by Elder Nektary of Optina Monastery
You want to learn love for God? Begin! I place before your attention the teachings of the Fathers about this: ‘Do you want to learn love for God? Withdraw from every deed, word, thought and sensation forbidden by the Gospels. By your enmity toward sin, which is so hateful to the All-Holy God, show and prove your love for God. The sins into which you happen to fall due to weakness, treat immediately with repentance, But it is better to make an effort not to allow even these sins access to you, by strict watchfulness over yourself.
Do you want to learn love for God? Painstakingly study the Lord’s commandments in the Gospels and try to fulfill them in very deed, and try to turn the Gospel virtues into your own skills and qualities. It is characteristic of a loving person to fulfill the will of his beloved.
On Struggle
