Barnabas Powell's Blog, page 49
March 8, 2022
You Will Not Avoid Consequences
Robert Louis Stevenson once said, “Sooner or later, everyone sits down to a banquet of consequences.” And this is precisely why it is always so corrosive to a person, to a community, and to society, to blindly chart a course of actions that ignore the consequences of our choices. Truth be told, the ignoring of consequences or the attempts to avoid or mitigate consequences to “free” me to do whatever I want…
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March 7, 2022
Wisdom Cries Aloud In the Streets!
I love this quote from Sandra Carey “Never mistake knowledge for wisdom. One helps you make a living; the other helps you make a life.” So very true. It seems we have been formed by our society to believe that the accumulation of information is education. Of course, it certainly is part of education. But the true test of a person is if they can apply what they know to how they…
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March 4, 2022
Fasting SO We Can Feast!
Our Orthodox Christian calendar revolves around Pascha, the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In fact, it isn’t just our calendar, but our entire theology revolves around the Resurrection of Jesus. Jesus Christ conquering mortality is the public proclamation of our Christian Faith. So, how do we celebrate the Resurrection? Well, first we prepare to celebrate this Cosmos Changing event! We Fast! Not just from food. That’s just the elementary part…
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March 3, 2022
The Enemy Within! Get Ready for Lent!
So much conflict today is based on nothing more than finding out that someone agrees with someone else you disagree with! The friend of my enemy is my enemy. But what if all the conflicts in the world could be solved by admitting that the Source of all conflict FIRST starts within each of us? What if the outward conflict is merely a reflection of our inner conflict? Just look at our…
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March 2, 2022
Harvesting Wrathful Grapes!
“It’s in your tone.” My tone, what does that mean? We were discussing some heavy issue and the conversation had, indeed, turned toward the heart of the matter. I guess my voice and facial expression began to match the seriousness of my words, and she noticed it right away. That’s when the “tone” comment surfaced. My “tone” had changed to match the seriousness of the topic. It is absolutely amazing to me…
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March 1, 2022
Tempted To Give Up!
Life can be discouraging at times. A wise man once told me this during a particularly discouraging time in my life: “Son, don’t quit when life is tough. You don’t throw your ticket away just because the train goes through a dark tunnel!” I still remember that today. And yet, there are dark times when the temptation to give up is very strong! In fact, during those times it seems that inner…
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February 28, 2022
A Real Person!
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and I can really see that. The other day my daughter had the same reaction and facial expression I have when I’m frustrated. The moment made me smile, then cringe, then pray “Lord, help me be a better example to my children!” The whole of the Christian life is all about imitation. If we can internalize imitating Christ in all things, we become…
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February 25, 2022
The Final Judgement
“Don’t judge me!” That’s the cry of modern man in a modern society that has come to see every desire as a right and every pleasure as a perfectly normal expectation. There’s a new Hollywood movie coming out that illustrates my point. It’s called “50 Shades of Grey.” I won’t bore you with the details, but suffice it to say this movie is about the fantasy of living a life with no boundaries…
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February 24, 2022
Is Doubt A Sin?
Paul Tillich once said, “Doubt is not the opposite of faith; it is one element of faith.” Interesting! Too many times, moments of doubt are used by the enemy of your soul to cause you to give up or hide in shame. But doubt has never been fatal if it’s dealt with in wisdom and patience. On this day where we recall the ministry of St. John the Baptizer, doubt CAn become a moment…
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