Hello,
I am interested to know how all of you are approaching the Great Lent this year. As we all know, it is a powerful and invaluable time to make changes in our lives and to return the the right path that leads to our Savior if we have strayed.
What spiritual books are you reading during this time?
What goal do you have for the fast? In other words, are you focusing on quitting a certain sin or attaining a certain virtue?
What bible readings are you reading? Just the normal in-sequence ones you normally do? The readings of the day? The prophecies of the day?
What special prayers are you praying? Anything in particular or specific for the fast?
What changes to your daily routine do you try to implement?
Feel free to include anything else that is relevant that I might have missed, I would love to hear from each and every one of you and I wish you all a very blessed fast.
Comments
Spirituality of Fasting is definitely a book one should read during this time. However, Anything anyone doing here(hopefully) was recommended to them by their FOC. Which is what you should do, talk to your FOC and get his recommendations and applications of the fast so that it is specifically tailored to YOU so that YOU can benefit from lent. What we specifically do or don't do is based on our own spiritual needs and are in general tailored to us individually. I don't think you should specifically take anything anyone does here and apply it to yourself with out discretion and guidance.
You are very right. On the other hand, it's not bad to take book recommendations and such from each other that we found helpful. Sorry if I wasn't clear.
I guess I also meant it to be a way to encourage each other as well.
[quote author=user00 link=topic=10896.msg132012#msg132012 date=1299265700]
What spiritual books are you reading during this time?
I am currently reading through St. John Chrysostom's Commentary on the Gospel of St. John (which is available free here in case anyone is interested), which I'm finding wonderfully enlightening on passages from the Gospel that I did not understand before :)
I'm just trying to pray more frequently, and with greater depth and warmth. I'm focusing on using my Agpeya more, trying to pray other hours more frequently that I don't pray often.
http://www.orthodoxebooks.org/node/9
Its really nice.
I am also planning to listen to many sermons off of orthodoxsermons.org.
I am trying to learn as many hymns that I can, and to get as close to God by speaking to Him as if he were next to me.
I love the lent. It makes me feel connected.
but am now reading
http://www.orthodoxebooks.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/Calmness - HH Pope Shenouda III.pdf
which is the pdf version of coptic strength's link. it's cool. i couldn't acess jg's link.
it's also great that all the Bible readings for lent are on this website
(under 'our faith' and 'daily readings')
:)
My favorite thing to do in spare time is read, instead of reading amatuer books like (**Ahem**Cough**) Twilight and (Achoo**) bad books, reading about getting closer to God and learning what we need to do in life to be prepared to meet him, just makes sense.
During the lent specifically, I swim inside anything that will get my ears and eyes filled with His glory. Agpeya, prayer, sermons, spiritual books, hymns, liturgies, sitting with Abouna(s), you name it. There is just so much to search about God and to learn more and more about Him, you know? Going to the Deir (Monastary) is even better. Abolishing laziness out of my life is my goal. Yup. I am trying to focus on applying christian living in my life, speaking of christian living, there is one book that Saint Pope Kyrillos the 6th wrote on christian living:
http://www.orthodoxebooks.org/node/197
Sorry I posted twice, by the way.....
CopticStrength