to "attain the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ."

The Good News of Jesus Christ invites us to such a radical departure from the fallen vision of our true purpose that confronting this message invariably challenges us. This challenge will be received differently by each person based on the true nature of their heart.

When Jesus shares the parable of the man who invited his friends to a banquet and they all made excuses as to why they couldn't come, the Lord put's these words in the man's mouth: "None of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet." When God invites you to be at His Banquet, will you make an excuse?

The only place in the Bible where God Himself calls a man a fool! And it was because this man was so blinded by his possessions, he thought nothing of his mortality! How foolish! Are you living a foolish life?

St. John the Baptist declared he was unworthy to untie the sandals of the Lord. He also promised that, while he baptized with water, the Lord Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit! And this is both Good News AND terrifying News! Especially because Fire does more than illuminate!

Sunday of the Publican and Pharisee.

On this Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy, we are confronted with a theology that invites us to know ourselves by seeing what God looks like in flesh!

On Palm Sunday a crowd shouted out their praise for Christ. This popularity at the beginning of Holy Week won't last. So, why are we humans so fickle?

In a society where the noise factor of our lives threatens to drown out the loving Voice of God, learning to listen for that "still, small voice" that tells us who we really are is even more important.

The Sunday of the Samaritan Woman sees the Lord gently confront a dear lady who didn't realize Who she was speaking to, and this blindness to just Who Jesus is means she is missing the real point of her life!

On the Sunday of the Fathers of the 1st Ecumnical Council at Nicea, the Church calls us to consider the powerful prayer of our Lord Jesus in John 17. It turns out eternal life isn't a situation as much as it is a relationship! Being connected to life gives us life. Are you connected?

The two seas in the Holy Land are both fed by the Jordan River. One sea is alive with all kinds of fish and plants and birds, and the other is Dead! The reason why this is so is the same reason why some people become saints and some don't!

You are the light of the world!

Both sickness and even death is made well by faith. But this message isn't about any physical sickness or even physical death but the spiritual sickness and death that grips us and enslaves us to a life of self-centered choices. Being free from that sickness and death is the only path that leads to authentic human life! It's the only path to a renewed mind!

The distance between what I know and what I do causes such frustration in my life, and the confusion of seeing the world, the nation, the community, the family I love suffer due to the weaknesses of all of us causes even more frustration. But, in the end, this frustration flows from my own broken life!

Jesus tells the parable about a man who is doing so well, he has to tear down his old barns to build bigger barns. And God confronts him with his mortality! This is the only way to avoid the Passions for Distractions!

Jesus heals a woman on the Sabbath Day and this reveals the hypocritical hearts of those around Him!

St. Paul tells the Colossians the greatest danger to their spiritual lives is Idolatry. But what is Idolatry? Turns out it is much deeper than an idol!

The Orthodox Church teaches that Jesus Christ is more than a great teacher, more than a good man. The Church teaches that Jesus Christ is God in human flesh; born of a Virgin, and come to save the world! You are part of that vision for humanity!

On this Sunday of Zacchaeus we start our preparation for Great Lent. And our first labor is to examine our motives. So, what motivates your faith?

On this Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee, the Lord Jesus gives us an insight into a sober and humble way of life. But our world is intoxicated by anger and fear, and all our choices are hampered by anger and fear. What's the way out? The Way of Repentance.

The Sunday of the Prodigal reminds us that repentance is never too late, and the Father wants us back every time we stray.

On Forgiveness Sunday we remember Adam and Eve being sent out of the Garden of Eden. Why? For Punishment? The answer may surprise you!

On the first Sunday of Great Lent the Church calls us to recall the victory of Orthodoxy over the heresy of an invisible God! Now that God has become visible for our sake, we are invited to Come and See!

The Sunday of the Holy Cross.

On this Sunday, The Church invites us to reconnect to the wisdom of the Timeless Faith to bring us to the ability to see the cosmic theology of our faith as also very practical and applicable to our everyday lives!

On Palm Sunday, the Church calls us to celebrate being able to recognize Jesus. Do you know enough about your faith to recognize Christ?

On this Father's Day we hear how important it is to provide our children with a good example of fatherhood so that they can call God, Father!

On the Sunday of the Holy Fathers we hear St. Paul teaching his spiritual son, St. Titus, how to live the faith instead of being distracted by troublemakers!

On this leavetaking of the Feast of the Transfiguration, Jesus heals a boy His disciples could not heal. It is amazing how He refers to the people of His day as "a wicked and perverse generation." Jesus could be describing our own day as well.

On Orthodox Palm Sunday, we live in a modern society that offers us the stark contrast between a pure materialism leading to the emptiness of hopelessness or the timeless wisdom of a hope in Christ that leads us to His light!