Have you ever heard it? And? This is a children's song, as I remember it.

This is how we should really look at Christ. He is our friend, He is our brother, He is the best and most beautiful thing that exists. He is everything. As a friend, He speaks to us and says, "You are My friends. Don't you understand this? We are brothers and sisters. I don't... I do not have the keys to the abysses of hell in my hands, I do not intimidate you, but I love you. And I want you to enjoy life with Me." Understand?

That's what Christ is. And there is no place for gloom, despondency, isolation on oneself, when a person is immersed and tormented by all kinds of thoughts, suffering from the wounds he received on his life's path.

Christ is the new life. Christ is everything.

He is joy, He is life, He is light, true light [11], who makes a person rejoice, strives upward, sees everything, sees everyone, cares for everyone, wants everyone to be with him, and everyone is next to Christ.

When we find any thing or treasure, we do not want to talk about it anywhere. But a Christian, when he finds Christ, when he comes to know Him, when Christ enters his soul and he feels Him, wants to talk and shout about it everywhere. He wants to talk about Christ, about what Christ is. Love Christ and prefer nothing to His love. Christ is everything, it is the source of life, the limit of desires, it is everything. In Christ there is everything, all the most beautiful.

Far removed from Christ are sorrows, despondency, nervousness, worries, memories of life's traumas, battles and sufferings. All this happens in our lives. We hurry there, we run here, but all in vain, and we cannot stop anywhere. But where we find Christ, even if it is a cave, there we remain and are afraid to leave, so as not to lose Him. Read on and you'll find out. The ascetics, who came to know Christ, did not want to leave their caves, did not want to go into the world for the work of preaching, they wanted to remain where they felt Christ present to them.

Christ is everything.

Christ is the source of life and joy. That's all. And what do you think, Nobody?

"What you said, Geronda, are golden words, and this is reality. As you say, so it is in reality.

"Yes," the Elder continued, "When we say that we are Christians, that we are Christ's, then we hear a call to this life. Do you understand? Here's how it happens... And in the hour of trial, as soon as we see Christ, we immediately drop our intentions and want to be with Christ. But Christ is our friend, He is our brother, and He says, "You are My friends. I don't want you to look at Me any other way, I don't want you to look at Me like this: that I am God, that I am God the Word, that I am the hypostasis of the Holy Trinity. I want you to look upon Me as your own, as your friend, to take Me in your arms, to feel Me in your soul, your Friend. I am the source of life as it really is."

And all this is true. Now, as we said, there is Satan, hell, death. All this is there, it really is. This is the other realm: evil, darkness, and that which belongs to darkness.

A person of Christ must love Christ, and when he loves Christ, he is freed from the devil, from hell and death. You will ask me: "Have you achieved this?" No, I have not achieved this, I am asking for this, I want this. And when I am alone, and in general I try to live like this everywhere. I don't live, but... Try. That is, how can I tell you, how can I explain it? I didn't go into this area... But I was there once, I saw her, but now I am not there, but I remember her, I miss her and I want to go back. And now, and tomorrow, the day after tomorrow – at every moment this desire returns to me, and I really want and thirst to go there. But I'm not there. I can't explain it to you. Well, do you finally understand?

"Yes, you understand, Geronda.