Sacramental Living
146 episodes - English - Latest episode: 20 days ago - ★★★★★ - 28 ratingsUnderstanding Christianity as a Way of Life
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Episodes
Growth and Struggle in Liminal Space – Lessons from St. Mary of Egypt
April 11, 2024 05:03Join Michael is a discussion on our need to navigate the difficult liminal spaces in our lives with patience and discernment, as illustrated beautifully in the story of St. Mary of Egypt, and how it is possible to overcome sin and depravity to fulfill our calling to become saints and living icons of Christ.
A Dangerous Time of Year
March 21, 2024 05:03Join Michael in a discussion of some of the spiritual pitfalls we can fall into during Great Lent if we are not careful and attentive to its true purpose
The Real Energy Crisis
March 06, 2024 06:03Join Michael in a discussion of God’s essence and energies, other energies present in the world, and how we should really understand our motivations to ensure we participate in our actions with God’s grace and not with the enemy.
Tragedy, Clarity, and Reconciling Suffering
February 02, 2024 06:03 - 30 MBJoin Michael as he discusses questions about why good people suffer, bad people thrive, and reconciling this with the goodness of God.
Two Thieves, Two Ways, Two Choices
January 11, 2024 06:03Join Michael in a discussion of what Christ said in the Gospel accounts, and what the New Testament in general says about being a thief or thieves, and how the symbolism of the thief applies to us and the choice of salvation or condemnation.
Repentance is Our North Star
December 15, 2023 06:03Join Michael as he uses the symbolism of the North Star to take a deep dive into the true nature of repentance and why we often misunderstand it to our detriment.
Hypocrisy and the Mask of Death
November 30, 2023 06:03Join Michael for a discussion about the meaning of hypocrisy and what Christ said about it in the Gospel, and how to understand and protect ourselves from this deadly sin that causes us to wear “masks” and fall into self-deception, deception of others, and spiritual death.
Beauty and Theodicy
August 04, 2023 13:30Join Michael in a discussion about experiencing God’s healing and redemptive beauty and goodness even in the worst of life’s circumstances.
Well-Being or Non-Being - It’s Our Choice
July 19, 2023 02:38 - 32 minutes - 21 MBJoin Michael in a discussion about what well-being and non-being really mean, and how we often do things we think are beneficial but really are not in our best interest and lead us father from God rather than towards Him.
Well-Being or Non-Being - It's Our Choice
July 19, 2023 02:32Join Michael in a discussion about what well-being and non-being really mean, and how we often do things we think are beneficial but really are not in our best interest and lead us father from God rather than towards Him.
Heat Without Light
June 26, 2023 14:24Join Michael in a discussion about what it means to create “heat” without “light” and how ego driven self-motivation and self-focus is poisoning society, and what we should be mindful of not to be contributors to this.
Living Intentionally to Live Life Hopefully
June 13, 2023 14:25Join Michael in a discussion about living intentionally to embed hopefulness in our body, mind and soul, and accept death with the hope of eternal life.
Clothed in Christ
May 18, 2023 17:26Join Michael in a discussion about what the Scriptures and our Holy Tradition teach us about the importance of clothing as it relates to salvation, communion, or lack thereof, and what our attitudes and actions toward clothing reveal about us individually and culturally.
Strangers in a Strange Land
April 27, 2023 14:15Join Michael in a discussion about what is means to be feel like a stranger in our own surroundings and in this world in general and why this actually a good thing.
Tears
April 18, 2023 20:29Join Michael in a discussion about the many different aspects of tears, why some tears are good, some are evil, what they indicate about our hearts, and why they are necessary for salvation.
Our Bodies and the Sin of Self-Neglect
March 06, 2023 15:04Join Michael in a discussion about how we often neglect our bodies, the physical and spiritual ramifications to ourselves and loved ones, how this is profoundly unspiritual, and what we need to think and do to treat our physical selves the way God intends us to.
How Much We Loved Not How Much We Sinned
February 21, 2023 18:24Join Michael for a discussion of the primacy of focusing on loving more not sinning less and why this will be the basis of how God judges our lives.
Dealing with Difficulties and Setbacks
February 06, 2023 22:27Join Michael in a discussion about prayerful and practical ways to frame our understanding in regard to our difficulties and setbacks, and deal with them in a spiritually healthy way.
Mutual Accountability and the Awesome Judgment Seat of Christ
January 17, 2023 16:30Join Michael in discussion of what it means in the Liturgy when the Priest prays “And let us ask for a Christian end to our life, peaceful, without shame and suffering, and for a good defense before the awesome judgment seat of Christ” and how that should drive our daily behavior.
Consumed Through Consuming
December 19, 2022 15:58We live in a consumer culture. Businesses gather and sell data and information about us to target us as consumers. We are increasingly treated more like consumers than persons. The Christmas season for many has become nothing more than frenzied consumerism. John Michael as he discusses the human person in the context of consumer culture, comparing and contrasting the language of consuming used in our Liturgy and throughout the Bible with modern notions of consuming and how this relates to our...
Hospitality and Our Salvation
November 25, 2022 22:39Join Michael as he discusses the deep theological truths of simple hospitality and how it directly relates to our salvation.
Remembering the Future to Reframe Our Past
November 08, 2022 18:17Join Michael as he discusses how we should understand time and reconcile our past through the eternally crucified Christ, and let Him transform it and free us of guilt, shame, and regret.
Unknowing Ourselves
October 26, 2022 17:29Join Michael as he discusses how we should see and experience ourselves and others as living icons of Christ, and how we achieve this through the difficult task unknowing ourselves.
Light Shines Out of Darkness
October 10, 2022 13:53Join Michael as he discusses the complementary nature of light and darkness, how both are under God’s control, and how we can understand this to maintain hope during tough times, grow in faith, and shine the Light of Christ to others.
Breaking Down to Break Through
September 14, 2022 15:12Join Michael as he recounts a story of a good friend’s nervous breakdown and his experience of theophany, theosis, repentance, and God’s beauty amidst his trauma and suffering.
Freedom Through Restraint
August 30, 2022 15:47Join Michael as he shows why restraint is Christ-like and liberating, and the path of ultimate freedom out of the self-inflicted tyranny of our own thoughts and behaviors.
Civil and Uncivil War
July 06, 2022 21:11Join Michael as he reflects on the recent Supreme Court decision and why we need more than ever to remain prayerful and faithful within ourselves, and civil with each other.
The Success of Failure
June 09, 2022 17:31Join Michael as he discusses the success of failure and the failure of success, and how our worldly success can be a blessing or a curse depending on we approach it spiritually.
Overcoming Spiritual Disabilities
May 26, 2022 14:53Join Michael for a discussion on how to understand and overcome the subtle spiritual deafness and spiritual blindness we can suffer from that leads to spiritual heart disease.
I Wish I Hadn't Done That But Thank God I Did
May 09, 2022 15:25Join Michael for a discussion on how to avoid being paralyzed with guilt and shame over our worst failures, and experience God at work within them.
I Wish I Hadn’t Done That But Thank God I Did
May 09, 2022 15:06 - 31 minutes - 20.3 MBJoin Michael for a discussion on how to avoid being paralyzed with guilt and shame over our worst failures, and experience God at work within them.
Healing the Soul through Self-Forgiveness
April 11, 2022 17:57Join Michael for a discussion on why forgiving ourselves is often so hard and what we need to understand and do to open our hearts to self-forgiveness.
Faith, Trauma, and Trust
March 16, 2022 13:59Join Michael as he examines trauma and traumatic episodes from his life, and explores how to use them to develop a deeper trust in God.
The Myth of Human Freedom
February 23, 2022 18:44Join Michael as he examines what it means to experience true freedom, and why what we think is freedom is a form of bondage we don’t recognize.
Beware of Our Own Opinions
February 16, 2022 15:22Join Michael as he examines the role expression of opinion plays in society today, how to guard ourselves against our own and other’s opinions that fuel our pride and cause anger and division, and what to do to maintain humility, thoughtfulness, and love of others.
Tearing Down Authority at Our Own Peril
January 28, 2022 20:02Join Michael as he discusses how we should understand God’s authority versus secular notions of authority, and why rejecting and tearing down authority does not result in liberation and freedom but rather the opposite.
Why We Need Separation Before Unity
January 17, 2022 15:47Join Michael as he discusses why we need separation that is holy before we can have true unity with each other; and how many are choosing an unholy type of separation based on fear, ideologies, and other things are the entry to the wide gate leading to destruction.
Consenting to the Devil
December 27, 2021 18:00Join Michael as he addresses our choices and what we consent to that results in us either growing in holiness and union with Christ, or an unholy union with the devil that leads to our gradual and eventual complete destruction.
Do We Get What We Deserve?
December 13, 2021 20:32What do we deserve in life? Anything? Everything? Join Michael as he addresses the various ways we can focus on what we deserve and how most of them lead us in the wrong spiritual direction.
Saving Ourselves and Others Through Patience
December 01, 2021 03:21Join Michael as he provides an in-depth discussion of the many spiritual aspects of patience that are critical to our salvation and the salvation of others, and how lacking this virtue is more spiritually harmful than we may realize.
Episode 100 – Dealing with Our Inner Darkness
November 17, 2021 17:06Inner darkness. We all have it whether we admit or not. How do overcome it? How do we find our way to Christ the Light and master our inner darkness? Join Michael as he addresses these questions in-depth and shows we can find our way to the Light no matter what darkness we are in.
Battling Our Little gods
October 18, 2021 23:33Join Michael as explores the subtly of idolatry and the little gods that lurk behind our idols that lead us slowly down a dangerous spiritual path.
The Only True Religion or the Completely True Religion
September 28, 2021 20:06Join Michael as explores the question is our Orthodox Christian religion the only true religion or the completely true religion, and the how our answer to this question affects our internal self and outward behavior to detriment or betterment of ourselves and others.
Why God's Wrath is also God's Love
September 16, 2021 16:36Join Michael as he discusses why God’s wrath is an expression of His love, what hinders us from understanding and accepting this, and why it is debilitating when it is intended to be transformative.
Why God’s Wrath is also God’s Love
September 16, 2021 15:54 - 31 minutes - 21.6 MBJoin Michael as he discusses why God’s wrath is an expression of His love, what hinders us from understanding and accepting this, and why it is debilitating when it is intended to be transformative.
Eros, Agape, and Ordering our Disordered Desires Through Suffering
August 27, 2021 16:45Join Michael as he discusses what eros and agape really mean and why they cannot be separated, how growth in love is deeply linked to suffering, how disordered desire can grip us, how we never truly sin alone, and how it always affects both us and others when we act on our disordered desires.
Darn those Darnels: Acquiring Discernment in this Age of Deception
August 14, 2021 02:06Join Michael as he discusses what a darnel is and what it means to us, how easy it is to be deceived by the spirit of the age, and what we need to do to ensure we gain and apply Christ-like discernment in all matters.
Trying to Keep God in Box
June 14, 2021 20:12Join Michael as he discusses the challenge of living our Orthodox faith and Holy Tradition fully and without compromise, and witnessing effectively and lovingly to others outside of the faith. Listen as he explains how easy it is to fall into the trap of putting God in neat little box in our minds and hearts how this is detrimental to ourselves and others.
Sacramental “Enchantment”
May 12, 2021 20:12Join Michael as he explains why we need to become, and always stay, “enchanted” by God through sacramental understanding and participation, and how this is our witness and demonstration of the truth of the Gospel.
Trampling Down Death by Death
May 07, 2021 15:00Join Michael as he expounds upon these words we sing and chant between Pascha and Ascension Thursday and what they should mean to us even as we continue to face the reality of death.