Welcome to The Daily Prayer Team messages, each day includes a passage of scripture, a reflection and a prayer. Sponsored by Saint John Greek Orthodox Church in Tampa, FL.

But they would not listen, but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the Lordtheir God. They despised his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and the warnings which he gave them. They went after false idols, and became false, and they followed the nations that were round about them, concerning whom the Lord had commanded them that they should not do like them.  II Kings 17: 14-15

In this unit on bridging the gap between what is and what should be, we have been addressing some hard truths.  The truth is that there is a sizable gap from where we are as Christians and as a Church and where God expects us to be.  This gap can be bridged with work, with encouragement and with time.  But the first thing that is needed to bridge the gap is some honesty, and humility.  It is humility that allows us to see a gap, and it is honesty that allows us to see how big the gap is.

One of the things that we need to acknowledge is that we are a cross-section of the world.  We are no better, no worse, in fact, we are pretty much the same.  Just because one is an Orthodox Christian does not mean he or she is immune from the challenges as well as the failings shared by the rest of the world.  We’d like to think that our Orthodox teenagers aren’t smoking weed, or looking at pornography, or experimenting with alcohol.  They are, pretty much to the same percentage as the rest of America.  We’d like to think that our adults are immune from bad marriages, adultery and the like, but they aren’t.  While we probably have a higher percentage of married couples who stay together, this is probably due to a culture that frowns on divorce.  This doesn’t mean that every couple who is still together is thriving together.  A look at the statistics put out every year by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America show a steady increase in funerals, a steady decrease in baptisms and a sharp decrease in weddings over the past decade, to the point that since national statistics began being kept in 1965, baptisms are at an all-time low and funerals are at an all-time high.  We are the world!

A large part of solving any challenge or problem is admitting that you have one.  And we have problems, lots of them.  Solving problems doesn’t involve running away from them but running to them.  It means being willing to talk about the hard issues with our teenagers, and it means being willing to listen to them.  It means thinking not only of spirituality in our communities but offering programs to assist married couples, parents with teens, teens who are struggling, and other groups of at-risk people who don’t necessarily need a ministry—they need some help.

Christ told us to be in the world but not of the world.  There is no question we live in a challenging world.  And it’s really hard not to fall prey to the things of the world—peer pressure, materialism, secularism, keeping up with the Joneses, and so on.  So it is incumbent on us to open our churches to talking about the hard things, to encourage the people who can do the talking to do it, and to encourage those who need to hear the messages to come and hear them.

It’s not enough to just have beautiful services and inspiring sermons—these certainly are important.  We need to minister to the broken people who are at the services, and more importantly, reach out to those who aren’t, to bring them both direction and hope.  It also means reaching out to professionals who specialize in certain areas and bringing in outside experts to provide direction and encouragement.  Recognizing that “we are the world” is very humbling, and deserves a “radical” response.  And following up on yesterday’s reflection, if we are going to be part of the solution, we have to recognize that we have problems, to the same degree that everyone else does.

Truly God is good to the upright, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled, my steps had well-nigh slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For they have no pangs; their bodies are sound and sleek. They are not in trouble as other men are; they are not stricken like other men. Therefore pride is their necklace; violence covers them as a garment. Their eyes swell out with fatness, their hearts overflow with follies. They scoff and speak with malice; loftily they threaten oppression. They set their mouths against the heavens, and their tongue struts through the earth. Therefore the people turn and praise them; and find no fault in them. And they say, “How can God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?” Behold, these are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches. All in vain have I kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence. For all the day long I have been stricken, and chastened every morning. If I had said, “I will speak thus,” I would have been untrue to the generation of Thy children. But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end. Truly thou dost set them in slippery places; Thou dost make them fall to ruin. How they are destroyed in a moment, swept away utterly by terrors! They are like a dream when one awakes, on awaking you despise their phantoms. When my soul was embittered, when I was pricked in heart, I was stupid and ignorant,  I was like a beast toward Thee. Nevertheless I am continually with Thee; Thou dost hold my right hand. Thou dost guide me with Thy counsel, and afterward Thou wilt receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but Thee? And there is nothing upon earth that I desire besides Thee. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For lo, those who are far from Thee shall perish; Thou dost put an end to those who are false to Thee. But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all Thy works. Psalm 73

We are a cross-section of the world.  We have to recognize that, embrace that, and meet that challenge head on!

The Revised Standard Version of the Bible is copyrighted 1946, 1952, 1971, and 1973 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. and used by permission. From the Online Chapel of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.

ABOUT THE ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN NETWORK

Orthodox Christian Network (OCN) is a 501(c)3 and an official agency of the Assembly of Canonical Bishops of the United States of America .It is a recognized leader in the Orthodox Media field and has sustained consistent growth over twenty-two years. We have worked to create a community for both believers and non believers alike by sharing the timeless faith of Orthodoxy with the contemporary world through modern media. We are on a mission to inspire Orthodox Christians Worldwide. Click to signup to receive weekly newsletter. 

Join us in our Media Ministry Missions! Help us bring the Orthodox Faith to the fingertips of Orthodox Christians worldwide! Your gift today will helps us produce and provide unlimited access to Orthodox faith-inspiring programming, services and community. Don’t wait. Share the Love of Orthodoxy Today!


avatar

Fr. Stavros Akrotirianakis

Fr. Stavros N. Akrotirianakis is the Proistamenos of St. John Greek Orthodox Church in Tampa, FL. Fr. contributes the Prayer Team Ministry, a daily reflection, which began in February 2015. The Prayer Team now has its own dedicated website! Fr. Stavros has produced multiple books, you can view here: https://amzn.to/3nVPY5M

0 Comments

Leave a Reply

Avatar placeholder