Repentance (Opportunities for)
“Repentance is a complete turning of one’s heart toward Absolute Goodness, and not only of the heart but also of the mind, the feelings, the body, and one’s whole being. Repentance is the unbreakable union of love with our Father and Creator.” (Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica)
“Repentance . . . in deep mourning and joined with confession is what unveils the eyes of the soul to see the great things of God.” (Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos)
“…let us see these trying times as allowed by God, for humanity’s sake. Let us see this pandemic as an opportunity to return our collective gaze upon the things that really matter, those things of an eternal nature. Let us repent, as a people who have long ceased to make faith central to our lives, and actively live as committed Christians. Let us not place blame on those who lead us, but rather pray with earnest, “Heal us from our pride, which can make us claim invulnerability to a disease that knows no borders (Prayer in Time of Epidemic).” And let us remember that “the Lord seeks out the heart, not the appearance (Saint Paisius of Sihla)”. (Abbot Tryphon)
“The entire Bible, from front to back, shows time and time again, God giving people every conceivable opportunity to repent, to turn to Him with contrite hearts, to open themselves up to change and His love. Sadly, we also read in the Scriptures, many continued to despise faith, were given over to self-will, and did not avail themselves of His deep love and mercy, shown most clearly in Christ…Jesus wants us all to receive Him. At the last supper account in the Bible, He offers His body and blood to everyone at the table, including Judas Iscariot who had already made up his mind to betray Jesus. Judas was about to commit one of the worst sins ever, betraying Christ, and still, even knowing what was in his mind and heart, Jesus was reaching out to him.” (Sacramental Living Ministries, Joseph Girzone)
“The blessing of the firstborn was denied Esau because he despised the faith of Abraham. Because of this, he could find no place of repentance in order to inherit the blessing of the firstborn son (Heb 12:16, 17). Likewise, in the Day of Judgment, people who in this life reject the offer of the future inheritance will be unable to find repentance in that day.” (Orthodox Study Bible, Genesis 27:34)
“Every morning is an opportunity to return to Him in repentance…” (Orthodox Study Bible, Psalms 89:1)
“Every challenge we face in life is an opportunity for repentance, an opportunity to examine our thoughts, fears, and shortcomings. It is a chance to really get real with ourselves and see past the way we think we are to the way we really are. It is a chance to be humbled, strip away our false persona, and get spiritually naked before God so that He can clothe us in His truth that reveals us to ourselves. It is this type of painful honesty that draw us into deeper union with Him.” (Sacramental Living Ministries)
“When we stand before Christ on the Day of Judgment, the true and eternal disposition of our heart will be revealed; there will be no more opportunity for change or repentance.” (Clark Carlton)
“That is why we must strive to improve our character while we are still in this life—we will pass into eternity with this very same character. We have the chance to change for the better if we repent of all our evil ways, but when a soul passes into eternity it does not have the capacity to pray for itself. I did not know this, but once I had the opportunity to feel as though my soul were about to depart my body. I felt that I could no longer pray for myself. A monk prayed for me, but I could not: my time for repentance was finished.” (Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica)
“…every fast is first and foremost an opportunity for repentance. Being a vegetarian whose mind and heart are filled with hatred, lust, jealousy, and deceit will gain us nothing before God. Even changing our other behavior, and attending more services, or reading more prayers, without actually repenting, accomplishes nothing. When we look at our lives and find ourselves absorbed by the things of this world and its pleasures, we cannot just change our outward behavior for a short period of time, and then return to our previous pursuits. Rather, we must understand how we have failed in our spiritual lives, and with sorrow and repentance endeavor to do better in the future. While the fast ends, our desire and fervent pursuit of pleasing God must not; our repentance must not. We must seek to spend every season of our lives pursuing a pure heart before God, so that when that Day of Judgment does come, that purity will be revealed before the Lord in our words and deeds.” (Father Stephen De Young)
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