NOTES for Jam 5:13-20

We often do not even remember that our whole life actually unfolds before the eyes of the Lord, and that in any situation we can turn to Him and He will hear us, because He is always near us. Prayer is abiding in God’s presence, listening to God, and speaking with Him. In suffering, we can ask God for help, or we can simply weep with Him. In joy, we can thank Him for it, or simply rejoice beside the Lord. In illness, we can implore God for healing and ask our friends to pray for us, or we can patiently accept what the Lord has given us. Both paths are beautiful; both are with the Lord. The main thing is always to remember God and live in His presence. The season of the Holy Forty Days is now approaching, a time when the Church invites us to remember precisely this, when all the texts and all the services lead us to remember that God created time as well, and that time belongs to Him. During these days it is easier to remember that we live constantly before the face of the Lord and, perhaps, easier to live in such a way that it is not very painful for the Lord to look at us.