Saint Athanasius Youth Meeting at St Mark's Church Sydney

14/05/2026

Focus on Jesus

11/05/2026

08/10/2025

God bless you all

18/10/2024

You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they shall see your works and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:14-16)

A man was in a trip outside Egypt and he liked a gemstone and one of its features was that it glows in the dark. He bought it as a gift for his wife and when he came back to Egypt he gave it to his wife and waited to see if it glows in the darkness, but unfortunately it did not glow. The man was upset and wanted to break in because he felt that he was deceived, however, he said within himself to wait for another day and see. In the morning the following day, he read what was sculpted on it “it should be left in the sun the whole day to reflect the light that it charges”. Our case is similar to this gemstone, if we are not exposed to our Lord Jesus Christ’s light, it would be impossible to reflect any light in this world’s darkness. You are the light of the world.
Good morning

31/08/2024

Happy Father’s Day to all the amazing dads out there! Today, we celebrate the love, support, and guidance you provide each and every day. Thank you for being our role models, our heroes, and our friends. May your day be filled with joy, laughter, and all the appreciation you deserve!

10/08/2024

**"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it." (Proverbs 22:6 AVD)**

There may be disabled people in your home, and you are unaware. Be careful of creating disability within your home. A scene that repeats itself in every house: A young man or woman, in the prime of their life and in the best of health, living in their parents' house. They wake up in the morning and leave their bed unmade... because the mother will take care of it. They change their clothes and leave them scattered in any corner or spot... because the mother will gather them, wash them, iron them, and return them to the room. They are served food ready to eat, and before or after that, they don't bother themselves with washing a cup or a plate... because the mother will take care of everything related to that. They go to school or university and return to either sleep or spend the night on Snapchat, Twitter, Instagram, or watching consecutive episodes of a new series. Meals are served to them ready, and all they have to do is "take a break" and reach out to eat, thank God for that, and then resume their struggle in front of the screen of their phone, iPad, or laptop.

Sometimes, in their free time, they might graciously sit with the rest of the family, but God forbid they forget to check their phone to stay present and close to their friends, with whom they spend most of their time, lest they miss, God forbid, a comment, a picture, or a curiosity about what others are doing.

This person does not contribute or participate in any responsibility in the house, even in the smallest way. They leave the place in chaos and get upset if they don't like the dinner. If they see something in the house that needs repair or replacement, they pass by it like a cloud... of course, repairs are the father's responsibility, right? And cleaning and organizing are solely the mother's responsibility...

Reflecting on what I see around me, I came to one conclusion: I think we have succeeded in creating a disabled generation. Yes, a disabled generation, and with distinction. We now have a generation, most of whom behave as if they are guests in their own homes. They don't help, don't contribute, and don't bear any responsibility around them from school age to college, and even after getting a job. They live in their parents' house as guests. They know nothing of responsibility except for personal expenses and a driver's license. And the father and mother remain burdened with household responsibilities even as they age and their bodies weaken, because (the parents don't want to tire the children).

Appreciation and responsibility are values you instill in your children; they are not suddenly created, not even after marriage. Because after marriage, they will carry the culture they acquired from their parents' homes into their marital home. And what culture is that? The culture of disability... of dependence... and consequently, a generation that cannot be relied upon.

The Saudi writer Mishal Abu Al-Wada' brilliantly articulated this in his article titled "Are There Guests in Our Home or Are They Disabled?" There may be disabled people in your home, and you don't know it...

31/07/2024

"Those who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight." - Hebrews 11:33-34 AVD

An American preacher and named Wayne Cordiero, during one of his visits to China to train Chinese people in Christian leadership, narrates the following:
The group consisted of 22 individuals, and their journey took 13 hours by train to reach the training location and learn about the Lord.

Upon arrival, they were instructed to take the elevator two by two to avoid revealing their gathering, as it was illegal.
Thus, the 22 gathered secretly in a small, unventilated room. The training lasted 5 to 8 hours daily.

The preacher asked the group: "What happens if the police catch us?" You would be deported within 24 hours, and we would be imprisoned for 3 years.
Then he asked: "How many of you have been imprisoned for your faith?" 18 out of the 22 raised their hands.
He further inquired: "How many people in China have been imprisoned on such charges, in your opinion?" After a brief consultation, the answer was approximately 20 million!!!!

The training began, and the preacher distributed 15 Bibles among those present, while 7 were left without due to insufficient quantity.
The preacher said: "Let's read the first chapter of the Second Epistle of Peter." At that moment, one of the girls raised her hand and gave her Bible to another person!!
The preacher was surprised. However, he understood that the girl had memorized that chapter secretly.

During the break, the preacher asked the girl about her memorization. She replied: "I have memorized many other chapters from the Word of the Lord."
He asked: "Is there a training program for that?" She responded: "No, only in prison."
Surprised, he asked: "Are you allowed to bring the Bible to prison? You are being imprisoned for that reason." She answered: "Of course not, there is no time. But our brothers smuggle it to us on tiny pieces of paper."
He asked: "Don't they notice when they search for the paper?" She replied: "Yes, that is precisely what happens. So we memorize it quickly and diligently before they find the paper."

The preacher then asked: "Do you have any prayer requests that I can share with the brothers when I return to America?"
The girl said: "I hope that someday we can be like you, enjoying the freedom to worship openly and gather in large meetings, just like you do."

The preacher replied: "No!!"
Everyone looked at him in surprise.

The preacher said, "You spent 13 hours to learn from the Word of the Lord. In our country, people would hesitate if the church is an hour away. You sat on the ground for three days, while in my country, we get tired from sitting for 40 minutes on the seats.

Here, despite the heat and the congested space, your hearts are filled with longing. In our country, if something goes wrong, like a malfunctioning air conditioner, people complain and might not come back.

In our country, on average, there are 2 or 3 Bibles in every household, yet people neglect reading the Word of the Lord. And here you are, reading and memorizing it on tiny pieces of paper!

I will not pray for you to become like us. Instead, my prayer is that we become like you."
Copied

29/07/2024

Please be patient*

«Wait a little, and you will see his severe wrath, how he will torture you and your descendants» (2 Maccabees 7:17).

✍️ An old story tells of a family blessed with happiness for generations. No one ever heard of a single instance of anger between the spouses in this family for nine consecutive generations.

📚 The fame of this marital bliss and family happiness spread until it reached the emperor. He sent one of his men to the head of the family to ask about *the secret of this happiness.*

📝 The old head of the family took a paper and a brush, wrote many words, and handed the reply to the emperor's messenger.

🫢 The surprise was that when the emperor opened the letter, he found only one word written one hundred times by the head of the family:

*(Patience)*

🌹 💓 🌹

🙄 *My friend,* if you see a dark cloud on the horizon of your life, do not worry or panic. Wait for the Lord. Wait for His work with you, and heavy rains of blessings will pour from this dark cloud at the appropriate time determined by God.

😒 Do not be anxious. Be patient and wait for the Lord, for a tree does not bear fruit except "in its season" when God takes charge of your life.

☝️ For He, knowing the secrets of time and understanding our capabilities and circumstances, chooses a role for each of us to perform and a time to move in.

🫴 Therefore, only God knows the timeline of our life's plan and the appropriate times for action and stillness.

🫡 If we lose patience and rush things, we lose God's guidance. It is crucial to understand that we do not have the right to hasten knowing God's complete plan for our lives.

🕯️ God's guidance is like the light of a candle that illuminates our path step by step. Rushing leads to slipping and mistakes.

👏 Beware of hastiness and hold on to patience under God's guidance for your life.

😱 A person who leads himself is a person walking the path of ruin, lost among the crowds on the wide road. He is deceived by the green lights cast by deceivers. The steering wheel shakes in his hand, and his life's vehicle veers off course, plunging into a deadly deep abyss.

🤗 *Patience is the lifeboat for a person... A person without patience is like a city without walls.*

Good morning

21/07/2024

““No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6:24‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

He lived all the days of his life struggling, with his limited income that he received from his work in the port of the Greek "beriberi", he was able to meet with all his strength the most important demands for his family. He did not smoke ci******es or drink alcohol, or spend another week in a place that requires a lot of money, but he was fond of buying a lottery paper every day.
In the early October 1984, he won the lottery paper and win around one million dirhams (the Greek currency in those days) *. He received the sum and deposited it in the bank with his name.
Then, a few days later, the Greeks were surprised by the old man, "Alvtrius Finamens", who announced his donation of one million dirhams for charity. The old man was commenting on everyone's astonishment at his behavior: I lived 70 years. I spent forty of them with my wife. Despite my limited income, I was able to teach all my children and secure their lives with their husbands. I have known some friends with pure honesty and love. I have worked faithfully and faithfully, putting before me the commandments of the Lord Jesus and His words in the Bible. When I made a lot of money, I found thousands of friends around me, and they started to connect with me for my money. I laughed and said: Hey, what is the odds to find a large number of rich friends? .
The old man did not hesitate to announce, when everyone accused him of madness, that he said: I am the only savior in a world that worships money, and I do not know the meaning of true happiness emanating from faith, conviction and submission to God.
+ Our beloved, says one of the saints: It is difficult for the rich to enter life for his riches because he loves him, and does not care about the kingdom. It seems to many that money is a necessity of life, so that all of their lives are acquired and preserved, even though the Bible says "love of money is the root of all evils" (1 Timothy 6:10). Why? Because it attracts man towards the floors and desires of different, his heart is related to them, and wasting time and deviate from the goal, which is God, and depends on money as a force facing the world, and whenever it is based on whenever he distanced himself from God. When one is preoccupied with his money, he forgets the heaven, and his relationship with the saints is cut off. He does not ask there help, and then his spiritual feelings decrease, and weakens his faith, his attachments and his love for God, and becomes his material things begins to be his savior, the more he likes, the more he consumes it. ..
Good Morning .