Such times are approaching that without the fulfillment of the rule of prayer no one will resist.

Such times are approaching that without the fulfillment of the rule of prayer no one will resist.

Our time is not a century of fasting, but of patience and sickness.  And if we take a hard line and exceed our capabilities, then we simply won't be able to keep it.

 We need an inner fast to defeat ourselves and be kind, humble, and patient.

 If the Lord allows us to suffer, we must accept it humbly.  For what is acceptable to the Lord must be received by His hand, and we must endure all things.

 True fasting is when man patiently and brazenly endures all attacks and insults, believing that he rightly deserved them.  Why?  For the life he had in the past and for the light-hearted youth.

Our pride resembles a beast that, if we touch it lightly, is ready to jump and tear it all apart.  But it is your duty to put pressure on it and not let it come out.

Even if someone saddens you and makes you angry and you want to tell them everything you think about him, then do something different and say to your pride: "Stay there and don't go out!"  And instead of answering him brutally, instead, you talk to him softly.  This is how humiliation is obtained.

This is the bloodless torment.  The Holy Martyrs suffered terribly, but for a while.  Here is a bloodless torment and not just for a year or two, but for a lifetime.  And if the Lord allows great pain or true persecution to begin, then you must imagine that it is Calvary 

God allowed me to tell you what awaits us.

"That's something we say.  And, if this time comes, do not be afraid, but go to death on the Cross with much courage, and with your chest open, without doubting and not regretting anything.

 Receive all things with joy, for then the power of God will enlighten you and strengthen you and you will resist;

And if in your mind you will forsake the Cross, if doubt penetrates and you run away fearing for yourself and for those close to you, know that in that moment the demonic power will intervene, Grace will leave you, and you will face suffering.

You should know that the time has come to confess your faith and devotion to the Lord.

 Let us go to death as did the Holy Martyrs, whom the Lord strengthened so that they would not feel the pain, and if they felt it, then they understood that they were being sent to be cleansed of their previous sins.

 Ask God for His help for your children and loved ones, but do not be afraid, for through our afflictions we will help them and the Lord will have mercy on them.  Such moments are approaching that without the fulfillment of the rule of prayer, no one will resist, regardless of the spiritual level."

 Bishop Anthony the Confessor, Archbishop Mikhailov and Golansk (1889-1976).  Excerpt from the book "The Path of Inner Prayer. The Handbook of Hesychia"