Today with luncheons, speeches, parades, and programs throughout the world we honor the bravery of Greek heroes that stood up against invaders to their homeland. OXI Day, for Greeks and non-Greeks alike, is a day that represents a people’s dedication to freedom and liberty; a concept given by God Himself. Today honors the dedication of a nation that not only stood up to invaders, but a nation that proceeded to defend their freedom and the freedom of others. Their willingness to ACTION was honored throughout the entire world as an icon of bravery. Their “no” was not passive; they followed it with their YES to freedom and proceeded to defend their homeland.
Today we are called to the same level of courage to protect our homeland…..our soul. Every day we are confronted with invaders that tempt us to abandon our faith in God in exchange for increased wealth and decreased morality. We must stand firm to protect the homeland of our souls from these evil invaders who whisper lies into our ears. They bombard us not with dynamite but with spiritual temptation meant to confuse us into believing that God’s ways of life are not worth living. They tempt us with our own pride and ego to convince us that we know better than God. We must defend ourselves!
The devil and his demons are attacking us every day tempting us to ignore the commandments of God: to love our neighbors, serve others, and worship Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. The invaders suggest that it is better to fend for ourselves, despise others especially if they are more successful than we are, and to enjoy a day of luxury, rest and relaxation rather than attending Sunday Divine Liturgy or the other services of the Church.
The time has come for us to defend our souls and say OXI (NO) to the devil and YES to God.
No comments:
Post a Comment