Arsenius writes: "This is the same as prayer"[24]. Why are the same prayers repeated so often in church? Every now and then: "Lord, have mercy." "And why do we repeat and speed up our breathing? It is necessary, it excites and sustains our lives. For the same purpose, frequent prayers are needed. And in fact, what does it mean: "Lord, have mercy"?

This is the cry of a guilty person and condemned to death, asking for pardon from an irritated justice. This is the cry of a penitent who expresses a firm intention to reform and begin a new life befitting a Christian. This is the cry of a sinner who is ready to have mercy on others himself, as one who has been immeasurably pardoned and merciful to God, the Judge of his deeds" (St. John of Kronstadt [25]).

Sometimes a person prays, it would seem, fervently, but his prayer does not bring him the fruits of peace and joy of the heart in the Holy Spirit. Why? "Because, praying according to ready-made prayers, he did not sincerely repent of the sins that he committed that day, with which he defiled his heart, this temple of Christ, and with which he angered the Lord. But if he should remember them and repent with all sincerity, condemning himself impartially, and peace will immediately dwell in his heart, surpassing all understanding (Phil. 4:7).

In the prayers of the Church there is an enumeration of sins, but not all of them, and often those with which we have bound ourselves are not mentioned. It is necessary to enumerate them yourself in prayer with a clear awareness of their importance, with a feeling of humility and with contrition of heart. That is why in the evening prayers it is said when enumerating sins: either this or that has done evil, i.e.

is left to our will to mention certain sins" (St. John of Kronstadt) [26]. On Epiphany I will be 22 years old. I myself have been baptized for ten years, but something began to change in me quite recently, literally a year or two. But, probably, I have not yet become quite a Christian, since I am still ashamed to pray in church, although I pray at home.

And as soon as I begin to pray, tears flow from me. What is this? Purification? Tears in church can indeed be purifying, but they can also be a reminder that the soul really wants repentance, confession and communion, and false shame (fear of prayer in church) prevents it from doing so. What if I overslept and there is no time for the morning rule, and I am in a hurry to go to work or to the beginning of the service in church?

If it happens that you oversleep and do not have time to read the morning rule, then you can do this: start reading it at home, and finish it on the road. Is it possible to read the prayer of Ephraim the Syrian on holidays and weekdays, or only during Great Lent? You can, if the shower requires it. Is it possible to read the canon of repentance on feasts, Christmastide, and Bright Week, if one has committed a sin?

According to the rules of the Church, on the days of Bright Week, the penitential canons are not supposed to be read according to the rule. Repentant prayers during Lent are enough, and the committed sin is cleansed at confession. On these days, it is better not to sin. Is it possible to make prostrations at home prayer on Christmastide, feasts, Bright Weeks, if you have sinned and your conscience does not allow you to pray standing up?

One should try to live according to the rule of the Church[27], which abolishes prostrations to the ground on these days, but kneeling can also be allowed in home prayer. Is it possible to replace morning and evening prayers with the reading of akathists and canons, after the "Our Father..." to "It is truly meet.."? It is possible, if there is some special need for it, but it is better not to invent your own rules, but to follow the Church.

Canons and akathists are read in free time; the reading of the Psalter can also be recommended. Tell me, please, which saint should we turn to, so that there would be peace in the soul and happiness would finally come to our home and my son's desire to have a two-room apartment would come true? There is no magic in the church. When we want to receive something from the Lord or from the saints, we must not only pray to them, but also build our lives according to the commandments of the Lord.

"The prayer of the righteous can do much," says the Scriptures, and vice versa: "God does not hear sinners," because they do not want to hear Him. Through the Gospel, the Lord addresses all of us with a request that we be kind, loving, humble, etc., but we often do not want to hear about this, but we ourselves ask Him to help us. And it also happens that we need the Lord only in difficult moments; He fulfills our requests, and we even forget to thank Him and turn to Him again only when sorrows befall us again; and in the days of peace and happiness, it is as if we do not need Him.

You can ask for the fulfillment of your desires to many saints, to the Mother of God, to the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, but for this you would like to get acquainted with the Gospel, where our doctrine is set forth; it is good to read the lives of the saints, after which these chosen ones of God become close to you, and you turn to them with a warm, heartfelt prayer from all your heart.

What saints should we pray to and what icon do we need to breed bees? In the Trebnik there is a special prayer for the blessing of the hives ("Where the bees stand...") and another prayer: "Blessing of the swarms of bees planted in the hive." So, if you have the opportunity, you need to invite him to consecrate your hives.

If this is not possible, then you can read the following prayer: "O God, Thou knowest good by human labor and dumb animals, and by Thy ineffable mercy Thou hast taught the seeds of bees to use fruits and deeds for our needs, we humbly pray to Thy majesty: Thou wilt bless these bees for the acquisition of the human race, and I multiply them, providing them with nourishment, and trusting in Thy majesty and Thy boundless bounty, but in the keeping of these animals thou shalt labor, thou shalt be vouchsafed to receive the abundant fruits of thy labors, and the heavenly blessing shall be fulfilled in Christ Jesus our Lord, Whom be honor and glory unto the ages of ages, Amen."