Photo: photobyphotoboy, shutterstock (08/28/2019) In the modern world, there is no need to protect your family and home from attacks by enemies and wild animals, to guard fire like the apple of your eye, to earn food for yourself with sweat and blood, constantly risking your life. But this does not mean that there is nothing to be afraid of in the modern world. Comfortable life in the city, with amenities and gadgets, is no safer than a hut in the forest. The 21st century has its own rules of survival.
What does salvation mean?
From the Greek language (which is the language in which the New Testament was written), “salvation” means “deliverance, liberation, preservation, wholeness, healing, life.”
All this together and at once - in one word.
Almighty God saves your soul from the present evil world, delivering you, first of all, from spiritual death, destruction and disintegration of your inner man, the loss of your personality, from hell.
God in His mercy replaces your old, spiritually miserable life with His eternal life, freedom from past sins, Divine protection and His presence with you - anywhere and everywhere.
This is the COMPLETE salvation of the human soul.
God, and only God, can change a person. Our task is to rely not on ourselves, but on Him. Believe not in your own strength, but in His.
And this One (note - Jesus Christ), as He abides forever, has an imperishable priesthood, therefore He can always save those who come to God through Him, being always alive to intercede for them. (Heb. 7:24-26)
Christ was resurrected, ascended into heaven, and now remains forever. Through Him, every person can come to God and can ALWAYS be saved.
Any time. 24 hours a day. Morning, afternoon or night. Right now!
To be sure, re-read the verse above.
What threatens man in the modern world?
To counter threats, you need to know them. Danger lurks in many familiar things and situations that we encounter every day.
My home is my castle?
Safe - in a house or apartment. However, even in everyday life, trouble happens:
- Fire. No one is insured. To avoid fatal consequences, it is necessary not to neglect safety precautions, monitor the serviceability of the wiring, heating system, electrical appliances, and do not clutter the home. The bars on the windows will become an obstacle to escape in case of fire. It is important to install a smoke detector. It costs a penny - it saves lives.
- Poisoning. A domestic gas leak can be fatal, so you need to keep an eye on your equipment. If there are children at home, put medications and household chemicals out of reach. Don't eat suspicious foods. Do not drink tap water without boiling.
- Neighbours. People who are mentally ill or harbor a grudge sooner or later reveal themselves. The presence of marginal residents in the entrance turns everyday life into a powder keg - they start fires, floods, etc. It is better not to quarrel with neighbors, but also not to form close relationships. Watch carefully to raise the alarm at the first “bells”.
- Natural and man-made disasters. An apartment building can collapse overnight. Explosions and fires occur during the installation of suspended ceilings. Also – floods, mudflows, earthquakes, etc.
Other dangers at home: a pet with rabies, a suspicious object thrown into the entrance, a short circuit in the electrical wiring, flooding by neighbors above, etc.
Important! Observation and a responsible attitude towards the family and the household will help prevent problems.
Street: high-risk area
Outside the house is more dangerous. When observing traffic rules, you should not expect that everyone will comply with them. The driver of the oncoming car may be under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or preoccupied with his own thoughts, or have a heart attack. Attention is the main rule of moving along the streets.
Other dangers: ice, open sewer manholes, road works, stray dogs, drunk/under the influence of drugs/mentally ill people, pickpockets and thieves, snow and icicles not removed from the roof in time, broken live cables... The risk is inappropriate here.
If it is possible to get around an obstacle, go around it; if it is possible to avoid a collision with an inadequate subject, avoid it. It’s easier to change the route, go to the other side of the street, transfer to another bus, than to regret it later.
In searching of love
Loneliness is a problem of the 21st century. Today, part of life happens on the Internet. There are fewer lively conversations, intimate gatherings, walks, and family evenings.
It has become more difficult for adults whose life cycle is “home-work” to meet representatives of the opposite sex. The lack of attractive co-workers, a group of friends, or hobbies that involve communicating with people makes it difficult to find a partner.
You can meet and chat with people on the Internet. Relationships begin in the virtual world, and from there they move (or don’t) into the real world.
Photo: nd3000, shutterstock (08/28/2019)
The sphere of online dating is fertile ground for scammers. A lonely woman meets the man of her dreams who lives in another city (country) and will definitely come to her.
But first you need to: solve financial problems with your ex-wife; to repay the loan that an unreliable business partner (which collapsed long ago) imposed on him; pay a lonely old mother (or yourself) for an expensive operation, and so on. A naive woman in love believes and sends the groom the required amount, which he undertakes to return.
The situation is similar for men. Many people, especially wealthy ones, are prepared in advance that they will try to be scammed. Therefore, they are not so naive and do not react so painfully if they fall for the bait of a scammer.
It is dangerous to look for a one-night stand or to go on a date two days after meeting. This is fraught with a meeting with a maniac, gang rape, beatings and robbery. You'll be lucky if you manage to stay alive.
Relationships that remain virtual, without access to the real world, seem harmless, even if they have sexual overtones. But in vain. Blackmailing a girl with nude photographs or videos of an intimate nature is another popular area among scammers.
This does not mean that you should be afraid of online dating. For some, this is a chance to find love. You can meet truly “your” people, friends. Families also begin with correspondence in online games or social networks.
To avoid risk, you need to:
- do not run out on a date with the first person you meet, let time pass during which you can get to know each other better through correspondence;
- ask a new acquaintance questions, analyze the answers to see if he’s lying;
- don’t be shy about asking to see live photos from work, school, vacation, or with your family;
- avoid too intimate communication;
- do not disclose personal information that could be used for harm.
And remember: not a single person with serious intentions will ask for money from someone with whom they are supposedly madly in love.
What depends on us
God requires only one thing from us - to come. Just come to Him.
How? With faith! Christ is the only WAY to God.
Jesus said to him: I am the way and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me. (John 14:6)
Is salvation possible in the world? Of course yes. Salvation “awaits” us here and now!
Stay in peace
Moreover, only in the world can one be saved.
I do not pray that You take them out of the world, but that You keep them from evil. Sanctify them with Your truth; Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, so I sent them into the world. (John 17:15,17-19)
Notice that Jesus did not pray for believers to be taken out of the world and receive salvation in heaven. But, on the contrary, they were SENT into it and REMAINED in it.
Christ did not command us to hide or hide from the world, but to OVERCOME it, being in the midst of evil and temptation, and to KEEP our salvation.
Jesus personally set an example of how to live. He was always among people, went to people and helped them, despite persecution and danger.
A clean mind means freedom and happiness
Keep your mental sphere clean. What is the mental sphere? These are thoughts, feelings, emotions. Clogging this area: fears, anxieties, negative thoughts, irritability, jealousy, psychological complexes, emotional childhood traumas and much more. Why is mental purity important? Its purity gives: calm, a sense of strength, creativity, sensitive intuition, increased energy, which affects health and the power of thought, which controls reality. And also, an increased level of energy means freedom and happiness.
The best tool for clearing the mind is Turbo-Gopher. The advantage of the system is that the main work is transferred to the subconscious, and you only have to read the ready-made instructions. You read the instructions and go about your business, while the subconscious mind itself works through the problem in the background. More than 80,000 users have already tried the system. You can read the results here.
In a healthy body healthy mind
Succumbing to the psychological stress presented by our surrounding modern world, we often forget about our health.
Often our negative thoughts are generated by fatigue or illness in the body. Body and spirit have always been interconnected. There is even a special medical field - psychosomatics, which studies the influence of your subconscious on the physiological body.
The frantic rhythms of life, especially in big cities, bring stress and apathy to most people.
Constant problems leave a person no choice and force him to spin like a rodent in a wheel.
If you begin to notice yourself irritated or tired for no reason, then take care of your physical body. Feeling good will promote good and fresh thinking.
What to do to survive in the 21st century if the situation is not simple?
The above tips can apply to absolutely anyone. But it’s one thing when you are not yet 30, and all doors are open to you. But what to do if you are already over 50, or moreover, already over 70?
Or do you not have even the smallest opportunity to get out of the crisis unscathed? Next, we will discuss exactly how you can improve your situation.
1) Expand your social circle
It has been proven more than once that socialization and expansion of connections are the most important engine of career and personal growth. Simply put, you need to acquire a large number of purposeful acquaintances.
Understand that such people will be able to help you in some way; it is likely that one such acquaintance can change your life. For example, thanks to this you can find a good job, and simple communication with more successful people should in itself motivate you to take action.
Sometimes you shouldn’t hush up your problems, and here’s why:
So
- Don't forget to rest. You should make the most of your weekends, vacations, and time off for the benefit of your soul and body.
- Lead a healthy life, give up bad habits, toughen up, do exercises in the morning. Create your own healthy and comfortable regime. Cheerfulness in the morning will give you a good mood for the whole day.
- Periodically undergo medical examinations with doctors. Make it a rule to visit specialists once every year, even if you are not in pain and there are no signs of illness.
- Eat right. Inattention to diet will lead to disturbances in the body.
- Pay attention to your sleep. Solve all problems during work or free time, give your body a rest. You can choose both passive and active recreation: with friends, family, going out into nature, going to a shopping center.
The main thing is not to forget about emotions. It is the emotional state of a person that is the key to a happy life. Find something positive in yourself and plunge into the cheerful ocean of life. A surge of strength and energy will make you look at the world with completely different eyes. With the right attitude, negative situations will be avoided.
Orthodoxy gives different assessments of monasticism in the world, but the practice is not prohibited
This phenomenon receives different assessments among representatives of the Orthodox Church. Hegumen Philip (Simonov) says the following:
“Some people can accommodate the common life, but others cannot. And for those who cannot, the natural path is probably to be locked in a cell. And where the cell is is completely unimportant. It may be in the middle of a deep forest, but now, in my opinion, urban conditions are more remote than the deepest forest thicket, because in the thicket you see the beauty of creation, but here, within the city walls, you see nothing but the emptiness surrounding you.”
Philip (Simonov)
Abbot
Monasticism is a state of mind, not clothing or status. The Athonite monk Demetrius led a pious life even before he was tonsured. The sacrament did not change anything in him, but only officially accepted him into the ranks of monks. Photo: pravoslavie.ru
But Abbot Alexander (Pakhomov) is critical of this practice:
“In the world, tonsure is regarded as an extreme measure, which is used with great caution. Monasticism is a rather complex path of spiritual salvation and in the vast majority of cases requires a certain school, which can be fully completed only in the conditions of a monastic hostel. In our time, there is no need to engage in such spiritual extremes. I believe that the search for secret tonsure now is often associated with somewhat non-Christian motives.”
Alexander (Pakhomov)
Abbot
Who is right in this debate? Perhaps, until the leadership of the church officially prohibits monasticism in secular life, the question naturally disappears.
Who are the elders
Eldership is the guidance of an experienced person in spiritual practice and life by other monks and people. It originated in the 10th century. In Greece, a community of monasteries was created, led by an elder who was a spiritual mentor and teacher.
Of course, at present there is not even a list of elders, which makes it possible for any person to declare himself an elder. However, real elders, such as the elders in the Pskov-Pechersky Monastery, are distinguished by modesty and humility, have the ability to work miracles, but will never show it. These are people of high spirituality who help to take the right path to realize and eradicate great sins in Orthodoxy, and get rid of vices and passions. An old man is like a father to a child.
