The Holy Fathers call pride one of the terrible sins. Even the Gospel says that God favors the humble, but turns away from the proud and opposes them. But not every person in the modern world can, as they say, step over themselves, endure, wait, remain silent.
To overcome these qualities, you need to turn to God. There are special prayers for the granting of humility, meekness and patience. Who needs to read them and in what cases, we will find out further.
Reading rules
Prayers should be read regularly. In vain many people expect some kind of magical effect from prayers. This is the real problem of our time. They try to turn prayers into conspiracies that will certainly give instant results. It doesn't happen that way. Perhaps, with the exception of rare cases. The Lord appreciates a person’s spiritual work on himself. By reading prayers, people enlighten their souls and rise to a new level for themselves . And only God knows what and when it is useful for us to receive from what we ask.
Speaking about patience and humility, it is important to understand that the very process of reading prayers is the first step towards improving oneself in this regard. Overcoming his laziness and reluctance to perform this ritual every day, a person strengthens his own spirit, humbles his passions and learns to wait for what he asks for to be given to him.
Other Orthodox prayers:
The rules for all prayers are almost the same. It is better if they are read in the temple in front of the image of the saint with a lit candle. At home, it is also important to designate a separate place for prayer, where there are no distractions. The atmosphere should be calm so that reading the prayer text does not turn into mechanical mumbling without understanding the meaning.
Before you begin, you should be in silence, clear your thoughts of vanity and tune in to a conversation with the Heavenly Father. During prayer, the soul should be filled with a pleasant feeling of reverence for the Almighty.
How does it help?
By turning to God and his saints for help, a person gains a sense of security and support. Many find it difficult to fully rely on the Lord in everything due to weak faith. But, as the holy fathers teach, we need to learn this and pray to help us.
It often happens that people come into conflict with someone from their environment and show impatience. And this negatively affects their internal state. To better cope with such manifestations of feelings, you just need to read prayers for the granting of patience and humility.
Articles about the meaning of the psalms:
How to read
When starting to pray, you need to tune in to a conversation with God. All thoughts should be directed to Him. It is better to say the words out loud, but quietly. This way it will be easier to understand the meaning of prayer and not scatter your attention. There is no need to read with expression, like a poem at school. The prayers are spoken smoothly, one might even say monotonously.
Important! The main thing is to open your soul as much as possible at this moment and really believe that God hears the request. Praise be to You, Father of mercies and God of all consolation, that You never leave Your sufferers without visitation and consolation. Punish - You punish them, but You do not put them to death; although You are often the hidden God for them, You are the Savior of them all. Seal this consolation, O Lord, in my heart and make it true to me when disaster is near and there is no helper. Be my light when I sit in darkness; make sure that the knowledge of my sins and what they deserve produces in me true humility and patience. Strengthen the faith in me, as in Jacob, when trouble comes, so that I will fight and not let go of You until You bless me. Make sure that I do not run away from You in suffering, O my Shepherd, but that my cheerfulness increases and I become more zealous for Your prayer and praise. Open my mind, so that I understand the Scripture, learn from it Your ways, and in true silence of heart I completely and completely surrender to You, through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord! Amen. Assuage the sickness of my much-sighing soul, which has quenched every tear from the face of the earth: You drive away sickness from people and resolve the sorrows of sinners, For You are the source of all hope and affirmation, Most Holy Mother of the Virgin! You stand before all, O Good One, who come running with faith into Your sovereign protection: otherwise it is not the imams who sinned to God in troubles and sorrows, ever deliverance, burdened with many sins, Mother of the Most High God! We fall down to You: deliver Your servants from every situation! No one who comes to You is put to shame and comes from You, most pure Virgin Mary: but he asks for grace and accepts the gift of useful petition. Fill, O Pure One, my heart with joy, Thy incorruptible joy that gives birth to the Guilty One! Fill my heart with joy, O Virgin, who accepts fulfillment of joy and consumes sinful sadness! Lord, hear my prayer, inspire my prayer in Thy truth, hear me in Thy righteousness, and do not enter into judgment with Thy servant, for no one living will be justified before You. As if the enemy drove my soul, he humbled my belly to eat, he planted me to eat in dark, like dead centuries. And my spirit is depressed within me, my heart is troubled within me. I have remembered the days of old, I have learned in all Your works, I have learned Your hand in all creation. My hands have lifted up to You, my soul, like a waterless land to You. Hear me soon, Lord, my spirit has disappeared; do not turn Your face away from me, and I will become like those who go down into the pit. I hear Thy mercy upon me in the morning, for I trust in Thee. Tell me, Lord, I will go the other way, because I have taken my soul to You. Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord, I have fled to You. Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God. Your Good Spirit will guide me to the right land. For Thy name's sake, O Lord, live me, by Thy righteousness remove my soul from sorrow. And by Thy mercy consume my enemies and destroy all my cold souls, for I am Thy servant.
Quotes from the Holy Fathers about the Jesus Prayer.
Quotes from the Holy Fathers about the Jesus Prayer.
Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnitsky: “Inner prayer is the greatest work a person can do. Because our enemy—mental power—knows that in prayer a person approaches God with his heart and feelings, and the spirits of evil try to tie a person to earthly objects.”
Hieromonk Anatoly of Kiev: “Without the Jesus Prayer there will be no salvation, because passion in the heart cannot be killed by anything other than it. The entire Orthodox faith and all piety rest on the name of Jesus Christ. Anyone who wants to truly learn to love the Lord must necessarily practice the Jesus Prayer.”
Venerable Elder Seraphim Vyritsky (1866-1949): “In the most difficult times, it will be convenient to be saved by those who, to the best of their ability, begin to strive in the Jesus Prayer, rising from the frequent invocation of the name of God to unceasing prayer.”
The Venerable Elder Theodosius of the Caucasus (1841-1948) instructed to say the Jesus Prayer, and said that if people knew what awaited them after death, they would pray to God day and night.
Elder Jonah of Odessa (Ignatenko) (1925-2012): “We don’t need to be afraid. You can only be saved by the Jesus Prayer. We must learn to breathe it”... Your breathing must be connected with the Jesus Prayer. Only this will be your support and salvation..."
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Elder Jonah of Odessa: “What can I say about the Jesus Prayer? A person needs it like air. You need to breathe and pray, breathe directly in prayer.
I looked at the minute hand: while it passed one division, I took fifteen breaths and exhalations. So you need to pray fifteen times in a minute. And only very rare people do this. We must strive for this. At least not so much at first - but try never to abandon the Jesus Prayer.
If we pray with it all the time, it is first created with the lips. Then it comes to mind. Then on the heart. The heart itself then prompts this prayer, and then the person no longer leaves either God or prayer. And he unites with God and with prayer.
For a beginner, whatever opportunity there is, you need to pray. Pray to a layman at least 300-500 times a day. For a monk, as the Monk Nile the Myrrh-Streaming says, seven thousand Jesus Prayers a day and seven thousand prayers a night. This is how a monk should create - constantly be in prayer.
But even such a drop as 200-300 times also helps: the angel writes everything. When a person constantly prays, he experiences an influx of joy - and he constantly feels it and strives to strengthen his prayer even more.
People told stories who had never prayed in their lives - they constantly found themselves in various difficult living conditions. And they began to pray and restored their lives.
When a person prays, the Lord leads him and prompts him according to His Providence. This Providence is incomprehensible to the human mind, but it is present. Whoever has what kind of zeal for God, what kind of love, receives prayer according to his request to the Almighty.”
From a letter to a spiritual child:
“... The survey about prayer in spiritual life is one of the main ones.
The book “Conversations on the Jesus Prayer” is good and sufficiently covers the issue of the Jesus Prayer.
Often prayer “goes away”...for the following reason. At the basis of the prayer there must be a feeling of repentance; if it is not there, then the prayer “goes away”. There should always be a warm feeling towards God in your heart. Saint Theophan the Recluse speaks about this in his book “Conversations on the Jesus Prayer.” In prayer you don’t need to look for a “feeling of freshness” or any feelings. When praying, pay attention, slowness, a feeling of repentance, fear of God, reverence, and humility.
When attention is scattered, then, as the holy fathers advise, one must enclose the mind in the words of prayer.
In the Jesus Prayer, the fathers emphasized the word “sinner” - this preserves a person in a repentant feeling during prayer. If you enclose your mind in the words of prayer, then there will be no “empty” space left in your head - this feeling is incorrect (an “empty” space in your head).
You can read how to keep attention in the heart in the book mentioned (“Conversations on the Jesus Prayer”)...”
According to the book: “Novice N. Lament for spiritual life. Schema-Archimandrite Jonah (Ignatenko) 07/28/1925-12/18/2012.” Kyiv 2013.
Elder Schema-Archimandrite Vitaly (Sidorenko) (1928-1992):
“We must not accept thoughts, but perform prayer.
Say prayer at any time and situation - here you will have prayer, vigil, reading and thanksgiving.
Say a prayer - it will make up for everything.
You should always read: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us sinners.” You sit, eat, talk, walk, wash, cook, wash, dig, wear - you should always read the Jesus Prayer. Then there will be no sadness. By saying this, we please the Lord, both the living and the dead, and we enrich our souls, and we enter into paradise in Christ the God.
Just as you breathe without asking how it’s done, read and read your prayer and you will receive salvation.
Read the Jesus Prayer in every need and sorrow, then what you are looking for will come in due time.
When you continually pray, it will be good, and if you are not joyful, it is because we do not pray.
During times of melancholy and other changes, one must constantly say: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, Mother of God, have mercy on us sinners.” Father Andronik said: “Whoever does not read prayer falls ill with melancholy, and with it despondency comes—and thus burdens himself.”
Even if you are in a state of confusion when your mind is carried away by something, then do not abandon the Jesus Prayer.
This prayer will deliver you from the seal of the Antichrist, forgive your sins, adorn you with virtues and unite you with God.
Love the Jesus Prayer, and it will clothe you like a robe with virtues, lead you along the path of salvation, encourage you, make you happy, and grant you a lot of salvation with the elect.
With people, when they contradict or reproach, one must remain silent and say the Jesus Prayer. This is a wonderful remedy.
Father Vitaly said that prayer must be approached with great consideration, so as not to fall into delusion . In a letter to one archimandrite, he answered his question this way: “Why don’t the Fathers tell us to practice the Jesus Prayer? This is in the area of the heart. Whoever takes on this feat ahead of time, and has not acquired silence, patience, cutting off self-will, and sets out for a great feat, this is why delusion occurs.
Therefore, the Fathers, warning against this matter, strictly say not to enter into this work ahead of time”* (here Father Vitaly speaks of the third degree of the Jesus Prayer - the mind-heart prayer, which the Holy Fathers did not recommend embarking on without experienced spiritual guidance).
We are proud, that’s why we don’t have the Jesus Prayer.
Prayer is not given for pride.
Prayer is not accepted with pride by God.”
“About the life of Schema-Archimandrite Vitaly. Memoirs of spiritual children. Letters. Teachings." M.: Novospassky Monastery, 2002.
Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnitsky (1914-2003) (from the elder’s biography): “When I came to the Milkovo monastery as a novice, they gave me a rosary and taught me how to pray. And as they showed me, that’s what I did. I gave myself completely to the Jesus Prayer.
I thought that I only had five years of life left and that it was not worth wasting. So I decided to look for my way to God. Soon, precisely as a result of this complete devotion to God and sincere longing for God, I was illuminated by Divine grace, which left indescribable joy and peace in my soul.
I listen to my heart and hear inside: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” I try to remember some things and events from the past, but it doesn’t work; all my thoughts are immersed in some kind of indescribable calm, and some kind of indescribable joy and sadness for God reigns in my whole being.”
heart must separate from its inner desires. It is necessary to purge all earthly plans and desires from him. You need to purge everything, unite with the Lord, ask him for help, humble yourself - and he will cleanse you. Inner prayer is the greatest work a person can do.
In it the soul is purified in order to accept divine fire and continuously pray for the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit must come into your heart so that the destructive wisdom of this world can no longer fill it.
During prayer, a person should feel that he is alone with God, that there is no one else in the world, only God and him.
You need to pray with your heart: all the powers of the mind are concentrated in the heart, and the Lord is the God of the heart. He is the center of all living things, he moves life and there is no need to look for him somewhere far away. He is here and waiting for us to accept him and trust him.
“Pray without ceasing,” the apostle commanded. Inner prayer is the greatest work a person can do. Because our enemy - mental power - knows that in prayer a person approaches God with his heart and feelings, and the spirits of evil try to tie a person to earthly objects.
In prayer, first of all, attention is necessary; prayer without attention is worth nothing. But if prayer is completely abandoned, then it is even more difficult. This means work is needed!
The Holy Fathers constantly asked the Lord to save them from being distracted in prayer, but we constantly think about something extraneous.
You must approach every task with the thought of God. And the enemy constantly distracts our mind (scatters) with memories of where we once were, what we did, what we heard, starting from childhood; the enemy combines these thoughts and we think that it is all ours. He has a whole inventory of our life - everything we did, how we acted... They do not know our inner thoughts, but they see the image of the soul. Therefore, we need great effort to draw closer to the Lord with our hearts and not be separated from Him. This is a working prayer.
In addition to labor, there is grace prayer. It is received as a gift from the Lord. Seeing our work, seeing that we want to unite with Him with our whole being, rejecting all worldly desires, He gradually cleanses us from worldly concerns, from attachment to earthly things, and leads the soul to humility and simplicity. And the soul no longer takes insults to heart; no matter what happens, she is calm, saying: “This is how it should be.” This means that the soul is cleansed in order to accept the Divine fire and continuously pray in the Holy Spirit.”
Based on the book: “Peace and Joy in the Holy Spirit: Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnitsa” Novospassky Monastery, 2010.
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Read about the dangers of the Jesus Prayer for a layman here
Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnitsky about the Jesus Prayer, humility and Grace
matter how physically healthy a person is, he still has shortcomings. There cannot be a single perfect being without flaws. No creature is perfect. The perfect one is God. With God we can be perfect. And we cannot do without Him. Because He is love, All is love. When we turn to Him with our hearts, we will receive help right away.
— How can we be saved in the world around us, human and material, how can we open our hearts and sincerely turn to God?
- You need to exercise. And prayer is also an exercise. When a person constantly says prayer, it naturally turns into a habit, and then he does it according to skill, prayer. When we repeat the words, a feeling comes about which the holy fathers who performed mental prayer, many holy fathers, write about. If you constantly repeat something, it becomes part of our nature. Also with prayer. Many received “free” Grace at the beginning. And all of them who turn from the heart to the Lord with mental prayer - it becomes constant in due time, it comes to you itself... prayer.
And from this there is such joy and a certain peace that is not of this world. And the peace and silence that you receive..., then you lose again... And grace-filled prayer is an unspeakable joy... yes...
— Could you give us some advice on prayer? What prayers? How to say them, where to say them?
— The Holy Fathers say about the Jesus Prayer that everyone needs to practice it. “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me.” If we practice it daily, we ourselves will feel the grace of God. When it begins to happen on its own, without your will and desire, and becomes a habit when you pronounce it, then incredible Divine power is with us.
And you feel peace and joy. The joy is unspeakable, and you yourself are amazed at what it is... Everything is sweet to you, everything is good. Everything you look at is holy. Everything you can’t touch is sacred. And this is Divine grace that is given to man; it does not depend on our will, nor on our desires, nor on anything. It goes by itself... like some kind of engine, without stopping. A person lives, and he constantly has indescribable joy. He is happy... no matter what he sees, everything is joy. Like the Monk Seraphim of Sarov, he said to everyone he saw: “My joy!”
And he rejoices from unceasing Divine grace when he sees Divine power in every soul, no matter whether in childhood or in old age. And for him this is Divine energy and incredible joy.
Elder Anatoly of Kiev (1957–2002).
From the memories of spiritual children: “About the Jesus Prayer, Father said: “Be very careful, you are approaching fire. Now this fire has almost gone out. You think why is it so difficult for us? As soon as they notice where the fire is, they immediately devote all their efforts to put it out.”
“Father, am I reading the Jesus Prayer correctly?” And I quickly read it in one breath without stopping. “Read slowly, humbly and with contrition turning to the Lord, He is nearby and hears everything.”
“Father, I can’t read the Jesus Prayer, the enemy is greatly interfering. Can I read to the Mother of God? - “Most Holy Theotokos, have mercy on me, a sinner.” “It’s possible,” answered Father, “but this way: “Most Holy Theotokos, save me a sinner.”
“At first the enemy tempts rudely: we sin openly, but we do not have the strength not to sin. Then, when the Lord sends Grace, we do not sin in deeds, even in words. But thoughts still remain. And the enemy begins sophisticated work. He wages war in his thoughts. A person did a good deed, and the enemy immediately thought: “I did this, I am so good.” He attributes all deeds in his thoughts only to himself, and not to God. A person thinks that he is doing good, but he reaps the fruit of passions that are intensifying every day. And the Lord hates it.
And you need to fight this with the help of the Jesus Prayer of repentance. “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, who condemns me, who is proud, who is self-willed, who is envious,” etc. Pass all sins through the Jesus Prayer. And the memory of past sins crushes the heart and the enemy who sits in it. Remember from what heights you came to God, with what suitcases of sins - and you will never want to ascend.”
Father laughed: “Before death it will work out.” Nothing, nothing. “The Kingdom of Heaven is in need and its needs delight it.” Do and repeat to yourself the words of the Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Tearfully ask the Lord, beseechingly, slowly. It’s as if your fate is now being decided, and everything depends on how you ask the Lord. Does your heart hurt? Tunic? - It hurts and stings. - By the Grace of God. Just don't think you're doing anything significant. Understood?".
“...Wisdom is in Silence and Keeping the mouth. A wise man knows when to speak and when to remain silent. But both this and that are for the Glory of God and with reason.
Wisdom is in Sobriety of mind and Wakefulness; The Jesus Prayer gives wisdom.
The path to God is Prayer, the whole world stands by Prayer. Without Prayer, a person is alien to God; then he is a black brand, not a monk. And Prayer is a lot of work on oneself inside, in the chest, in our treasury - in the heart. We think we are praying. But in fact, we do not know what the Book of Prayer is, let alone Prayer.
The salt of Prayer is a constant repentant cry in the heart for a lost paradise; it is the pain of the heart about what is lost. This is deep heartbreak. When there is Repentance and contrition, then you can say the Jesus Prayer. Without it, no one can be saved, because one can only achieve purity of heart (“The Kingdom of Heaven is within you”) only through the Jesus Prayer. But first - Repentance and contrition, without this there will be no Jesus Prayer.
Now no one is doing this, because the appearance is in fashion, but the inside, the depth - both monasticism and Christianity - has been emasculated. The whole world, visible and invisible, rises up against those who do the Jesus Prayer, and their passions constantly intrude. Hard work: Praying means shedding blood. “The Kingdom of Heaven is in need and women in need delight E” - always move yourself to Prayer, never give up, force yourself. This is how one goes into dispassion (purity of heart). This is the purpose of a Christian's life on this earth.
The Jesus Prayer is secret, sacramental, so that it is not wasted through vanity. Doing the Jesus Prayer is Smart Doing: “purification of thoughts, unceasing prayer and patience with sorrows.” This Smart Doing constitutes Repentance. And the process is Sobriety. Through the Jesus Prayer, to acquire the Holy Spirit is the goal of Christian life...”
Sermon on the Jesus Prayer
“ The Lord, before His Ascension, said to the disciples: “Go into the whole world and preach the Gospel to every creature.”
And the Gospel Sermon is not just words, it is the unceasing Jesus Prayer in pure hearts. The Lord from the Cross said seven words: “Behold Thy Mother,” “Behold Thy Son,” “Behold Thy Finished.” And the Jesus Prayer also has seven words. This is the Gospel in miniature; the entire Gospel teaching fits into these seven words.
The whole law, the prophets, the whole Gospel fits into two commandments about Love: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” The love of God is the Cross of the Lord, on which He suffered, endured, took our sins upon His shoulders and nailed them to the tree.
Everyone is talking about Love now. How to go to her? Only with the help of the Jesus Prayer, because it is the queen of all virtues, the root and foundation of all Christian piety. In this Prayer the Lord Himself is present in His Name.
Don’t try to understand this with your mind, because when you perceive it with your mind, you won’t say anything except “This Word is cruel.” This requires purity of heart and dispassion. Only with a pure heart can one comprehend this Divine Mystery.
In the last hours, “whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Here it is precisely said that without the Jesus Prayer there will be no salvation, because passions in the heart cannot be killed by anything other than it. The entire Orthodox Faith and all piety rest on the Name of Jesus Christ. Anyone who wants to truly learn to love the Lord must necessarily practice the Jesus Prayer.
There are different types of the Jesus Prayer, but basically it is divided into three types, since our nature is threefold: bodily, mental and spiritual.
Spiritual prayer is unceasing heartfelt prayer. It is given by the Lord to one in a thousand according to His great Grace. All the Saints, all the ascetics of Christ acquired precisely this Prayer, because only through it can one acquire the Grace of the Holy Spirit. And this is the goal of the Christian life.
And we, sinners, need to start with verbal (bodily) prayer. And if we remain in it all our lives, we will still be a great gain, because this occupation is honest and honorable.
How to take this road correctly? You need to remember the main, fundamental law, the rule for prayer: never offend anyone with anything, despite the fact that in front of you there may be the very least sinner. The last will still be the first. This is what the Gospel teaches.
The Jesus Prayer stands on four pillars:
- true Humility,
- unfeigned Love,
- Chastity,
- deep contrition about one’s sinfulness, about one’s fall, about one’s inability to do good.
From the very beginning, you need to tune in to crying, to suffering, to pain, because the Truth cannot be comprehended any other way. What is needed is a constant repentant state of soul, internal crying, a broken heart with the memory of sins. This is the right road.
But place all your hope in Prayer on God’s help, on God’s mercy towards us sinners, and not on your own work. The Lord gives the Prayer in different ways: to one - after a year, to another - at the end of life, and to another - beyond the grave. There is no need to rush to the fruits. The Lord Himself sets the deadlines. The main thing for us is to go the right way, and then everything is on the Grace of God.
In the last times, before the coming of the Antichrist, there will be pillars of Orthodoxy that will be under the influence of the heartfelt Jesus Prayer. These are those stingy sinners, the workers of the 11th hour, for whose sake the Lord will shorten the days of sorrow. They will stand and will not be deceived, because the Lord will cover them.
Sooner or later, we need to hit the road to find Prayer. Because without Prayer, a monk is a black firebrand. Lord, help us get out and get there.”
According to the book: “Let the merciful receive mercy.” Hieromonk Anatoly 1957 – (03.09/16.10) 2002. Kyiv, 2007
Venerable Gabriel of Sedmiezersk (1844-1915): “Love of God and mental prayer unite us with the Lord. Love and prayer. Just as fire heats iron and it becomes equal to fire, so the mental prayer of Jesus heats us up, heats us up to the highest love of God...
The greatness of prayer is the secret of holiness. The means for prayer is infantile simplicity, the humble kindness of a devoted heart, constantly turned to prayer, to God: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner!
Through this prayer people achieve the power of holiness. This is the whole secret of the saints - continuous prayer, (incessant) repetition of one great thought about the Divine (instead of many prayers).
(Similar to) how, according to the Holy Church, the Angels constantly repeat at the throne of God: Holy, Holy, Holy!!! - and they can no longer fall away from God, so we (repeat) the Jesus Prayer. ...
To become like the Angels, we must devote all our attention to the Divine, to be earthly angels and heavenly people. This is what the Jesus Prayer serves. We need to say it hundreds of times in a row, then thousands of times, and so on endlessly, until finally this prayer begins to sound in our heart and merges with its every beat.
After long and difficult exercises in this matter, a person begins to feel how prayer passes from the mind to the heart and, like heavenly bread, saturates and fills it with indescribable joy. Here a complete rebirth of the old nature (man) takes place into a new creation, a complete transformation, a return to the beauty of pristine innocence and purity.
...The greatness and power of God is made perfect in our weakness (see: 2 Cor. 12:9); you enter into communication with the Divine, and your nature is reborn.
The mystery of holiness is the art of art. And humility, and gentleness of heart, and humility, and obedient meekness are filled with all greatness. But above all, the holy work of the prayerful spirit in the Divine is prayer to God. Introduce a great thought about God into yourself and repeat it an infinite number of times.
It's not the word, not the words, but the irresistible energy with which they are pronounced an infinite number of times. It will end with the fact that you will make this prayer-thought the complete master (in your soul), the mind - the king, the soul - the complete queen, and by the power of the Divine, prayer will gradually displace all indecent other thoughts, expand at their expense, deepen at the root and acquire extraordinary power , will become above all and conquer and destroy all evil, all mental and sensory enemies.”
Venerable Barsanuphius of Optina (1845-1913): “We believers have a great weapon! This is the power of the Life-Giving Cross. Just think, it becomes scary for non-believers; they are completely defenseless. This is the same as if a man, completely unarmed, went into a dense forest at night; Yes, the first beast that comes along will tear him to pieces there, and he has nothing to defend himself with.
We will not be afraid of demons. The power of the sign of the cross and the name of Jesus, terrible for the enemies of Christ, will save us from the evil snares of the devil.
Always have the Jesus Prayer with you: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner,” and open your thoughts... The Name of Jesus destroys all the devil’s attacks; they cannot resist the power of Christ. All the wiles of the devil crumble into dust.
We have one sword - the Jesus Prayer. It is said: “Strike the invisible warriors with this sword, for there is no stronger weapon either in heaven or on earth.”
If you think about these words, it becomes scary that there is no stronger weapon even in heaven. “In the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord...
The Jesus Prayer is of enormous importance in the life of a Christian. This is the shortest path to achieving the Kingdom of Heaven, although this path is not easy, and having embarked on it, we must be prepared for sorrow.
True, other prayers are also of considerable importance, and a person who goes through the Jesus Prayer listens to prayers and hymns in church, and performs the obligatory cell rules. And yet, it is the Jesus Prayer that, more than others, brings a person into a repentant mood and shows him his weaknesses, therefore, it brings him closer to God. A person begins to feel that he is the greatest sinner, and this is all God needs.
The enemy tries in every possible way to divert the Christian from this prayer; he fears and hates it most of all. Indeed, a person who always performs this prayer is preserved by the power of God unharmed from enemy snares. When a person is completely imbued with this prayer, then it opens the gates of heaven for him, and even though he did not receive special gifts and grace on earth, his soul will boldly cry out: Open for me the gates of righteousness... (Ps. 117, 19).
And so the enemy instills various thoughts to confuse the foolish, saying that prayer requires concentration, tenderness, and so on, and if this is not the case, then it only angers God. Some listen to these arguments and abandon prayer to the delight of the enemy.
You should not listen to tempting thoughts, you should drive them far away from yourself and, without being embarrassed, continue your prayer work. Even if the fruits of this labor are unnoticeable, even if a person does not experience spiritual delight and tenderness, still prayer cannot remain ineffective. She silently does her job...
It is not difficult for everyone to say the words: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me,” and the benefits are enormous, this is the most powerful weapon for the fight against passions. One, for example, is proud; the other is overwhelmed by lustful thoughts, it seems she doesn’t even see men, but is always in her thoughts for fornication; the third is envious, but there is no strength to fight sins, where can I get them? The only thing is in the Jesus Prayer.
The enemy does his best to distract her from it. Well, what nonsense is it to repeat the same thing over and over again, when neither the mind nor the heart participates in prayer, it is better to replace it with something else. Don't listen to him - he's lying. Continue to practice prayer, and it will not remain fruitless. All the saints adhered to this prayer, and it became so dear to them that they would not exchange it for anything...
The Jesus Prayer brings us closer to Christ...
The action of this prayer is shrouded in the greatest mystery. It does not consist in just saying the words: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner,” but it reaches the heart and mysteriously settles in it. Through prayer we enter into communion with the Lord Jesus Christ, we pray to Him, and we merge with Him into one whole. This prayer fills the soul with peace and joy in the midst of the most difficult trials, in the midst of all the tightness and vanity of life...
Peace, light and strength must be sought in God, through the Jesus Prayer. It will become very difficult for you, darkness will surround you - stand in front of the image, light the lamp, if it was not lit, kneel down if you can, or even so, say: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner!”
Say it once, twice, three times, say it so that not only your lips pronounce this prayer, but it reaches your heart. However, the sweetest name of the Lord will certainly reach the heart, and little by little melancholy and sorrow will disappear, the soul will brighten, quiet joy will reign in it...”
Schema-Hegumen German (Gomzin) (1844-1923): “Be sure to read the Jesus Prayer: the name of Jesus must be constantly in our hearts, minds and tongues: whether you stand, lie, sit, walk, while eating - and always - always repeat the Jesus Prayer.
This is very comforting! It's impossible without her. After all, you can say the Jesus Prayer in short: this is what the holy fathers recommend for beginners. It will be healthier and stronger. Remember six words: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Repeat more slowly: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner,” and even more slowly: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner.” So good!
Learn self-reproach: you cannot live without it. Here I have been living in a monastery for fifty years, I am seventy-six years old, blind, I can barely move my legs; and only because the Lord has mercy on me is that I see my sins: my laziness, my negligence, my pride; and I constantly reproach myself for them - so the Lord helps my weakness...
Prayer is the most important thing in life. If you feel lazy, careless, as you say, what should you do? That's how a person is! And you pray to God in full attention, simply, like children, say the words of the prayer to the Lord Himself: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
The Lord Himself knows that you are a sinner. So pray: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.” This way it will be easier, shorter and better to keep your attention in words. This is how you pray. May the Lord God strengthen you."
Based on the book: “Conversations of the great Russian elders about the Orthodox faith, the salvation of the soul and various issues of spiritual life.” Publishing house CJSC "Circulation-51", 2004.
Abbot Nikon (Vorobiev) (1894-1963): “If all the commandments consist of two things: love for God and one’s neighbors, and love is achieved by doing the commandments given in the Gospel, then one must achieve knowledge that leads to the shortest and easiest path to fulfillment these commandments. For a worldly person, one can confine oneself to physical work; for those who are more seeking, it is necessary, in addition, to do internal work.
The Lord himself indicated in a nutshell what it consists of and what is especially necessary in difficult times: watch and pray (see Mark 13:33) . It is not said at such and such hours, but always.
To be awake means to watch yourself, your thoughts, words, feelings; follow and drive away everything that contradicts the Gospel with the Jesus Prayer, which fulfills the second word.
If this work takes place, it will replace everything, although other works are not excluded to make it easier. Constantly forcing oneself to the Jesus Prayer is the best proof that a person wants to be with the Lord, wants to fulfill His commandment.
Even during the service, the publican uttered only five words - and went away justified. The Holy Fathers say that all prayers can be replaced by one Jesus prayer.
The correct performance of this prayer will be when it is combined inextricably with repentance, it will be an expression of heartfelt contrition for one’s unworthiness, sinfulness, and the consciousness of constant violation of the commandments of the Gospel. The publican’s prayer was such an expression of heartfelt contrition. Keep this in mind.
It is not the repetition of the Jesus Prayer in the voice that gives results, but prayer as an outpouring of a contrite heart, then it will soon cause tenderness, a warming of the heart, and this will make it easier to do prayer, and so on.
Doing what you can, the commandments of the Gospel - outside and inside - vigilance and the contrite Jesus Prayer - this is an invincible weapon available, I will say, the only one available, for our time. This activity always keeps a person in spiritual tension and does not connect him with books, nor with living conditions, nor even with health. Everywhere, always (unless you delve into some activity that requires strong attention) it is available.
Set yourself a small rule, accessible to your circumstances and strengths, and the rest of the time, day and night, always, if possible, fulfill the rule of the Lord Jesus Christ: watch and pray, for by doing this you will be honored to avoid all future disasters, material and mental.”
Based on the book: “Hegumen Nikon (Vorobiev). Letters to spiritual children." Lvov, 2002 .
Elder Lavrenty of Chernigov (1868-1950) himself constantly practiced the Jesus Prayer and taught the sisters. He indicated how to pray to someone by inhalation and exhalation. “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God” - inhale, and “have mercy on me, a sinner” - exhale.
And to one girl (in response to her request to bless the rosary) he said: “Prayer is a good thing, an angelic one, and you hold your little finger with your thumb on the fingers of your left hand and read ten prayers: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” ", and then go to the nameless one and so on in order. And now you will have the skill to pray. The mind must be constantly directed into prayer, otherwise it wanders everywhere.”
Elder Savva (1898-1980): “Do not think that the Lord does not hear prayers. He is the first to take care of the correction of sinners. Only people themselves do not want to struggle a little with themselves, to pull themselves up, they are fainthearted, they themselves do not allow the Lord to save them and help them.
Those who combine the Jesus Prayer with breathing do very well. This means breathing the name of Jesus! Such a prayer will bring the heart closer to God, sanctify it, the Lord will, as it were, put a seal on it, where evil spirits can no longer enter. And when prayer becomes breathing, he is no longer afraid of Satan, for he is protected by Divine grace, such people feel that the Lord is always with them: saving, covering and delivering from the enemy.
Grace so transforms the heart that a person becomes above the earth and passions. Such a soul does not look at anything on earth, but is completely devoted to God, because grace brings such sweetness, such joy that the soul forgets everything earthly. And we will force ourselves to acquire constant prayer.
You need to combine prayer with breathing like this.
Before lunch: inhale - Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, exhale - have mercy on me, a sinner. After lunch: inhale - Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, exhale - through the prayers of the Mother of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.
At any time, in any place, during any activity in your heart, you should always cry out to Him, at least briefly: “Lord, have mercy!”, “Lord, help!”
If we understand what unceasing prayer means, then it is easy for us to understand that it is needed to pay attention to ourselves, to bring us to our senses, because we are often beside ourselves. We are everywhere, but not in ourselves. Not in your heart, not in your inner man. Let us constantly force ourselves to acquire constant prayer, and through it all the virtues.
After communion of the Mysteries of Christ, one must certainly read the Jesus Prayer in order to maintain grace , preferring this heartfelt prayer to reading books and, especially, conversations with people, which only lead to condemnation.”
From the memories of the elder’s spiritual children:
Father believed that it would be good not to talk about worldly affairs, except for what is necessary, and asked everyone to constantly remain in prayer: “After all, we still need to breathe, so it would be good to say when we inhale: “Lord,” and when we exhale: “ have mercy." Inhale the Lord and exhale everything unclean and sinful from yourself.”
“It’s hard to study, it’s even harder to pray, but what to do?” You need to work, force yourself to pray. You can pray standing, sitting, walking along the road, lying down...
First, prayer is felt in the mouth, then in the larynx, and then closer and closer to the heart. And when the prayer of the heart is established, then no one and nothing will interfere with the person. Prayer seems to happen on its own in his heart. At the same time, you experience indescribable sweetness!
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Prayer for patience
I think that many of us lack patience not only for everyone around us, but even for our neighbors. I would like to offer you just a few sayings of the holy fathers. How right….!
“It is impossible to live without patience and condescension towards others.”
“Observing the events of both your life and other people, you can see a confluence of circumstances with amazing clarity. No precautions or measures could and cannot warn the perpetrator, for it is carried out according to the judgment of God. There's no one to blame. We must humble ourselves and endure. Otherwise we will sin against God.” Rev. Nikon Optinsky
“A good deed is not done easily, but everything is done with difficulty and patience” St. Moses of Optina “We must endure not only the sorrows that come our way, but we must endure ourselves” St. Nikon Optinsky “That there is little patience may be a consequence of poor health and impressionability. And we must endure this, that is, that patience is not enough.” St. Feofan the Recluse
“All sins come from self-love. The beginning of goodness is to deny oneself, to crucify the flesh with passions, to endure grief, insults, and misfortunes.” Savva (Ostapenko) “Where there are temptations, there is a need for patience, and where there is patience, there is the intercession of grace and mercy” St. a lion
“Let baptism remain with you as a shield; faith is like a helmet; love is like a spear; patience is like a complete weapon” Sschmch. Ignatius the God-Bearer
“We must learn patience not when we are blamed for guilt, but when we are innocently reproached and reproached” St. Macarius of Optina “Whoever has acquired the feeling or skill of tireless patience will not be afraid of suffering or labor” (Ladder 26:77)
Prayer to Seraphim of Sarov
One day the old man was attacked by thieves. They beat him and took away a small icon of the Mother of God with a silver frame. After this, the old man was left to die in the forest in his lodge.
However, the Lord did not abandon him. He gave him the strength to reach the temple. This old man was Seraphim of Sarov - a wonderworker and saint.
He came at the time when the service was being held. The parishioners and servants of the temple were horrified by what they saw, because the elder’s head was broken, his clothes were torn, and blood was flowing from everywhere. No one doubted that Seraphim would die, because with such wounds it was impossible to survive.
The old man could neither eat nor sleep. The body ached badly, and the pain made it impossible to move. On the eighth day, the Most Holy Theotokos and the apostles appeared to him. After that, he quickly recovered and got back on his feet, but the consequences of the attack haunted him for the rest of his life.
Those responsible for Seraphim’s torment were soon caught, but the saint did not present anything to them. He said then that everything is God’s will. However, the abbot demanded punishment for the guilty. But Seraphim remained adamant and threatened to leave the monastery.
The abbot warned Seraphim that the robbers did not realize their guilt and would continue to commit crimes. But God put everything in its place. Soon the robbers came to Sarovsky to confess their sins. The saint blessed them and released them.
Here is a prayer to the theologian Seraphim of Sarov for the gift of humility, obedience and patience:
“Oh, great servant of God, venerable and God-bearing Father Seraphim! Look down from the glory on high upon us, the humble and weak, burdened with many sins, your help and consolation to those who ask. Reach out to us with your mercy and help us to immaculately preserve the commandments of the Lord, to firmly maintain the Orthodox faith, to diligently bring repentance for our sins to God, to gracefully prosper in piety as Christians and to be worthy of your prayerful intercession for us.
To her, Holiness of God, hear us praying to you with faith and love and do not despise us who demand your intercession: now and at the hour of our death, help us and protect us with your prayers from the evil slander of the devil, so that those powers may not possess us, but may we be worthy with your help, inherit the bliss of the abode of paradise.
We now place our hope in you, merciful Father: be truly a guide to salvation for us and lead us to the unevening light of Eternal Life by your God-pleasing intercession at the Throne of the Most Holy Trinity, so that we glorify and sing with all the saints the venerable name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit forever centuries. Amen".
