August: Day 18: Teaching 1: Holy Martyrs Floros and Lavros

 

August: Day 18: Teaching 1:
Holy Martyrs Floros and Lavros
 
(How Can One Ensure That Worldly and Earthly Matters Do Not Hinder the Pursuit of Spiritual and Heavenly Endeavors?)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. The Holy Martyrs Floros and Lavros, commemorated today, were brothers who lived in Illyria, near the Adriatic Sea. They were stonecutters by trade and gave away to the poor all the money they earned from their work. One day they were forced to go to a neighboring country to build a pagan temple. While giving away the money they received for their work to the poor, they at the same time preached the gospel to them and converted many pagans to the faith in Christ. The Lord confirmed their preaching with miracles. 

One day, the son of the chief pagan priest, looking at their work, accidentally injured his eye with a splinter of stone. The brothers, having spent the whole night in prayer, the next morning, having blessed the child with the sign of the cross, healed him. Then the child's father himself believed in Christ with his whole family. 

The teachings of Floros and Lavros converted many of the inhabitants to Christ, so that when the temple was finished, it was dedicated to the true God, and the idols designated for placement there were smashed. The ruler of the country, having learned of this, ordered the execution of all participants in the matter, and Floros and Lavros, having subjected them to severe torture, were sent in chains to the Illyrian ruler Lycion. Lycion at first tried to turn them away from Christianity, but then, seeing their steadfastness, ordered them to be thrown into a waterless well and covered with earth. 

After many years, their incorruptible bodies were found and transferred to Constantinople, where they became famous for their healing powers.

II. We have seen, brethren, that the Holy Martyrs Floros and Lavros, being masons by trade, with all their worldly occupations attained the Kingdom of Heaven and were even deemed worthy of the highest degree of blessedness in heaven, having received the crown of martyrdom for Christ. While engaged in their trade, they were concerned above all with the glory of God, converted the unbelievers to Christ, did good to the poor, and lived in a manner pleasing to God. Meanwhile, we very often complain that our occupations prevent us from pleasing God and from caring for the salvation of our souls.

How can we ensure that earthly and worldly affairs do not hinder spiritual and heavenly affairs?

We can find the solution to this question in the Lord’s saying: “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33).

a) The placing of one matter first shows that another matter is allowed to come after. Consequently, in the Lord's saying there are two thoughts: one open, the other hidden in the word "first." The open thought: we must seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness first. The hidden thought: it is not forbidden to seek some other things after. Thus, from the word of Christ it is revealed that it is possible to successfully exercise oneself in heavenly matters, in seeking the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and, without harm to this matter, to be engaged also in earthly matters, necessary matters, such as: obtaining food, clothing, shelter; as well as duties, such as: fulfilling the duties of one's calling and service in human society; as well as useful deeds, or at least innocent ones, such as the acquisition and use of various knowledge in the field of nature and art, however, in such a way that with these Egyptian treasures one does not get bogged down in the sea of life, but so as to wisely and righteously use them for the glory of the Heavenly Father and for the good of His earthly children.

b) The secret of good and unhindered success lies in what you will seek first, what business will go before other business, will take precedence over all business, will dominate your thoughts, desires and aspirations, or, as one of the ancient fathers explained, what will be your “business” and what your “sharing”.

If you seek first of all the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, if the work of saving your soul by grace and faith, cleansing it with the commandments, and perfecting it with virtues takes precedence over all other works, dominating your thoughts, desires, and aspirations; if you regard this alone as a “work,” true and important, and all earthly affairs as only a “task,” a secondary, unimportant occupation, to which a certain share of attention is yielded after the main work: then earthly affairs will not be an obstacle to the heavenly work; you can hope to find the Kingdom of God, which you seek above all else, and at the same time not be lacking in what you care less about, in what is necessary for earthly life, according to the faithful promise of the Lord: “all these things shall be added unto you.”

On the contrary, if you think that it is necessary first to provide for yourself in earthly and worldly affairs, and only then to care for heavenly things; if some earthly occupation of science, art, craft, trade, the search for benefits, brilliance and pleasures of life, has become your primary thought, your dominant desire, your “business” by excellence, and the business of piety remains for you only a “task”, a business of leisure from worldly affairs: then you have transformed the order prescribed by the word of the Lord; you are not on the path to finding the Kingdom of God; and as for providing yourself with earthly goods, I do not know on what you can base your hope, because the promise of the Lord does not apply to you: “all these things shall be added unto you.”

III. Therefore, beloved brethren, ask yourself: what is on your mind and heart first and foremost? When you awake in the morning, what is your first thought? Does your heart say: Glory to God, who has shown me the light? or: Lord, bless my day? If so: then this is a sign for good. But if, together with your awakening, there awakens in you and carries you away the thought and care of some earthly matter to which you are addicted, and does not allow you to “remember God and rejoice” (Psalm 76:4); then I fear for you, my brother; it is doubtful whether you seek the Kingdom of God first of all. If you stand in church, and your thought goes into your home, or into your workhouse, or to the marketplace, or to a place of entertainment: is this not a sign that in you the thought that flees from God is stronger than the thought that flees to God? Hasten to return the fleeing one, and unite your thoughts and heart in striving for God.

In this and similar ways, let us each test our inner disposition often and diligently; and let us not hesitate to drive away our thoughts and hearts from passionate attachments to the earthly and worldly, so that our hearts may be established in the Lord; so that the Kingdom of God may be the constant, never lost sight of, goal of our striving, just as it was the main goal of the lives of the now glorified Holy Martyrs Floros and Lavros.  

 

Source: A Complete Annual Cycle of Short Teachings, Composed for Each Day of the Year. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.