I never will forget the look on his face when I told this man that "Happiness is a choice." You see, he had come into my office insisting that he wasn't happy and asking what could he do about it. He wanted to hear me tell him to change his life, and I had just…
Socrates said "The only true wisdom is to know you know nothing." Deep! But is the great philosopher right? In a sense, yes, because to know you know nothing means you must be in relationships to know anything.
One of the most powerful draws for me in my own journey to Orthodox Christianity was this palpable…
On Sunday's Faith Encouraged LIVE, Fr. Barnabas is joined by Fr. John Strickland and Fr. Seraphim Holland as we discuss the wisdom of St. John of the Ladder!
Learn how to finish the Great Fast well by applying timeless wisdom to growing in your spiritual life!
Don't miss Faith Encouraged LIVE Sunday night at 8 PM Eastern…
Dear Friends of Faith Encouraged Ministries,
Our daily devotional is taking a week's hiatus as Fr. Barnabas recovers from a medical challenge. Father will be having some tests done this week and asks your prayers as he recovers and takes a bit of a break from his daily devotionals.
Thank you for all who have sent encouraging…
At the very heart of the timeless Christian faith is the Eucharist. And you've heard me say many times before that the word "Eucharist" has it's root in the Greek word for "thank you." The very center of what it means to be a Christian isn't some cultural habit "I'm Christian because I was born…
"It's gonna rain. It's gonna rain. You better get ready. You better get right. God told Noah, by the rainbow sign; He said no more water! But FIRE next time!" A classic song from Andrae Crouch and the Disciples struck me, as a teenage Christian, as the perfect warning to everyone - God will never…
It doesn't make any sense. Why would he do that? What was going through his mind when he made that choice? Doesn't this person know he's disrupted my drive? Ah, yes, the constant temptation of the self-centric universe offers me tons of opportunities to learn about myself! Ouch!
But, seriously, we hear all the time…
It never fails. I'm sitting with a young couple in pre-marital counseling and we get to the part of the service where the husband is commanded to love his wife as Christ loves the Church and the wife is to "obey" her husband. They look at each other. They look at me. Sometimes they smile…
My best friend in the world died of a brain tumor many years ago. Anyone who has either struggled with cancer or knew someone who did, knows the radical nature of cancer treatment. The chemotherapy is literally poison used to kill the cancer. But it's still poison. Many have wondered if the cure is worse…
Fear is an emotion that has both a psychological and physical response. When I am afraid, my knees knock; my hands sweat; my mind races; and my heart beats faster, all in response to fear! Funny how my body reacts the same way to being in love! I'm just teasing.
But, seriously, fear motivates so…