God accepts our desires as though they were of great value. He longs ardently for us to desire and love him. He accepts our petitions for benefits as though we were doing him a favor. His joy in giving is greater than ours in receiving. So let us not be apathetic in our asking, nor set too narrow bounds to our requests; nor ask for frivolous things unworthy of God’s greatness.
–Saint Gregory Nazianzen (329-c. 391)
Prayer should be the means by which I, at all times, receive all that I need, and, for this reason, be my daily refuge, my daily consolation, my daily joy, my source of rich and inexhaustible joy in life.
–Saint John Chrysostom (347-407)
It is simply impossible to lead, without the aid of prayer, a virtuous life. What prayer could be more true before God the Father than that which the Son, who is Truth, uttered with His own lips? Prayer is the place of refuge for every worry, a foundation for cheerfulness, a source of constant happiness, a protection against sadness.
–Saint John Chrysostom (347-407)
Christ gave his life for you, and do you hold a grudge against your fellow servant? How then can you approach the table of peace? Your Master did not refuse to undergo every kind of suffering for you, and will you not even forgo your anger?… If you refuse to forgive your enemy you harm not him but yourself… There is no one God detests and repudiates more than the person who bears a grudge, whose heart is filled with anger, whose soul is seething with rage.
–Saint John Chrysostom (347-407)
