Prayer vs. Presumtion - John of Karpathos

12. Sometimes people find themselves brightly illuminated
and refreshed by God's grace for a while,
but then this grace may be taken away,
and they can fall into depression and start grumbling
and even give up dispiritedly
instead of energetically renewing their prayers
to call down again that assurance of salvation.
Such behavior is like an ungrateful beggar
taking alms at the palace door
and then walking off indignantly
because he was not invited in
to dine with the king himself.

- John of Karpathos

John Klimakos - Three Chapters on Prayer

56. When you go out after prayer,
keep your tongue under restraint,
for it is well capable of dissipating,
in a very short time,
what you labored to gather together.

57. When you are ready to stand
in the presence of the Lord,
let your soul wear a garment woven throughout
from the cloth of our forgiveness of others.
Otherwise your prayer will be of no value whatsoever.

58. Let all your prayer be completely simple.
Both the tax collector and the prodigal son
were reconciled to God by one simple phrase -
one said: God, have mercy on me, a sinner,
and the other: Father, I have sinned against you.

- St John Klimakos

God's Mercy and Grace - John Cassian

The thief on the cross certainly did not receive
the Kingdom of Heaven as a reward for his virtues
but as a grace and mercy from God.
He can serve as an authentic witness
that our salvation is given to us
only by God's mercy and grace.
All the holy masters knew this
and unanimously taught that perfection in holiness
can be achieved only through humility.



— John Cassian

Come to Focus In Yourself

From the moment you start praying,
raise your heart upward
and turn your eyes downward.
Come to focus in your innermost self
and there pray in secret to your heavenly Father

— Aphraphat the Persian

This strikes me as a good example of how Christian prayer is not the same as New Age or Hindu meditation. He says, "Come to focus in your innermost self" as opposed to focusing on your innermost self. There's a big difference. That we're like God is a half truth. That we are God is a complete lie. God is good and we are not.

We cannot do away with the revelation of God in Jesus Christ. As the apostle Paul prayed, let me pray this blessing for you. :)

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. (Galations 1:3-5)

Praktikos - Abba Philemon

Set your mind on following the path of saints.
Prefer a simple style of life.
Wear unremarkable clothes.
Eat simple food.
Behave in an unaffected manner.
Don't strut around as if you were important.
Speak from your heart.

— Abba Philemon