The Holy Priest-Martyr Basil, Presbyter of Ancyra (363); Passing into eternal life (1924) of Fr. Isidore Dolnytsky, hymnographer, professor and spiritual father of Lviv and the Greek College in Rome
Great Fast Day 31. Abstention from meat and foods that contain meat. According to liturgical prescriptions, the Divine Liturgy is not celebrated today.
Sixth Hour – Isaiah 41:4-14; Presanctified – Genesis 17:1-9; Proverbs 15:20-16:9.
Read Genesis 17:1-9
Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!
“When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless.” – Genesis 17:1
Patience is a virtue that many of us have in short supply, especially when it comes to prayer. We live in a world of instant gratification and immediate fulfillment of desires or wants. The very thought of Abraham waiting for so long for the Lord’s promise to be fulfilled is laughable to our modern world. We may even find it preposterous and unnecessary, and yet, sometimes the answers to our prayers requires patience and endurance for our own sanctification. Consider these words from St. John Chrysostom about Abraham:
“When God saw that he had been purified like gold in a furnace for a long period of time and had rendered the just man’s virtue more conspicuous and resplendent, Scripture says, ‘When Abram was ninety nine years old, God appeared to him again.’ Why did God delay so long? Not simply that we should get to know the just man’s endurance and his great virtue, but for us to see as well the extraordinary degree of His power.”
God calls us to patience for our own sanctification, and through us, His instruments, He can and does reveal His great power and wondrous glory.