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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Hill Country Homilies. Weekly homilies from Holy Anunciation

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<v Speaker 1>Orthodox Church in Liberty Hill, Texas. Holy Annunciation is an

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<v Speaker 1>old calendar Orthodox Church sharing the faith of the Apostles

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<v Speaker 1>and the love of Christ with all who seek His truth. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>let's listen to this week's homily.

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<v Speaker 2>When's the our talk? A holed the readings this morning?

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<v Speaker 3>I had intended to preach about the state backing unit

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<v Speaker 3>the council, but and here's female the archbishop covered it completely,

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<v Speaker 3>so there's no reason for me agree about it.

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<v Speaker 2>Although if you haven't read the email, please you read it.

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<v Speaker 2>Very goodness, is Zara informative.

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<v Speaker 4>I will see greely about the parable several.

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<v Speaker 2>Us. Our Lord already explains what it means, and I

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<v Speaker 2>certainly can't.

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<v Speaker 4>Explain it any better than our Lord has, but I'll

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<v Speaker 4>I'll give a shot. The Lord in of course, and.

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<v Speaker 2>Soar as he talks about in in the Gospel, and

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<v Speaker 2>he continues his ministry through the successors of.

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<v Speaker 4>The apostles and the bishops, and the bishops who pass

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<v Speaker 4>on the ministry to us the priests.

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<v Speaker 2>Now, of course it's up with all Christians in their

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<v Speaker 2>own way to spread and the sea. But mostly it's

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<v Speaker 2>you know, you bring your friends and family to church, and.

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<v Speaker 4>Then we try to die them as best as we can.

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<v Speaker 4>But when when Lord talks about the sea here in

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<v Speaker 4>the in the terrible.

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<v Speaker 2>The sea by the west side, are they here in.

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<v Speaker 4>The devil times and takes the word out of our hearts,

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<v Speaker 4>sciatic believe and be safe? Well, that's that's terribly obvious

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<v Speaker 4>that you know, the devil does not want to be

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<v Speaker 4>of us to achieve salvation, to.

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<v Speaker 2>Be saved by our prosn gorge, and so he does

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<v Speaker 2>whatever he can to take the word of God out

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<v Speaker 2>of our hearts. And then.

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<v Speaker 4>After the the Lord says that the on the rock,

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<v Speaker 4>they they can receive more of joy, but they have

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<v Speaker 4>no roots. In other words, they receive the Gospel on

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<v Speaker 4>a surface level. It doesn't penetrate into their hearts. And

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<v Speaker 4>so when temptation comes, and it will He's come, they're

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<v Speaker 4>quick to pass aside.

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<v Speaker 2>They're crossed and go about and see worldly with the

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<v Speaker 2>pleasures which he he speaks about later. The key.

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<v Speaker 4>Is that even if we don't want to, we must

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<v Speaker 4>take up our cross every single day and follow after

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<v Speaker 4>the Lord.

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<v Speaker 2>It's not easy. This may sound like when you first

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<v Speaker 2>hear the parable. It may sound like a one kind

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<v Speaker 2>of thing, but no, this is actually a terrible of

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<v Speaker 2>the spiritual life. That is a daily occurrence.

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<v Speaker 4>It's not that the sower is sowing the seed once

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<v Speaker 4>and then it's okay, one and done. No, it is

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<v Speaker 4>rather a daily or thing that the seed, the word

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<v Speaker 4>of God is invited to come into our hearts, but

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<v Speaker 4>we have to respond to it daily. And the way

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<v Speaker 4>that we do that is by preparing the soil.

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<v Speaker 2>The soil, of course is our parts. And now how

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<v Speaker 2>do we prepare the soil? Well, anything that are gardening,

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<v Speaker 2>You know anything about gardening, you know that you have

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<v Speaker 2>to kill the soil. You have to break it up

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<v Speaker 2>and make it so that it is receptive to the

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<v Speaker 2>seeds that plants. Now, how do you do that in

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<v Speaker 2>Christian life?

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<v Speaker 4>Well, you begin by a forced prayer and by being

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<v Speaker 4>practicing the virtues be kind to your neighbor.

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<v Speaker 2>But also most importantly it's coming to church.

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<v Speaker 4>Maybe use the sacraments, especially the sacraments of confession.

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<v Speaker 2>And nuperous is very important. This is how we till

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<v Speaker 2>the soil of our hearts and how we prepare to

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<v Speaker 2>receive the Word of God in an honest.

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<v Speaker 4>And good heart, have con heard the word and keeping

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<v Speaker 4>it and bringing forth fruit with patience.

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<v Speaker 2>Again, I much stress to you this is not a

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<v Speaker 2>one and done thing.

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<v Speaker 1>This is the.

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<v Speaker 4>Spiritual life and the daily struggle. In the Gospel Awful

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<v Speaker 4>Rosl Jesus.

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<v Speaker 2>Said, let anyone who would just come after me, let

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<v Speaker 2>you deny himself, take a his cross and follow me.

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<v Speaker 2>But there is I I believe it's Mars Sospool, or

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<v Speaker 2>maybe not re Gospel, where he.

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<v Speaker 4>Says, let anyone who wus tonacy, let him deny himself

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<v Speaker 4>daily and take up his cross and follow me. So

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<v Speaker 4>the spiritual life is a process of daily self.

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<v Speaker 2>Denial and of daily taken after cross. It becomes easy

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<v Speaker 2>and very tempting. As Lord says, here to fall on

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<v Speaker 2>thorns when they have heard, go forward in our choke

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<v Speaker 2>with the cares and riches and the pleasures of this life.

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<v Speaker 4>We wants.

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<v Speaker 2>Everyone wants to go to heaven. Let doone wants to die? Right? Hm? Hm,

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<v Speaker 2>and it it.

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<v Speaker 4>There's an inscription of one of the monasteries in an

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<v Speaker 4>alcos that says, give you the.

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<v Speaker 2>Die before you die, you will not die when you die.

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<v Speaker 4>And this means, of course that if you die to

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<v Speaker 4>yourself and you take up your cross fall of Christ.

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<v Speaker 2>You went, you're into the kingdom of heaven.

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<v Speaker 4>When you have physical death, which it is something that

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<v Speaker 4>we all eventually have to face, but some of us,

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<v Speaker 4>all of.

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<v Speaker 2>Us really, it's not just lay people. It's months if

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<v Speaker 2>priests and all of us. We're tempted to say, well.

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<v Speaker 4>We want the good things now, we want the good

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<v Speaker 4>things of heaven hero on earth, because the earth provides

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<v Speaker 4>good things and pleasures for us. So let's have that

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<v Speaker 4>now and then later when we're older and we're hearing that,

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<v Speaker 4>we can focus on dependence and uh, you know, the

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<v Speaker 4>spiritual life. What you don't understand is when you're older,

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<v Speaker 4>you won't have the strength of the opportunity to seek

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<v Speaker 4>retendance from the spiritual life.

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<v Speaker 2>An example, my grandmother do not turn seventy nine years old.

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<v Speaker 2>She's been Orthodox for a number of years, and she's

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<v Speaker 2>no to me. She said, father, which she didn't call

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<v Speaker 2>me father, be for the safe, but this one was

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<v Speaker 2>that she probably fothered. Uh, she said, Father. I wish

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<v Speaker 2>that I had been kind of Orthodoxical so much sooner,

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<v Speaker 2>because I learned there's so much to learn and there's

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<v Speaker 2>so much that is asked of me and my body

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<v Speaker 2>and my brain is one plombia.

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<v Speaker 4>And it basically said, because I know in her heart

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<v Speaker 4>she wants to follow.

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<v Speaker 2>The serious class. She does her best. She doesn't she

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<v Speaker 2>was better than me, frankly, and just to put up

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<v Speaker 2>to me, that's another thing. But she she does her best.

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<v Speaker 2>And sam Dust, he says in his class at work

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<v Speaker 2>the confessions late have I loved be a Lord? Saying

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<v Speaker 2>God's sort of aggoing.

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<v Speaker 4>My grandma all my Grandma's been a been a Christian

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<v Speaker 4>for a whole life, but only recently in the last

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<v Speaker 4>few years.

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<v Speaker 2>Nor by Christ.

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<v Speaker 4>You know this, this appreciation for uh not struggling when

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<v Speaker 4>we had the strength yea to do so.

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<v Speaker 2>And so that's what I really wanted to encourage you

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<v Speaker 2>this morning.

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<v Speaker 4>To do, is to remember that this what our work

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<v Speaker 4>says here is a continuous action.

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<v Speaker 2>It's the spiritual life, and that we must daily tell

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<v Speaker 2>the soil and let the seed that.

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<v Speaker 4>The sower brings to us, the word of God, take

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<v Speaker 4>root in our hearts with clear it's clear the forms.

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<v Speaker 2>Till the soil, break up the rough patches, and let

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<v Speaker 2>the seed to take.

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<v Speaker 4>Group in our hearts daily so that we may enter

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<v Speaker 4>into you know part time.

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<v Speaker 1>By thanks for listening to Hill Country homilies. For more information,

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<v Speaker 1>visit Holy Annunciation Orthodox Church at www dot Denunciation t

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<v Speaker 1>X dot com, and please join us again next week