QUOTATION: Small Sins

The devil belittles small sins; otherwise he cannot lead us into greater ones.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: The Faithful Servant

He who relies on theoretical knowledge alone is not yet a faithful servant: a faithful servant is one who expresses his faith in Christ through obedience to His commandments.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Mercy

Just as a thought is made manifest through actions and words, so is our future reward through the impulses of the heart. Thus a merciful heart will receive mercy, while a merciless heart will receive the opposite.

--St Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Intention

If you want to do something but cannot, then before God, who knows our hearts, it is as if we have done it. This is true whether the intended action is good or bad.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Being Insulted

When harmed, insulted or persecuted by someone, do not think of the present but wait for the future, and you will find he has brought you much good, not only in this life but also in the life to come.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Trust in God

If someone puts his trust in God in a matter, let him not argue with his brother about it.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Opposing Temptation

Conquer temptations by the patience and prayer. If you oppose them without these, you will fall all the more severely.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Repentance

No one is as good and kind as the Lord is; but He does not forgive one who does not repent.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Service

He who does something good and expects a reward is serving not God but his own will.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Sense of Sin

The devil presents minor sins as insignificant in our eyes, because otherwise he would not be able lead us into major ones.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Distress

The self-indulgent are distressed by criticism and hardship; those who love God by praise and luxury.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Misleading Emotions

Some people when praised for their virtue are delighted, and attribute this pleasurable feeling of self-esteem to grace. Others when reproved for their sins are pained, and they mistake this beneficial pain for the action of sin.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Renunciation

You will lose nothing of what you have renounced for the Lord's sake. For in its own time it will return to you greatly multiplied.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Works

When Scripture says, 'He will reward every man according to his works' (Matthew 16:27), do not imagine that works in themselves merit either hell or the Kingdom. On the contrary, Christ rewards each man according to whether his works are done with faith or without faith in Himself; and He is not a dealer bound by contract, but God our Creator and Redeemer.

-- St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Gossip

Do not listen to talk about other people's sins. For through such listening the form of these sins is imprinted on you.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Suffering

Every affliction accepted for God’s sake is a genuine act of holiness.

--St. Mark the Ascetic

QUOTATION: Seeking the Lord

The Lord is hidden in His own commandments, and He is to be found there in the measure that He is sought.

--St. Mark the Ascetic