The Holy Prophet Hosea; The Venerable-Martyr Andrew of Crete.
Abstention from meat and foods that contain meat.
Philippians 1:27-2:4; Luke 6:17-23.
Read Luke 6:17-23
The desire to receive good things in this present world is not something that is promised to the followers of Jesus Christ. Here we see how Jesus is trying to shift the hopes of His followers to a reward that will take place in Heaven. One of the more difficult lessons for a follower of Jesus to understand is how to accept the difficulties that often occur while we are living in this present world. When things are going well in our lives we believe that God is blessing us, but when things are not going so well we often believe that God is punishing us. However, when we realize that our earthly treasures and hardships are only temporary, then we can begin to understand why Jesus teaches us not to focus on our earthly situations, for they will all pass away. Whereas, the Kingdom of Heaven is eternal and as such is where our focus should be directed. This is probably one of the more difficult lessons for a follower of Jesus to accept, that the reward of eternal life is only obtained by enduring the hardships and persecutions of this present world. Let us pray that God will grant us the hope of an eternal reward with Him in Heaven.