Bøger af Fr Stavros N Akrotirianakis

Two thousand years ago Jesus Christ walked the earth for three years-teaching, ministering, working miracles, dying on the cross and being Resurrected from the dead. Disciples who believed He was the promised Messiah followed Him and listened to His teachings. A disciple is a student. An apostle is one who recruits disciples and teaches them to follow after Christ. After the Resurrection, Jesus commissioned His disciples to become apostles. As Christians, the first thing we are called to do is be a disciple, to learn about Christ, to believe and to follow. However, that is not all we are called to do. Like the first disciples, we are also commissioned to be apostles, to go and spread the Christian faith to all nations.Commissioned to Be Apostles: Love, Worship, Community, Learning Service contains 151 short reflections offering practical instruction on what it means to be an apostle of Christ. It contains practical and easy ways to model and spread the message of Christianity, both in a church community and in our personal lives. It begins with the Great Commission and examines how the early church spread the message of the Gospel. It discusses our personal foundation as Christians that we receive at baptism and gives instruction on how to effectively participate in the life of the Church. Finally, it discusses how to transform the Church from what it is to what Christ intends for it to be, examining the chasm between the two and how to bridge this gulf. The title of this book reflects not only our commission to be apostles; it reflects five core values-love, worship, community, learning and service-that will help us fulfill this commission. Father Stavros N. Akrotirianakis is a Greek Orthodox Priest who serves St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church in Tampa, Florida. He has also authored the books Let All Creation Rejoice: Reflections on Advent, the Nativity and Epiphany; The Road Back to Christ: Reflections on Lent, Holy Week and Pascha; Blessed Is the Kingdom, Now and Forever: Reflections on the Divine Liturgy; Let Us Be Attentive: Reflections on the Sunday and Feastday Scripture Readings of the Orthodox Church; and Engaged: Called to Be Disciples, Reflections on What It Means to Be a Christian. He writes a daily reflection called "The Prayer Team," which can be found at www.prayerteam365.com.

"There is no better way to live than as a disciple of the Lord Jesus. But how do I actually do that? Fr. Stavros Akrotirianakis offers a simple but not simplistic path for those who desire to embark on the greatest adventure of thus life." - Fr. John Riccardo, Executive Director of ACTS XXIX Forty days after His Resurrection from the dead, Jesus gathered His Disciples and "commissioned" them to go out into all the world and spread the Gospel to all nations. Many of them were illiterate fishermen. Not one held a degree from an advanced Rabbinical school. And yet these men took the Christian message and shared it with the whole world. With faith, they changed history and have led billions of people to salvation. We too are enjoined to cultivate disciples. However, before we can make others disciples or spread the message of salvation, we ourselves need to become disciples - students of the Gospel. Before we can become students, we must answer the call to be a follower of Jesus. And before we can become a true follower of Jesus, we have to understand who Jesus is. Engaged: The Call to Be Disciples contains 130 short reflections offering practical instruction on what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. It begins by reflecting on the simple question: Who is Jesus Christ? Fr. Akrotirianakis discusses the costs and benefits of being a disciple. His reflections on prayer and stewardship build to the final section on rallying and sustaining confidence in our Christian walk. Although written by a Greek Orthodox priest, this provocative work offers inspiration for Christians of all denominations of what it means to believe, belong and follow. Father Stavros N. Akrotirianakis is a Greek Orthodox Priest who serves St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church in Tampa, Florida. He has also authored the books Let All Creation Rejoice: Reflections on Advent, the Nativity and Epiphany; The Road Back to Christ: Reflections on Lent, Holy Week and Pascha; Blessed is the Kingdom, Now and Forever: Reflections on the Divine Liturgy; and Let Us Be Attentive: Reflections on the Sunday and Feastday Scripture Readings of the Orthodox Church. He writes a daily reflection called "The Prayer Team" which can be found at www.prayerteam365.com

I pray that this book will help each of us in not only understanding the Scriptures, but will empower each of us to share our understanding with others. Indeed, this book is titled "Let Us Be Attentive" because in being attentive to the Scriptures, we receive the spiritual nourishment that keeps our personal faith dynamic and enables and empowers us to spread the gospel truth in our church communities and far beyond. His Eminence, Metropolitan Methodios of Boston What is the Bible trying to tell us? The Bible is the most significant and most widely read book in world history. Both Christians and non-Christians are familiar with its name: everyone knows what the Bible is. However, many Christians struggle to read the Bible. For many, the book is even too intimidating to start. Others struggle to understand what they are reading or to apply it to their lives. The answers, though, are right before you. Every time a word of Scripture is read in the Orthodox Church, it is preceded by the phrase "Let us be attentive." Two thoughts come to mind as we contemplate these words. First, we are reminded to pay attention to what we are about to hear. Second, we realize that we need to attend to and act on the information we hear. If the scriptures tell us, as an example, to forgive our neighbor "seventy times seven" (Matthew 18:22), then we need to be attentive in our lives and make sure that we are more forgiving towards others, including those who hurt us or are our enemies. May God open your hearts as you read this book so you can better comprehend the messages provided in Scripture and apply them throughout your life's daily journey to salvation.

The Road Back to Christ: Reflections on Lent, Holy Week and the Resurrection is a series of short daily reflections on the scripture readings of Holy Week and the accounts of the Resurrection and post-Resurrection appearances of Christ. Designed to guide its readers through the journey, it will both inspire and reinvigorate your faith through meditation, prayer, and a deeper understanding of the Passion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

HEAR THE CHRISTMAS STORY AS YOU''VE NEVER HEARD IT BEFOREMAKE THE JOURNEY TO THE MANGER ALONG WITHMARY AND JOSEPH, THE SHEPHERDS AND THE MAGIHas the Christmas season become the most stressful time of the year instead of the most wonderful time?  Do you struggle to keep Christ in Christmas?The story of the Nativity is told in a mere 40 verses of scripture-19 in the Gospel of Matthew, 20 in the Gospel of Luke and 1 in the Gospel of John.  Yet nearly each word of every verse is packed with meaning. We are all familiar with holiday words like "joy" and "glory."  Have you ever wondered about their deeper meaning?  The glory of the Lord (Luke 2:9) is not just part of the Christmas story but something we can experience in our own lives.  Joy reminds us of the child-like innocence we used to have and can recapture.In Luke 2:20 we read "And the shepherds returned."  The shepherds were still shepherds; witnessing the miracle of the Incarnation of Christ didn''t change their status. It changed their hearts. Let All Creation Rejoice: Reflections for Advent, the Nativity and Epiphany is a series of short daily reflections on the scripture readings of the season, to be read during the Orthodox Christian Advent and Nativity season between November 15 and January 7.Spending a few minutes each day reading and reflecting on these scriptures will not change your status either.  It will change your heart.  You will better understand the "good news of a great joy," and why "the Word became flesh and dwelt among us."  AND AS YOU PREPARE TO AGAIN CELEBRATE GOD''SGREATEST GIFT TO US, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO OFFER WITHA MORE GRATEFUL HEART YOUR GIFTS TO HIM. Father Stavros N. Akrotirianakis is a Greek Orthodox Priest who serves St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church in Tampa, Florida.