A Prayer for my enemies

A Prayer Regarding Critics and Enemies by Serbian Orthodox Bishop


By Bishop Nikolai Velimirovic, Serbian bishop who spoke out against Naziism, was arrested, and taken to Dachau.

Bless my enemies, O Lord. Even I bless them and do not curse them. Enemies have driven me into your embrace more than friends have. Friends have bound me to earth; enemies have loosed me from earth and have demolished all my aspirations in the world.

Enemies have made me a stranger in worldly realms and an extraneous inhabitant of the world.

Just as a hunted animal finds safer shelter than an unhunted animal does, so have I, persecuted by enemies, found the safest sanctuary, having ensconced myself beneath Your tabernacle, where neither friends nor enemies can slay my soul.

The connection between smiles and shoes

Every weekday morning I drive my youngest son to school.  I am really enjoying this, because he will be driving soon and I will be closing another chapter in my life and will be another step removed from my sons actually needing anything from me other than money.  But that's another story.  As I drive away from the school each day I notice a group of elementary aged kids gathered at a bus stop.  There are two of the cutest girls, both probably fifth or sixth grade, who I have been watching at the stop every morning.  They are obviously good friends, and it has actually become part of my daily ritual to watch the joy on their faces as they greet each other and talk intensely about subjects I know nothing about.  As the months passed by I was amazed at how these two girls always seemed to engage in this ritual of talking and smiling and laughing, no matter how cold the weather, they were always just full of some unusual glee for this time in the morning.