If one intensifies their spiritual life, they will better understand some of the situations in the world and some postures they should adopt.

The spirit of service is one thing, and spirit of the ego is quite another. Sometimes these two distinct spirits create tension and conflict within a person. 

The spirit of service thinks about how to complete the efforts of others, how to facilitate, and how to contribute. The spirit of the ego however, thinks about judgement, personal expectations and advantages.

There is a big difference between looking from within outward, and looking from outside inward.   When one looks inward from an external vantage point, it is easier to see ommissions and mistakes. To be able to do this is a virtue. It is an encounter with one’s self. It is self-critique.

The dead-end alleyways of the ego are like an endless and unproductive cycle. To be saved from this cycle, it is necessary to pass over to the influence of the Spirit. Those who make the transition will find rest and resolution of difficulties. Those who cannot make the transition will continue in the dead-end alleyways of the ego and struggle hopelessly in them. 

The Spirit is light. He warms you up. He banishes fear. He transcends. He is the lover of life. He is the lover of peace. He loves the self, respects the self, esteems the self, and posseses self control.

According to the thought of the Spirit, the Syriac saying, “nehve sebyonokh” (let the will of the Lord be fulfilled) means the same as the expression, “to be the best we can be. When we say this, we also accept that the Lord has a plan and a contribution to make to our life.’’

As a person’s social status becomes elevated (and especially for those who enter higher positions), he or she must be ready for the growth stimulated by the energy which greater responsibility demands. For such a person, the experience of troubles and frustrations has a purpose: the acquisition of this energy and growth.

Mor Ishak of Nineve declared a beutiful idea along these lines: “Shukone rabe lo othen elo en bothar nesyune rabe.” That is: ‘‘Without the endurance of great tribulations, great rewards are not bestowed.’’

The progress of those who are able to learn from great tribulations will gain speed.  Events will develop spontaneously. However, if a person does not have discipline and has not evolved toward a bed-rock character, at some point in his or her pathway, progress will become stuck in the mud..    

If the spirit grows cold, it causes fragility and abrasiveness. To warm up the spirit it is necessary to take hold of the spiritual rudder. Water is like spirit. Without the sprinking of water, mud gets so hard that you cannot till the ground. Only water can desolve the hardness. That is how a hardened person is. 

In order for the hard soil to be workable and to become compliant, the spirit must warm up. This is necessary. Those who take care of this need, grow.

If a person resolutely determines to get something, even if he or she thinks that his efforts are proceeding as planned, that person still cannot be at ease and relaxed. When a person is not at ease and relaxed, the number of their mistakes increases.

There are reasons to keep results under control. Those who think that letting things go their own way will lead to chaos are those who ignore the Lord’s plans. On the other hand, there is no spiritual or political affair that will move forward on its own. There is a reason for everyting.

The Lord is the ultimate and glorious Order. He is the continuously widening love, in action, in all dimensions and for all of life. To trust him is like trusting the force of gravity.

Althought it is impossible to add anything to the plans of the Lord, people still try to establish their own plans instead of His. For people it is difficult to understand how the Lord’s own plans are fulfilled. And it is not necessary to understand.

The duty of a person is to fit one’s heart and mind to God’s spirit within. This suits the human condition. Situations may change the gears. A person’s mind finds kindness. The more a person’s mind finds kindness and healing, his or her effect on other people will automatically be manifested. It will not even be necessary to think upon which subject to speak. Excellent and necessary words will come to mind of their own accord. Because the mind, that is, the spirit, has come under the effect of love. It is no longer the strength of the person that is at work, but rather another power within that has taken over. 

The simplicity of spirit (or heart) directed by the mind, is not poverty but rather wealth.

It should not be forgotten that those who are moved by the impulse to contribute, to serve, and to make a difference, rise to such a spiritual and moral authority that worldly successes come as a natural result.

Malfono Yusuf Beğtaş