"Is it God's will for me to marry this man?" "And in order to enter such and such an institute, to go to work in a specific organization?" "Is there a will of God for some event in my life and for some of my actions?" We are constantly asking ourselves similar questions. How can we understand whether we are acting according to the will of God or on our own? And in general, do we correctly understand the will of God? Archpriest Alexy Uminsky, rector of the Holy Trinity Church in Khokhly, answers.

–How can God's will be manifested in our lives?

- I think it can manifest itself through the circumstances of life, the movement of our conscience, the reflections of the human mind, through comparisons with the commandments of God, through, first of all, the very desire of a person to live according to the will of God.

More often, the desire to know the will of God arises in us spontaneously: five minutes ago we did not need it, and suddenly bang, we urgently need to understand the will of God. And most often in everyday situations that do not relate to the main thing.

Here, some life circumstances become the main thing: to marry - not to marry, to go to the left, to the right or straight, what will you lose - a horse, a head or something else, or, on the contrary, will you gain? The man begins, as if blindfolded, to poke in different directions.

I think that knowing the will of God is one of the main tasks human life, the vital doing of every day. This is one of the main requests of the Lord's Prayer, to which a person does not pay enough attention.

- Yes, we say: "Thy will be done" at least five times a day. But we ourselves internally want “everything to be good” according to our own ideas ...

- Vladyka Anthony of Sourozh said very often that when we say “Thy will be done,” we really really want our will to be, but that at that moment it coincided with the will of God, was sanctioned and approved by Him. In essence, this is a sly thought.

The will of God is neither a secret, nor a secret, nor some kind of code that needs to be deciphered; to know it, it is not necessary to go to the elders, it is not necessary to inquire about it specially from someone else.

The Monk Abba Dorotheos writes about it this way:

“Someone might think: if someone does not have a person whom he could question, then what should he do in this case? If anyone wants to truly, with all his heart, fulfill the will of God, then God will never leave him, but will instruct him in every way according to His will. Indeed, if anyone directs his heart according to the will of God, then God will enlighten the little child and tell him his will. If someone does not want to sincerely do the will of God, then although he will go to the prophet, and the prophet will put God on his heart to answer him, in accordance with his corrupted heart, as the Scripture says: and if the prophet is deceived and speaks the word, I am the Lord of the deluded prophet of that (Ezek. 14: 9) ".

Although each person in one way or another suffers from some kind of inner spiritual deafness. Brodsky has this line: “I am deaf. I, God, am blind. " Developing this inner ear is one of the main spiritual tasks of a believer.

There are people who are born with perfect ear for music, but there are those who do not hit the notes. But with constant practice, they can develop their missing ear for music. Even if not to the absolute. The same thing happens with a person who wants to know the will of God.

–What spiritual exercises are needed here?

- Yes, no special exercises, you just need a great desire to hear and trust God. This is a serious struggle with oneself, which is called asceticism. Here is the main center of asceticism, when instead of yourself, instead of all your ambitions, you put God in the center.

- How to understand that a person really does the will of God, and does not self-command, hiding behind it? Here the holy righteous John of Kronstadt prayed boldly for the recovery of those who asked, and he knew that he was doing the will of God. On the other hand, it is so easy, hiding behind, that you act in accordance with the will of God, it is incomprehensible to do what ...

- Of course, the concept of "will of God" itself can be used, like everything in human life, just for some kind of manipulation. It is too easy to arbitrarily win God to your side, by the will of God to justify the suffering of a stranger, your own mistakes and your own inaction, stupidity, sin, anger.

We attribute a lot to God. God is often under our judgment as an accused. The will of God is unknown to us only because we do not want to know it. We replace it with our inventions and use it to realize some false aspirations.

The real will of God is unobtrusive, very tactful. Unfortunately, everyone can easily use this phrase to their advantage. People are manipulating God. It is easy for us to justify our crimes or sins all the time by the fact that God is with us.

We see how this is happening before our very eyes today. How people with the words "Will of God" on their T-shirts hit their opponents in the face, insult them, and send them to hell. Is it the will of God to beat and insult? But some people believe that they themselves are the will of God. How to dissuade them from this? I do not know.

Will of God, War and Commandments

– But still, how not to be mistaken, to recognize the true will of God, and not something arbitrary?

- A huge number of things are most often done of our own will, at our desire, because when a person wants his will, it is done. When a person wants the will of God and says: “Thy will be done” and opens the door of his heart for God, then little by little the life of a person is taken into the hands of God. And when a person does not want this, then God says to him: "Your will be done, please."

The question arises about our freedom, in which the Lord does not interfere, for the sake of which He limits His absolute freedom.

The gospel tells that the will of God is to save all people. God came into the world so that no one would perish. Our personal knowledge of the will of God lies in the knowledge of God, which the Gospel also reveals to us: “Let them know You, the only true God” (John 17: 3), says Jesus Christ.

These words are heard at the Last Supper, at which the Lord washes the feet of His disciples, appears before them as sacrificial, merciful, saving love. Where the Lord reveals the will of God, showing the disciples and all of us the image of service and love, so that we do the same.

After washing the feet of his disciples, Christ says: “Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you speak correctly, for I am exactly that. So, if I, the Lord and Teacher, washed your feet, then you should also wash each other's feet. For I have given you an example so that you also do what I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, the servant is not greater than his master, and the messenger is not greater than the one who sent him. If you know this, blessed are you when you do it ”(John 13: 12-17).

Thus, the will of God for each of us is revealed as a task for each of us to be like Christ, to be involved in Him and to be natural in His love. His will is also in that first commandment - “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind: this is the first and greatest commandment; the second is like it: you shall love your neighbor as yourself ”(Matthew 22: 37–39).

His will is in this: "... love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you and pray for those who offend you" (Luke 6: 27-28).

And, for example, in this: “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven ”(Luke 6:37).

The gospel word and the apostolic, the word of the New Testament - all this is a manifestation of the will of God for each of us. There is no will of God to sin, to insult another person, to humiliate other people, for people to kill each other, even if their banners say: "God is with us."

- It turns out that during the war there is a violation of the commandment "Thou shalt not kill." But, for example, the soldiers of the Great Patriotic War who defended the Motherland, family, did they really go against the will of the Lord?

- It is obvious that there is a will of God for protection from violence, for protection, including of his Fatherland from "finding aliens", from the ruin and enslavement of his people. But, at the same time, there is no will of God for hatred, for murder, for revenge.

You just need to understand that those who defended their Motherland at that time had no other choice at the moment. But any war is a tragedy and a sin. There are no just wars.

In Christian times, all soldiers returning from war carried penance. All, in spite of what seemed like a just war, in defense of their homeland. Because it is impossible to keep yourself pure, in love and in union with God, when you have a weapon in your hands and, whether you want it or not, you are obliged to kill.

I would also like to note this: when we talk about love for enemies, about the Gospel, when we understand that the Gospel is God's will for us, then sometimes we really want to justify our dislike and unwillingness to live according to the Gospel by some kind of patristic sayings.

Well, for example: cite a quote torn from John Chrysostom "sanctify your hand with a blow" or the opinion of Metropolitan Philaret of Moscow that: love your enemies, beat the enemies of the Fatherland and abhor the enemies of Christ. It would seem that such a capacious phrase, everything falls into place, I have the right to always choose who is the enemy of Christ among those whom I hate and easily name: “Yes, you are just an enemy of Christ, and therefore I abhor you; you are an enemy of my Fatherland, that's why I beat you. "

But here it is enough just to look at the Gospel and see: who crucified Christ and for whom Christ prayed, asked his Father "Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing" (Luke 23:34)? Were they enemies of Christ? Yes, these were the enemies of Christ, and He prayed for them. Were they enemies of the Fatherland, Romans? Yes, they were enemies of the Fatherland. Were these His personal enemies? Probably not. Because Christ personally cannot have enemies. Man cannot be an enemy for Christ. There is only one being that can only truly be called the enemy - this is Satan.

And therefore, yes, of course, when your Fatherland was surrounded by enemies and your house was burned, then you must fight for it and must fight off these enemies, you must overcome them. But the enemy immediately ceases to be an enemy as soon as he lay down his arms.

Let us recall how Russian women treated the captured Germans, whose very same Germans killed their loved ones, how they shared with them a meager piece of bread. Why at that moment did they cease to be their personal enemies, remaining enemies of the Fatherland? Love, forgiveness, which the captured Germans saw then, they still remember and describe in their memoirs ...

If someone from your neighbors suddenly insulted your faith, you probably have the right to cross from this person to the other side of the street. But this does not mean that you are exempted from the right to pray for him, wish him the salvation of his soul and use yours in every possible way. own love to the conversion of this person.

God's Will to Suffer?

- The Apostle Paul says: "In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (1. Thess. 5:18) This means that everything that is done with us is according to His will. Or are we acting ourselves?

- I think it is correct to quote the entire quote: “Always rejoice. Pray incessantly. In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you ”(1 Thess. 5: 16-18).

It is God's will for us that we live in a state of prayer, joy and thanksgiving. In order for our condition, our fullness to be contained in these three important acts of the Christian life.

– Diseases, troubles, a person clearly does not want himself. But all this happens. By whose will?

- Even if a person does not want troubles, illnesses to occur in his life, he cannot always avoid them. But there is no will of God for suffering. There is no will of God on the mountain. There is no will of God for the death and torture of children. There is no will of God for wars or bombing Donetsk and Lugansk, for Christians in that terrible conflict, who are on opposite sides of the front line, receiving communion in Orthodox churches, and then go to kill each other.

God doesn't like our suffering. Therefore, when people say: "God sent a disease," then this is a lie, blasphemy. God does not send sickness.

They exist in the world because the world lies in evil.

–It is difficult for a person to understand all this, especially when he is in trouble ...

- We do not understand a lot of things in life, relying on God. But if we know that “God is love” (1 John 4: 8), we should not be afraid. Moreover, we do not just know from books, but understand with our experience of living according to the Gospel, then we may not understand God, at some point we do not even hear Him, but we can trust Him and not be afraid.

Because if God is love, even something happening to us at the moment seems completely strange and inexplicable, we can understand and trust God, know that there can be no catastrophe with Him.

Let us remember how the apostles, seeing that they were drowning in a boat during a storm, and thinking that Christ was asleep, were horrified that everything was already over and now they would drown and no one would save them. Christ told them: "Why are you so fearful, you little faithful!" (Matthew 8:26) And - stopped the storm.

The same thing that happens to the apostles is happening to us. It seems to us that God does not care for us. In fact, we must go through the path of trusting God to the end, if we know that He is love.

- But still, if you take our daily life. I would like to understand where His plan for us is, what it is. So a person stubbornly enters the university, from the fifth time he is accepted. Or maybe it was necessary to stop and choose another profession? Or childless spouses are treated, spend a lot of effort to become parents, or maybe, according to God's plan, they do not need to do this? And sometimes, after years of treatment for childlessness, spouses suddenly give birth to triplets ...

- It seems to me that, probably, God can have many ideas about man. A person can choose different paths in life, and this does not mean that he violates the will of God or lives according to it. Because the will of God can be for different things for one specific person, and in different periods his life. And sometimes it is God's will for a person to wander, through failure to learn some important things for himself.

The will of God is upbringing. It is not a test for the Unified State Exam, where you need to fill in the necessary box with a checkmark: I filled it in - I found out, I did not fill it in - I made a mistake, and then your whole life is awkward. Not true. The will of God is constantly being done to us, like a certain movement of us in this life on the path to God, along which we stray, fall, err, go to the wrong place, go out on a clean path.

And the whole path of our life is an amazing education of us by God. This does not mean that if I entered something or did not enter it, this is God's will for me forever or the absence thereof. There is no need to be afraid of that, that's all. Because the will of God is a manifestation of God's love for us, for our life, this is the way to salvation. And not the way of entering or not entering the institute ...

You need to trust God and stop fearing the will of God, because it seems to a person that the will of God is such an unpleasant, unbearable thing, when you need to forget about everything, give up everything, break yourself all over, reshape yourself and lose your freedom first of all.

And a person really wants to be free. And now it seems to him that if it is the will of God, then this is just imprisonment, such a torment, an incredible feat.

But in fact, the will of God, it is freedom, because the word "will" is a synonym for the word "freedom". And when a person really understands this, he will not be afraid of anything.

HEALING OF THE SICK

Mrs. Ryleeva was a widow, had an only son whom she loved with all her heart.

And then one day her five or six year old son gets sick. They treated him for a long time, and, finally, the doctors, powerless to do anything, left, and the mother knelt in front of the icons and began to pray earnestly for the salvation of her son. In the midst of prayer, a light dream fell upon her, and she sees large area, hears the sounds of military music, the hum of the crowd. Suddenly a scaffold comes out, on it there is a gallows, her son is led onto the scaffold and hanged ... She wakes up in fear. "God! - exclaimed the sorrowful mother. “I know that this is a dream, not a dream, but sent for my admonition, but nevertheless I pray You, keep my son alive.”

The Lord heard her prayer, the son recovered, to the great amazement of the doctors, who did not know what attributed such a case (however, the doctors at that time were believers).

Many years passed, Ryleev grew up, became friends with people who rejected God and everything that was holy, who wanted to close all churches and stop worship, and also rebelled against autocratic power. They formed an alliance with the aim of overthrowing the autocracy and establishing a republic. But the conspiracy was revealed - five of its participants, including Ryleev, were sentenced to death by hanging. And now Ryleev's mother saw in reality a large square, crowds of people, the sounds of military music. They erected a scaffold, a gallows on it, and Ryleev was hanged. His mother did not grumble, did not despair, but said firmly: "You are right, 'Lord, and your judgments are right."

Venerable Varsonofy Optinsky. Spiritual heritage. - Holy Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, 1999.

THE WILL OF GOD

We do not know what is best for us: life or death, health or illness, prosperity or poverty. The will of God for everything ... Even if we do not understand it. But a person does not always want to accept it, and then it gets worse.

I will tell you one such case. One wealthy woman who lived in St. Petersburg had a one-year-old boy. He is dangerously ill. They were already waiting for death. Then the mother begged Father John of Kronstadt to come and pray for the sick man to recover. The priest served a prayer service. The child recovered, to the delight of the mother ... Years passed. She admired her son. When he was nineteen, he fell in love with a girl, but was not loved. Frustrated, he committed suicide.

And so, hitherto, - the unfortunate mother told me, - I cannot forgive myself: why did I beg him through Father John?

Another incident took place in Yalta. Archbishop F., who personally heard everything from his mother, told me about it.

One widow's only child fell ill. The doctors did not help. The matter was quickly moving to a fatal end. The suffering mother turned with fervent prayer to Mother of God, asking to keep the child alive, the only joy ... Tired, she sat down in a chair and quickly dozed off ... Whether there was further in a subtle dream or in a clear vision, she cannot say. Only the Mother of God appeared to her and, as if answering the request, said: "Can you guarantee that you will bring him up as it should and he will remain as pure as he is now?" The child was then, it seems, about eight years old. “I guarantee! I guarantee! - Mother answered with fervor. - Just keep it alive! "

The vision ended. She woke up. The child, to the surprise of the doctors, recovered. Mother rejoiced ...

Soon it was necessary to send him to school. The boy turned out to be very capable. But at the same time, he was very susceptible to various bad inclinations ... The mother began to fight for the child's soul ... But neither persuasion, nor threats, nor punishment helped. The boy was spoiling more and more. The mother was powerless. And, remembering her promise to the Mother of God to raise a child, and especially being horrified by the eternal torment awaiting sinners (she was a deeply believing Christian), she once turned out loud with a prayer to the Mother of God: “Mother of God! If he does not correct himself, it is better to take him out of this life: if only he does not die for the future. Your will! "

Soon after, the following happened. The boy went on one of the usual horseback riding in the mountains. Being lively, on a strong run, he turned his horse very abruptly at a bend in the road and, flying out of the saddle, crashed to death.

Mother now knew that it was better for him that way ... She could not hold back tears at the funeral, but they were quiet, relieving.

Metropolitan Benjamin (Fedchenkov). God's People: My Spiritual Encounters. - M., 1998.

MOTHER'S INSANE PRAYER

In the city of Kaluga there lived a widow who had great zeal for the Kaluga Icon of the Mother of God. The widow's consolation was her only daughter, a young girl of twelve years old. Suddenly the girl fell ill and died.

The unhappy woman, distraught with grief, came to the cathedral and here, at the image of the Mother of God, began her mad prayer: “I always prayed to you, Mother of God, always honored your image, but you, despite my zeal, deprived me of my only joy and consolation. You did not save my daughter from death. " And then she showered the Mother of God with reproaches, calling Her merciless and cruel. At the image of the Mother of God, the woman fell into some kind of unconscious state, in which she saw the radiantly shining Queen of Heaven. The Mother of God turned to her with the following words: “Unreasonable wife! I have always heard your prayers for your daughter and begged my Son and My God to take her pure in the face of virgins. She would forever praise the name of the Lord with others like her, but you resisted it. Let it be your way. Go, your daughter is alive ... "

After these words, the woman woke up and headed home. Her daughter was already in the coffin, ready for burial. But suddenly, unexpectedly for everyone, her cheeks were covered with a blush. A deep sigh was heard, and the young woman rose from the coffin. There was no end to the mother's joy.

But the happiness was short-lived. The grown-up girl led a riotous and vicious life. For the mother, she became not a consolation, but a great misfortune. She beat her mother, scolded and mocked her in every possible way, causing her tearful insults. It is so scary and dangerous to disobey the will of God.

Ask, and it will be given to you: Non-invented stories about the miraculous help of God. ~ Wedge, 1999.

What does the will of God mean? Theologians distinguish two aspects in the will of God: the desire of God and the permission of God. The will of God is the absolute will of God, which wants eternal salvation for the crown of His creation - man. God wants good for us more than we want it ourselves. But the absolute will of God meets an obstacle in the free will of man, which oscillates between good and evil. Here it is necessary to dwell in more detail on the issue of free will, which is the cause of much bewilderment.

Free will is given to man as the image and likeness of God. Without the possibility of freedom of choice, good, as such, would not exist, and necessity would govern a person's actions and even his internal actions. Free will is one of the main advantages of a person, and at the same time, a huge responsibility for him. Some people ask why then given free will, if most people abuse it. The fact is that without free will the salvation of man itself cannot be realized, since salvation is communion with God - life with God, eternal approach to God, illumination and enlightenment of the human soul with divine light. A person must voluntarily choose the path of salvation - to have God as the main goal of his life. Salvation itself is the Creator's love for His creation and the creation for its Creator. Therefore, salvation is deeply personal. Theologians use the term synergy here, that is, the interaction of two wills - divine and human.

"Thy Will Be Done"

Do not leave the will of God for the fulfillment of the will of man. Venerable Anthony the Great (82, 24).

To prefer a good desire to other desires ... belongs to man, and to fulfill the chosen good desire belongs to God. Venerable Isaac the Syrian (82, 271).

If someone does some work, following his own will, and then learns that this work is contrary to the will of God, he must, as he did wrong out of ignorance, return to the path of God. Whoever stubbornly adheres to his own will, contrary to the will of God, does not want to obey others, but takes into account only his own opinion, he will not be able to return to the path of God. Sayings of nameless elders (82, 389).

The crown of all good deeds is to place all hope on God, to resort to Him alone with all our hearts and all strength, to be filled with love for everyone, cry before God and pray to Him for help and mercy (82, 137).

You will act in accordance with the nature of Jesus and attract His help to you, if your heart renounces sin, renounces the principles that give rise to sin, if you constantly remember the hellish torments, if you feel that your Helper is always with you, if nothing you will insult Him if you constantly cry in front of Him, saying: "Lord, only You can deliver me from sin. Without Your help, I myself cannot escape the enemy" (82, 141).

Against the will of the man of God, the demons try to sow the seeds of sin in him, but they cannot fulfill this intention. They do everything they can, but the man of God does not obey them, because his heart is in the will of God (82, 177).

If the demons begin to embarrass you about food, clothing, or your poverty, or about the insults you are subjected to, then do not answer them, but from the bottom of your heart surrender yourself to God, and He will calm you (82, 204).

Blessed are those who have not put their trust in their deeds, have comprehended the greatness of God and do His will in everything. Having cognized their weakness, they concentrate all their exploits in the sorrow of repentance: they mourn themselves, leaving behind vain and sinful concern for everything that happens in the world, which, as a creation of God, is subject to the judgment of the One God (82, 223).

Brother! Understand the following: it is pleasing to God that we abide in Him in all our activities. Then He will also abide in us, who have purified themselves according to our strength. Abba Isaiah (82, 227).

If someone calls you to a meal of love and puts you in the last place, do not be offended in your thoughts. Tell yourself: I am not worthy of the best. I tell you that neither dishonor nor any sorrow comes to a person except by the permission of God, to temptation and to the correction of a person or for his sins. . Whoever does not think in this way does not believe that God is the righteous Judge. Sayings of nameless elders (82, 376-377).

You must first take care that there is no discord and disagreement in your endeavors, and then you start with prayer to God (18, 70).

Our life, having lost communion in goodness, fell away from God's will as well. Therefore, we must learn to cleanse our lives from evil to such an extent that in us, as in heavenly inhabitants, God's will unhindered controls, so that we can say:

"As in Thrones, Beginnings, Powers, Dominions, and in every premium power, Your will is accomplished, and no vice does not hinder the action of good, so in us may good be done, so that after the destruction of every vice in our souls, Your will be successfully fulfilled in everything. will "(17, 439).

Coming to the Benefactor, be a Benefactor yourself; approaching the Good, be good; approaching the Truthful, be truthful; when approaching the Patient, be patient; when approaching the Humanitarian, be philanthropic. And also be worthy in everything else, approaching the Good-hearted, the Benevolent and Generous in blessings, the Merciful of everyone. And if anything else is discerned of the Divine, in all this be like your will and thereby gain boldness in prayer. For it is impossible for the wicked one to have fellowship with the good and the unclean with the pure and unclean. Saint Gregory of Nyssa (17, 451).

It is not the abundance of words that pleads with God, but the soul is pure and displays good deeds. Saint John Chrysostom (39, 11).

One should not prefer one's own will to the will of the Lord, but in every deed one must understand what the will of God is and fulfill it. Saint Basil the Great (6, 321).

As in gloomy caves, if you bring light there, darkness disappears, so if God's will is done in me, any crafty arbitrariness will turn into nothing. Chastity will extinguish the intemperance and craving of the mind. Humility will destroy arrogance. Modesty will heal the disease of pride. And the beauty of love will drive out a host of evil from the soul: hatred, envy, indignation, angry movement, irritation, malicious intent, remembering grief, thirst for revenge, boiling blood, an unkind look - all this herd of evils will be destroyed by a loving disposition. God's will also expels deep idolatry, an unrepentant adherence to idols and a lust for silver and gold ... That is why we ask: "Thy will be done," so that the will of the devil becomes invalid. Saint Gregory of Nyssa (17, 434).

A slave who fears the Lord and does exactly His will, the Lord will invest with authority in His Kingdom and make him a steward. Monk Ephraim the Syrian (28, 95).

If the natural powers of the soul are not cleansed of the filth that they were buried because of their sins, and if they do not then receive the proper healing, transformation and strengthening, then with them there is no way to fulfill the will of God. The sick and the weak must first be healed and strengthened in order to be fit for service. Reverend Simeon New Theologian (60, 225).

All who desire to know the will of the Lord must first mortify their own will in themselves. Reverend John Ladder (57, 197).

Prefer the will of God to all human wisdom and recognize it as more useful than all human understanding. Venerable Abba Isaiah (34, 186).

The crowds of people who do not fulfill the will of God are no different from those who do not exist at all (43, 85).

What happens by the will of God, even if it seems bad, is the best. And what is disgusting and displeasing to God, then, even if it seemed the best, the worst and most lawless of all (35, 680).

Not doing the will of God means being in the devil's net. Saint John Chrysostom (45, 798).

Woe to the wicked, because he will go to a strict Judge and a righteous law-maker. Venerable Nilus of Sinai (48,254).

He who does not live according to the law of God does not fear God either. He who is not afraid of God does not see Him. And he who does not see God does not have spiritual light in him. He who does not have this light does not believe in Christ. He who does not believe in Christ has no life in him. Saint Simeon the New Theologian (60, 324).

Those who leave the law of God who violate even the smallest part of what is written in it and want to fulfill its prescriptions in their own way, and not according to the will and intention of the Lawgiver (39, 894).

Listen to God in the commandments so that He hears you in your prayers (36, 179).

God turns away His face when we act unworthy of His commandments. Saint John Chrysostom (39, 146).

Horror grips (in judgment) the wicked, who in the world applied lawlessness to lawlessness. Alas, the day of judgment is near. Monk Ephraim the Syrian (28, 211).

Yes, we do not do what pleases us, but whatever pleases God, and so we will please Him. God's word shows us what is pleasing to God and what is not. Let this sacred lamp shine on us in all our deeds, words, thoughts and undertakings; for this he was appointed by our merciful Heavenly Father. "Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path" (Ps. 119, 105). We want to live in idleness and laziness, but it is not pleasing to God, we will do what is pleasing to God and, shaking off the sleep of laziness and idleness, we will remain in useful and blessed labors ... We want to fulfill passionate lust, but this is disgusting to God, but chastity is pleasing to Him and let us make our holiness acceptable to God, and let us live "chastely, righteously and godly" (Titus 2:12). It is pleasing for us to use our tongue to idle, to slander, to condemn and to utter other worthless and rotten words, but God does not want to bridle our tongue and love discreet silence, and we will dissolve every word with the salt of reason "for the edification of faith" (Eph. 4:29) our neighbor, for this is pleasing to God. So in other things we will act and create not what our will and flesh pleases, but what the will of God wants, and so we will please Him (104, 203).
The will of God is revealed in the word of God (104, 348).

"Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth." The will of God happens even without our request. Therefore, we are not asking God to do what He wants, but so that we can do what His will wants us to do. Hence we see that we cannot do God's will without God. The will of God is fulfilled when we keep piety and abide in it to the end, as it is said: "Be faithful until death" (Apoc. 2:10), and when sinners lag behind their sins and repent: God "wants all people to be saved and achieve knowledge of the truth "(1 Tim. 2, 4). For this to be fulfilled, we ask God: "Thy will be done." Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk (104, 348).

We crossed over to the other side of the sea. The Lord was asleep. A storm arose, and everyone was horrified, but they forgot that the Lord was with them and that, therefore, there was nothing to fear (Matt. 8: 23-25). This happens in the everyday and spiritual planes. A storm of troubles or passions will rise - we usually worry to the point of relaxation, we think that this is in the order of things. And the Lord sends us a lesson: "Little ones" (Matthew 8, 26). And rightly so. It is impossible not to pay attention to what happened, but you can always maintain a reasonable calm. First of all, see what the Lord wants from you - and humbly submit yourself under His mighty hand. Do not hesitate, do not fuss, strengthen the faith that the Lord is with you, and fall at His feet with prayer. But do not cry out: "I am perishing!", But with devotion cry out: "Lord, if you want you can. But let not mine, but Your will be done." Believe that in this way you will safely pass the rising storm (107, 167-168)

"Not everyone who says to Me:" Lord! Lord! ", Will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in Heaven (Matthew 7, 21).

You cannot be saved by prayer alone: ​​with prayer you must also combine the fulfillment of the will of God - everything that is entrusted to everyone, according to his title and structure of life. And in prayer, we should primarily ask that God would grant us not to deviate in anything from His holy will. And vice versa, the one who has zeal to fulfill the will of God in everything, the one who prays more boldly before God and more easily gets access to His throne. Even so, if prayer is not accompanied by walking in the will of God, then prayer is not real prayer, sober and heartfelt, but only external, verbal. During her moral malfunction, like a fog, is covered with verbosity in the face of disorder and wandering thoughts. It is necessary to establish both with piety, then there will be fruit (107, 166-167).

The Lord encourages prayer, promising to hear how the father hears the petitions of his children. But he immediately hints at the reason and why sometimes prayers and petitions are not heard or are not fulfilled. The father will not give the children a stone instead of bread and a snake instead of a fish (Luke 11, 10-13). If the father does not do this, how much more will the Heavenly Father not do so. And our petitions often resemble those of a serpent and a stone. It seems to us that bread and fish are what we ask for, but the Heavenly Father sees that what we ask for will be a stone and a snake for us, and does not give what we ask for. Say:

why pray? No, you can't help praying. But in prayers for certain objects, one must always contain the condition in thought:

"if, Lord, you yourself find it saving." Saint Isaac of Syria also advises to shorten any prayer as follows: "Lord, you know what is good for me: do with me according to your will" (107, 360-362).

The Lord forbade people and demons to praise Him when he was on earth (Mark 3:12), but demanded that they believe in Him and fulfill the commandments of God. The same law with the Lord and now, the same will be at the judgment: "Not everyone who says to Me:" Lord! Lord! ", Will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in Heaven" (Matthew 7, 21). That is why in the church they begin to sing: "Glory to God in the highest", and towards the end they come to the words: "Heal my soul ... teach me to do Your will." Without this, praise to God has no value. Yes, she then does not come from the soul, but only lifted up by the tongue from someone else's words, therefore the Lord does not pay attention to her. We must arrange it so that others see our deeds and praise the Lord, so that our life is praise to God, for He does everything in everyone, just do not interfere; to Him and praise for deeds ascends. Everyone needs to become the fragrance of Christ; then, even without verbal praise, we will ceaselessly speak of the Lord. The rose flower does not emit a voice, and its fragrance spreads far away - this is how all Christians should live (107, 259-260).

"The world is passing away, and its lust" (1 John 2:17). Who doesn't see it? Everything flows around us: phenomena, persons, events, and we ourselves flow. Worldly lust also flows: as soon as we taste the sweetness of its satisfaction, both of them disappear. We are chasing the other and with that the same; chasing the third, again the same. And nothing is worth, everything comes and goes. What? Isn't there anything permanent ?! Yes, the apostle continues: "He who does the will of God abides forever" (1 John, 2:17). How does this fluid world hold on? God wants and he stands. The will of God is its unshakable and indestructible foundation. So it is with people; whoever becomes steadfast in the will of God, immediately becomes steadfast and steadfast. Thoughts are reeling, while someone is chasing the transitory. But as soon as someone comes to their senses and returns to the path of the will of God, thoughts and undertakings will subside. When, finally, he has time to acquire the skill in this way of life, everything inside and outside comes to a calm order and serene order. Starting here, this deep peace and serenity will pass into another life - and there they will remain forever. This is what is among the general current around us, not flowing and constant in us: walking in the will of God. Bishop Theophan the Recluse (107, 33-34).

There is no way to fulfill your will and the Will of God together. From the fulfillment of the first, the fulfillment of the second is defiled, becomes obscene (108, 90).

We will replace our will and the will of the demons, to which our will obeyed and with which it merged, with the will of God (108, 91).

When your request is not fulfilled by God, submit reverently to the will of the All-Holy God, who for unknown reasons:

left your request unfulfilled (108, 142).

We will lay on God ... all our care for ourselves, all our sorrows, all our hope (108, 160).

If God is pleased to give you knowledge, then He will give in due time and will give in such a way that a carnal man cannot even imagine (108, 274).

If no temptation can touch a person without the will of God, then complaints, murmuring, grief, self-justification, blaming others and circumstances are movements of the soul against the will of God, attempts to resist and oppose GOD (108, 330).

Nothing happens to a person without the permission and permission of God (108, 350).

With selflessness, with devotion to the will of God, death itself is not terrible, the faithful servant of Christ betrays his soul and eternal destiny into the hands of Christ (108, 389).

Pray to God to remove adversity from you and together deny your sinful will, the will of the blind. Surrender yourself, your soul and body ... both present and future circumstances, surrender ... your neighbors to the will of God, all-holy, all-wise (108, 549).

Blessed is the man, whose whole will is in the Law of God. Blessed is the heart that has matured in the knowledge of the will of God, it has seen how good the Lord is, it has acquired this vision by eating the commandments of the Lord, it has united its will with the will of the Lord (109, 5).

What are the commandments of God? This is the will of God, announced by God to people for guidance in actions that depend on their arbitrariness. What is the fate of God? This is the act or permissiveness of the Will of God, on which the arbitrariness of a person has no influence (109, 78).

What soothes in the cruel times of mental distress? .. Soothes one consciousness of being a slave and a creation of GOD ... As soon as a person says prayerfully to God with all his heart: "May it be done for me, my Lord, Thy will", as the heart agitation subsides. From these words, spoken sincerely, the most grievous sorrows are deprived of their overwhelming power over a person (109, 96).

Your activity, people, should be entirely in the fulfillment of the will of God. An example of this activity is shown, the rules of this activity were taught to humanity by a perfect man, God, who took humanity upon Himself (109, 104).

A Christian then receives unceasing prayer when his will and activity dependent on the will are absorbed in the comprehension, desire and fulfillment of the will of God (109, 138).

Blessed is the pledge of the heart in a monk, according to which, while exercising in whatever feat, he exercises completely disinterestedly, but waits and longs for the only fulfillment of the will of God, and gives himself up with all faith and simplicity ... to the government of the merciful Lord our God (109 , 201).

Deny yourself and surrender yourself to God, let him do with you what he wants (109, 203).

From perfect humility and from perfect obedience to the will of God, the purest, holy prayer is born (109, 328).

A constant striving for the fulfillment of God's will, little by little, will destroy our self-satisfaction and clothe us in blissful poverty of spirit (111, 28).

One own deed is not enough for the servants of God to prevent the fall, nesting in nature, constantly striving to restore their dominion: help from God is needed (111, 160).

Those who are taught by inner warfare learn the all-holy will of God, little by little they learn to abide in it. Knowledge of the will of God and obedience to it serve as a refuge for the soul. The soul finds peace in this abode and the notification of its salvation (111, 187-188).

Let the will of God act exclusively in the whole being of man, in all its constituent parts, in the spirit, in the soul, thereby uniting in itself and in itself the will of these parts, separated by the fall. Only by the will of God can the will of man be healed, poisoned by sin (111, 243).

The complete union of human will with the will of God is a state of perfection, which can only be achieved by a rational creation of God (111, 243).

Surrender to the will of God, a sincere reverent desire for it to be performed on us, is a necessary, natural consequence of true spiritual reasoning (111, 318).

Any life in the wilderness, in a community, when she agrees with the will of God and when her goal is to please God, is blessed (112, 68).

To fulfill the will of God, you need to know it (112, 82).

Knowledge of the will of God can be accomplished only through the mediation of Divine revelation (112, 82).

Acknowledge and confess God as the Ruler of the world with reverence, submit with selflessness and surrender to His will; from this consciousness, from this humility, holy patience will grow in your souls (112, 85).

Preparation (for prayer) is the rejection of care by the power of faith in God, the power of obedience and devotion to the will of God, the consciousness of one's sinfulness and the contrition and humility of spirit flowing from this consciousness (112, 95).

He who enters the monastic life must surrender himself entirely to the will and guidance of God, prepare in advance for the endurance of all sorrows, whatever the Providence of the Most High will allow His slave during his earthly wandering (112, 124).

Humble devotion to the will of God, consciousness and readiness to endure all the sufferings that will be tolerated by God, complete inattention and disbelief in all the words, actions and manifestations of fallen spirits destroy all the significance of their attempts, which acquire the greatest significance when paying attention to them and trusting demons ( 112, 335-336).

Repentance requires the cooperation of the will of the human will of God. Resurrection from sinful death is the action of the single will of God (112, 439-440).

Our will in a state of fall is hostile to the will of God (112, 82).

The essence of monastic life is to heal your damaged will, to unite it with the will of God (112, 82).

The fate of God is everything that takes place in the universe. Everything is done as a result of the judgment and determination of God (109, 80).

One must ... see and contemplate the Destiny of God with the eye of faith, the eye of spiritual reason and, not allowing oneself to make fruitless judgments according to human principles, plunge reverently into sacred bewilderment, into the sacred spiritual darkness, which is together and the wonderful light by which God is closed from human and angelic mental gaze (109, 81-82).

The fate of God is the omnipotent action in the universe of the all-perfect God, the One, in exact sense... Spirit that fills the universe and everything outside the universe, not embraced by the universe (109, 83).

Resistance to the fate of God is ranked among the satanic undertakings ... Hostile to the will of God and the All-Holy Good emanating from God, the mind and good of the fallen human nature, the Fates of God are condemned and condemned by Him (109, 103).

It is necessary to revere the fate of God incomprehensible to us in all the assumptions of God, both private and public, both civil and moral and spiritual (112, 84).

Our spirit is indignant against the fate and permissiveness of God ... from our pride, from our blindness. Bishop Ignatius (Brianchaninov) (112, 86).

The elders, having gathered, agreed among themselves to present to the patriarch Abba Isaac for his ordination to the priesthood. Abba, hearing about this, fled to Egypt and hid in the field, in the grass. The fathers hurriedly set off in pursuit of him. It so happened that they came to the same field in which Abba Isaac was hiding. Night fell, and the elders settled here for the night, and the donkey that was with them was let on the grass. The donkey wandered around the field, in the morning he came to the place where the abba was hiding, and stood over him. In the morning, the elders began to look for the donkey, and with it, to their surprise, they found the abba. They wanted to tie him up, but he would not allow them to do this: "I will not run away. I see that there is God's will for this, and I cannot get away from her, no matter where I run away." Edema (82, 246).

Does everything that happens in the world happen according to the will of God? Or is there room for random incidents that God did not command to happen? The following words from Scripture shed light on this:

“I looked around again and saw under the sun that the fast ones are not successful in running and not the strong ones - in the battle; not with the wise - bread, those who do not understand - wealth, and not with those who know - favor, but for all time and occasion» . (Ecclesiastes 9:11)

Accidents happen, which means that not all events reflect the will of God. Knowing this truth, for years I could not fully understand how the words from the book of Lamentations 3:37, 38 fit in with it:

“Who is this saying:“ And it happens that the Lord did not command to be ”? Is it not from the lips of the Most High that disaster and prosperity come? " (Synodal translation)

Rhetorical questions in this form seem to condemn those who believe in the possibility of random phenomena. It is understood that supposedly can not be what God did not command to be. This idea is close to fatalism, denies the chance and freedom of choice of man, and also makes God responsible for all evil and « accidents".

Without going deep into the analysis of this verse, I explained to myself that it is true only in the narrow historical context of the book - in relation to the destruction of Jerusalem, which was really an expression of God's will, and not an accident. But comparing various translations, one can go further and conclude that the idea in the joint venture is expressed inaccurately. For example, here are several versions of verse 37:

• Who can say and allow something to happen that the Master does not command to happen?(Eastern semantic translation, CARS)

• Who says this - and so it happens when the Lord has not commanded it?(King James Version, eng.)

• Who can say - and it will be fulfilled if the Master does not command this to happen?(New biblical translation of the IBO)

• Who else will it be if the Lord did not punish it?(Ohienko, Ukrainian)

• Who then said that something was about to happen, [if] Jehovah himself did not command it?(NWT)

There is no hint of complete control of God over all events, the verse is generally about something else. Have you noticed the difference? What is the key thought?

People's ability to determine the future is opposed to Jehovah's ability to do so. People are incapable of delivering prophecy and fulfilling it if God intended otherwise. At the same time, he can simply not interfere and allow events without becoming their accomplice. Moreover, if God authorized a prophet to predict something, and it came to pass, such a prophet should not take too much of a role to himself. So, these words can be perceived as an expression of the humility of Jeremiah himself, who witnessed the fulfillment of the prophecies expressed by him.

For everything, the Will of God and everything on earth happens only by the Will of God, by God's Providence. There will be only what God himself decided and determined! The Lord says in the Gospel (John 15 - 5) - "Without Me you can do nothing." There are many plans, desires and plans in a person's heart, but only that which the Lord has determined will take place. From this we get a very simple conclusion: since we know that if everything, absolutely everything, happens only strictly according to the Will of God, then it turns out that we just need to turn to God in prayer before any deed, asking Him for help, blessings and permission to start any business, and if the business that we begin to do - will please God - then this business will definitely turn out Good, Reliable and on time, and if it will not please God, then everything will simply Stop and Fall apart, or, by God's permission, will cast a person into temptation, into sin and Will bring harm to a person.

We must try to understand that everyone the existing world only one Lord rules and everything in the entire Universe is subject and subordinate only to Him alone. If the Lord Himself does not bless, permit and do, then no one, not one person in the whole earth, simply can do anything. The Bible says in this regard: “If the Lord does not build the city - In vain Work those who build it;

If God DOESN'T KEEP the city, he WILL stay awake, PROTECT, and the guards do not sleep ”.

The Gospel (Matthew Ch. 6 31 - 34) says the following: - "So do not worry and do not say:" What do we eat? " or: "what to drink" or: "what to wear?" Because the pagans and the people of this world are looking for all this, and because your Heavenly Father Knows that you have a need for all this. Seek first the Kingdom of God and His Truth, and all this will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will take care of its own: - it's enough for every day of its own concern.

Many people are very worried about their future, they are not sure of it, and therefore they are afraid of it, that is, people are afraid that something bad will come of it, they are afraid of misfortune and misfortune, they are afraid of poverty and poverty, they are afraid of being alone or losing their loved ones and relatives, their children, fear for the life and health of their neighbors. And the Lord says that there is no need to be afraid of anything, that the whole world and the life and fate of every person on earth is ruled by one God, and everything on earth depends only on God's will.

Tomorrow, like the very life of a person, his health and happiness, all this depends only on God and is in the hands of the Lord, and does not DEPEND on a person at all. Therefore, the Lord speaks in the Gospel to all people on earth so that people do not worry about tomorrow. “Enough for every day of my concern”! That is, God says here that the main thing should be that people live their day Honestly and Kindly, treat all people well and treat them fairly, do not violate the Laws of God and pray, ask God for Help, and God always will help people, will save each person from any troubles and troubles and everything will be fine.

The future of every person begins - today! Live today - Worthy, obey God and do not be about Him. Be a kind and honest person and treat all people well, do not sin and the Lord will bless you with Tomorrow, bless you with your Future, hear your prayer and preserve your loved ones! This is the whole secret of a prosperous human life.

The Kingdom of God means the reconciliation of a person with God, complete agreement with His Holy Will and with the Obligatory fulfillment of God's Laws, reconciliation and agreement with one's life, and with oneself. Through this, finding Peace and tranquility in oneself, in one's soul, reconciliation with all people, gaining a sense of the Fear of God - one's full and obligatory Responsibility before God for all one's deeds, actions, words and thoughts, for one's entire life.

The Truth of God is our personal HONEST life according to the Laws of God, our Good deeds, compassion and help to our neighbors. When we live as God commanded us, then only then the Lord hears and accepts our prayers and fulfills them, begins to help us in everything. Everything starts to work out for us in life, and we really achieve real success in our life. Then God helps us in all our deeds and keeps us, our neighbors, and our property from all evil.

Now listen to you who say: "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and we will live there for one year or several years, and we will trade there and make a profit." You who do not know what may happen to you tomorrow: for what is your life? Steam that appears for a short time and then disappears. Instead of saying: If the Lord wills and we will live, then we will do this or that thing. " / Apostle James. /

Many people do not understand at all why they do not succeed in certain things, their intentions and plans are frustrated, and all because they forget about God. Speaking out loud about their intentions and plans, they do not speak the way the Apostle James commanded us: “If the Lord wills and we will live, we will do this or that thing.” their deeds and plans. Therefore, demons, and they always hear everything, immediately begin to put a spoke in our wheels, begin to Hinder and Destroy all our deeds and plans.

The life of a person is guided and directed by FOREIGN - the Plan of God, and our prayer, brought with deep faith - IS always HEARDED by God.

From God, the ways of man are corrected and directed, but the sinful man will understand his own ways. All gifts, talents, abilities, health, happiness, everything that we have is given to us by God.

Assuming to take a step, start any business or give consent or refusal to an offer made, a Christian must ask his conscience, but if there are difficulties or doubts, then turn to God with a prayer - "Lord give me understanding, Lord teach me" remembering the words Savior Jesus Christ - “Without Me you can create and do nothing” - and the first thought that came after the prayer was from God.

We must do everything with judgment. Everything that leads and distracts us from God, and leads to the fact that we - FORGET about God and His Laws, and we BEGIN - TO VIOLATE the will of God - AGAINST the Will of God and is not pleasing to the Lord.

Everything that LEADS us to God, everything that TEACHES us - love, gratitude and gratitude to God, everything that teaches us an HONEST life, Good attitude and love for our neighbors - all this is in accordance with the Will of God. This Will of God is your sanctification, so that you abstain from fornication and evil deeds and desires. " And not only from fleshly fornication, but also from every delusion, the more unlawful.

Whoever feels such a delusion in himself should think, understand well and say to himself: - this is a business that I want to start doing, this friendship with such and such a person, this is an acquisition or a purchase, a sale or something else, such actions and such way of life - DOES NOT MAKE me morally and spiritually BEST, because - distracts me from God, VIOLATES the Laws of God and can ruin me.

At least neither this title, nor this profession, nor this work, nor this knowledge, nor this friendship, nor such a way of life, nor this acquisition - IS God's Will and Blessing for me so that I have - the RIGHT to have such a profession and work in this work, make friends and communicate with these people, acquire these things, and lead such a lifestyle for the benefit of their salvation.

Therefore, all this that VIOLATES - the Laws of God and HINDERS my salvation and HARMFUL me - I must immediately LEAVE.

For example: you are offered a job - to speculate and deceive people, to sell vodka, cigarettes, drugs, pornographic newspapers, magazines, videotapes, low-quality or spoiled goods, groceries or stolen things - but that's what we are Orthodox people and we must understand that we, Orthodox Christians, CANNOT get people drunk and sell them tobacco, we cannot add drugs to people, we cannot corrupt people - all these are very grave, mortal sins. Therefore, we must give up such - Sinful work. Unfortunately for people - it is NOT possible to earn money - it is very dangerous.

You cannot trade - spoiled or stolen goods or products - this is also a grave sin, therefore, even if you were offered a large salary, you should not work in such a job. Or, for example, you have friends who constantly swear, use foul language, offer you to go buy wine and take a walk, or spend fun time in prodigal sin with lecherous girls, or steal something, somewhere, or do evil to someone or dirty trick - we CANNOT be friends with such friends, we must leave them and forget and never again communicate with them, but not even talk. You are offered to go play in a casino, a gambling hall or cards for money - of course you know that God forbids all this - so you must refuse and not go anywhere.

You are offered to watch a pornographic and or erotic film, or to watch pornographic magazines or newspapers - but you know that everything that is depraved and vulgar to God is AGAINST and VILIOUS, and therefore we MUST NOT watch such depraved films, newspapers and magazines, and should others people - PROTECT from this.

You are offered to sign a FALSE letter of accusation or to give FALSE testimony against an INNOCENT person - this is a GRAVE, mortal sin, therefore it is NOT possible to do this and, moreover, it is very DANGEROUS - then you yourself will get into even greater trouble because of this. God will punish severely for such a Crime.

If this is a GOOD deed and Kind people - it means that it is PLEASANT to God, then we do Good deeds and communicate with kind people and make friends.

If this is BAD business and bad people- it means that it is not pleasing to God, - therefore we do not do bad deeds, and also - DO NOT COMMUNICATE with bad people.

Providence of God is CARE originating from God. Everything that happens according to the Providence of God always happens and is arranged by the most the best way because the Good God, like a kind, loving and caring mother, CANNOT Cause Evil to his creation, He cannot DO anything to HARM a person. Therefore, when someone knows and believes that God cares about him, then such a person is always calm and never upset about anything. (Elder Paisios.)

It is necessary to trust in everything - to Divine Providence, only then will we GET RID of SUPPRESSION, despondency and all evil. For when someone knows and believes that God cares about him, then he DOES NOT EXPERIENCE and does not get upset about anything.

However, in order to trust in Divine Providence, one must cleanse oneself from all worldly care and then expect God's help. For if someone cares to ACCUMULATE and SAVE money for a "Black Day", so as not to lack anything, then this person is asserted only on money, and not in God. That is, such a person - HOPES only for himself, for his money and strength, but does not believe in God, DOES NOT TRUST in God and does not hope in Him. And then the Lord LEAVES such an INCORRECT unreliable person. Woe to such a person if he does not repent and reform.

So, - you must first STOP loving money and no longer HOPE on it, and then AFFIRM in the hope of God. I am not saying not to use money, but in order not to assert my hope in it and not to give it my heart.

Laws are given by God - and who KNOWS and FULFILLS them? Imagine a person was hired, but today he was late for work, tomorrow he just skipped, the day after tomorrow he got married, he does not fulfill his duties. What his boss will tell him, he will tell him the following: either you start to work as expected, or quit, this will be the boss's answer.

And how we baptized, "believers" act: we rarely go to church, we don't observe fasting, we don't pray either in the morning or in the evening, we don't confess, we don't take communion, we don't know the Law of God, we don't read the Bible - we DO NOT KNOW anything about our Orthodox Faith- that's why either God doesn't help us at all, or we get such insignificant help from God that we don't even notice it.