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.

Love for God

Another time I asked the Elder what our love for God should be, and he answered: "Our love for God, my child, should be boundless, it should not be divided into attachment to various things.

Here is an example: a person, for example, has one battery of a certain energy capacity in him. If he dissipates this energy on various things that have nothing to do with love for God, then the charge left in him for this love will be very small, often even insignificant. If we turn all our energy to God, then our love for Him will be great.

I will give you another example.

One girl fell in love with a young man named Nikoe very much. Every night she woke up and, secretly from her parents, barefoot, jumped out of the window into the street and, despite the pain from the thorns digging into her legs, ran across the field to meet her lover. When she returned back to the house, Nikoe was always as if he were next to her. Whatever work she undertook, her Nikoe was here, she saw him. Likewise, you, my child, must direct all your strength to God. Your mind must always be in Him, because that's what God wants."

Middle and Royal Ways of Love

"We must also, my child," the Elder said to me, "not follow the middle path of a Christian, because it is very difficult. We must overcome this stage and rise high with love for Christ. Then everything becomes easy. Having loved Christ, we no longer fall into sin, and then we are beyond the middle path, then we are true Christians."