Wednesday. "Cry aloud, says the Lord to the holy Prophet Elijah, do not restrain yourself, denouncing the iniquities of My people." What did they do? "They seek Me, they desire to draw near to God." But is there a sin in this? After all, this is what they should do. Yes, they should, but the fact is that they don't do it the way they should. They hope to succeed in their search by fasting alone, without rejoicing in deeds of truth and love. And fasting is pleasing to Me, saith the Lord, but such a fast, when, humbling their bodies, they forgive offenses, forgive debts, feed the hungry, bring the bloodless into the house, clothe the naked. When all this is done during fasting, then seeking Me and drawing near to Me will be successful; "Then thy light shall be revealed as the dawn... and the glory of the Lord shall follow thee. Then you will call, and the Lord will hear; cry out, and He will say, Here am I... And the Lord shall be thy guide always" (Isaiah 58:1-11).

Thursday. "Hear, my son, and be wise, and direct your heart to the right path" (Proverbs 23:19). Thoughts are constantly coming out of the heart, sometimes good, and more evil. The evil should not be followed at all, but the good should not always be followed; It happens that even good thoughts in themselves are inappropriate in practice due to circumstances. That is why it is prescribed to pay attention to oneself, to watch over everything that comes from the heart, to reject evil, to discuss good things, and to do only that which turns out to be truly good. But it would be best to close the heart completely, so that nothing would come out of it and enter it, without the permission of the mind, so that the mind would precede everything by determining the movements of the heart. But the mind is like this only when it is the mind of Christ. Therefore, unite with Christ with your mind and heart, and everything will be in order within you.

Friday. The days of the Holy Forty Days are over! Now everyone sit down and take stock,

But we, who are negligent and carnivorous, who have only bothered about sweets and pleasures, are always only shameful of the face. Or even that's not the case. Others are beaten, and it does not hurt them, because their foreheads are of copper and their necks are made of iron.

Saturday. (Heb. 12:28-13, 8; J. 11:1-45). Whoever has a hardworking Martha – all-round good deeds, and Mary sitting at the feet of Jesus – an attentive and warm appeal to the Lord with all her heart, the Lord Himself will come to him and resurrect his Lazarus – the spirit, and release him from all the bonds of soul and body. Then a truly new life will begin for him, incorporeal in the body and unearthly on earth. This will be a true resurrection in the spirit before the future resurrection and with the body!

Week of Vai

(Phil. 4:4-9; John 12:1-18). Who was not present at the meeting of the Lord, when He solemnly entered Jerusalem as a king, and who did not then cry out: "Hosanna to the Son of David!" But only four days passed, and the same people, with the same tongue, cried out: "Crucify, crucify Him!" But what is there to marvel at? Do we not do the same when, after partaking of the Holy Mysteries of the Body and Blood of the Lord, as soon as we leave the church, we forget everything, both our reverence and God's mercy towards us, and as before we give ourselves over to self-pleasing deeds, at first small, and then large, and, perhaps, even before four days, even though we do not shout to another: "Crucify!" but we ourselves crucify the Lord within ourselves. And all this is seen and endured by the Lord! Glory to Thy longsuffering, O Lord!