"He prays, but he answers prayers. He weeps, but wipes away tears. He asks where Lazarus has been laid, for He is man; but He raises him to life, for He is God. He is sold, dirt cheap, for thirty pieces of silver, but He redeems the world, at great cost, with His own blood. … He dies, but He brings to life, and by his own death destroys death. He is buried, but He rises again. He descends into hell, but rescues the souls imprisoned there."
☦️ St Gregory the Theologian

O brethren, as ye take up the spiritual fast, speak no deceit with your tongue, neither put a stumbling block in the way of your brother as an occasion for him to fall. ☦️ Vespers of 2nd week of Great Lent

“We are spiritually sick. And some of us are already dead.”

People feel unhappy and don’t know why. They feel that something is wrong but can’t put their finger on what it is. They feel uneasy in the world, confused and frustrated, alienated and estranged, and can’t explain it. They have everything and yet want more; and when they get it, they’re still left empty and dissatisfied. They want happiness and peace, and nothing seems to bring it. They want fulfillment, and it never seems to come.

Everything is fine, yet everything is wrong. In America this is almost a national disease. It is covered over by frantic activity and endless running around. It is buried in activities and events. It is drowned out by television programs and games. But when the movement stops and the dial is turned off and everything is quiet...then the dread sets in, and the meaninglessness of it all, and the boredom, and the fear. Why is this so? Because, the Church tells us, we are really not at home.

We are in exile. We are alienated and estranged from our true country. We are not with God our Father in the land of the living. We are spiritually sick. And some of us are already dead.”

Fr. Thomas Hopko, "The Lenten Spring”

Pray for our brothers and sisters in Ukraine who are suffering persecution in many ways for their Orthodox Faith.

Pray for the monks of the canonical Church who have been ordered to vacate the Kiev Pechersk Lavra by March 29. Thousands of faithful have gathered at the monastery to show their love and support. Lord have mercy!

Unto Thee have I lifted up mine eyes, unto Thee that dwellest in heaven. Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hands of their masters, as the eyes of the handmaid look unto the hands of her mistress, so do our eyes look unto the Lord our God, until He take pity on us. Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us, for greatly are we filled with abasement. Greatly hath our soul been filled therewith; let reproach come upon them that prosper, and abasement on the proud.

Psalm 122

A drop of prayer is worth more than a sea of worrying. “ ☦️St Nikolai Velimirovich

On March 18, 1956, St Nikolai fell asleep in the Lord in his humble cell at St. Tikhon's Seminary in South Canaan, PA, where he had been the Rector.

The “Serbian Chrysostom,” St Nikolai of Zhicha (reposed Mar, 1956), was renowned for his sermons, which never lasted more than twenty minutes, and focused on just three main points. He taught people the theology of the Church in a language they could understand, and inspired them to repentance.

As bishop, St Nikolai became leader of Bogomljcki Pokret, a movement for spiritual revival in Serbia. It encouraged people to pray and read the Bible. The movement also contributed to a renewal of monasticism. Monasteries were restored and reopened, renewing the spiritual life of the Serbian people.

So there is the solution to your puzzle, "I do not know what to do with my life". Look to Heaven, and measure every step of your life so that it is a step towards it.

☦️ St Theophan the Recluse