Toolkit for Spiritual Growth: A Practical Guide to Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving with Fr. Evan Armatas

Hank Unplugged: Essential Christian Conversations

The Christian Research Institute

Education, Religion & Spirituality, Society & Culture

5 • 791 Ratings

🗓️ 2 March 2023

⏱️ 100 minutes

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Summary

In the greatest sermon ever preached—The Sermon on the Mount—Christ provides us with the three-legged stool of prayer, fasting and almsgiving that is axiomatic for living the Christian life of experiencing an ever-deepening union with God. As we observe the Lord’s example it is evident that in order to grow in our faith it is essential that we devote our lives to developing these disciplines in our daily lives. Fr. Evan Armatas refers to these disciplines as a “spiritual toolkit” and joins Hank Hanegraaff to discuss the fundamentals of prayer, fasting and almsgiving in a conversation that is both practical and profound. For further information on how to receive Toolkit for Spiritual Growth: A Practical Guide to Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving for your partnering gift, please click here.Topics discussed include: Jesus taught us to practice prayer, fasting and almsgiving in His Sermon on the Mount (1:00); what is the purpose of prayer? (7:20); what is the eye of the soul? Exploring the idea of the “nous” (10:25); who do we pray to when we pray? the importance of understanding Trinitarian prayer (12:10); should we only practice extemporaneous prayer? the importance of praying written prayers and praying in a liturgical fashion (16:30); the little church—the importance of having a prayer corner in our homes (24:00); can tending to a vigil lamp can change your life? (34:30); what should we do with our body while we pray? (37:35); creation and incarnation –matter matters (40:45); what is the significance of almsgiving? almsgiving is not something we do, but it is something we become (47:00); what is toxic charity and how can we avoid it? (55:45); the way that the liturgical calendar of the Church can aid us in our spiritual growth (59:10); the liturgical calendar walks you through the life of Christ throughout the year (1:06:45); why is fasting an important practice for every Christian? (1:09:45); the importance of building spiritual disciplines over time (1:17:30); why are so many modern Christians hesitant to embrace the spiritual discipline of fasting (1:20:30); the four seasons of fasting for Christians (1:23:00); Christianity is about setting patterns of practice that reorient our lives towards an eternal process of growing closer to God (1:27:50); the joyful sorrow of prayer, fasting and almsgiving (1:32:50).

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Transcript

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0:00.0	And welcome to another Hank Unplug podcast, the podcast that is committed to bringing the most
0:28.6	interesting, informative, inspirational people directly to your earbuds. And today I have another
0:35.4	treat. My son David always finds these incredible gems for me, books that I read
0:42.7	and then become excited about giving to people that have followed our ministry for so many years.
0:50.1	This book that I want to talk about today is really about fasting, prayer, and almsgiving.
0:57.1	And this is the very thing that our Lord Jesus Christ spoke about in the sermon on the Mount.
1:04.0	When we talk about the sermon on the Mount, we're talking about not a sermon, but the sermon.
1:09.6	And right in the middle of that sermon
1:12.1	Jesus says be careful not to do your acts of righteousness before men to be seen by them
1:19.6	because if you do you will have no reward from your father in heaven so when you give to the needy, do not announce it with
1:30.9	trumpets as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets to be honored by men.
1:38.5	I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing
1:51.2	so that your giving may be in secret, then your father who sees what is done in secret
1:56.3	will reward you.
1:58.9	And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites because they love to pray
2:05.2	standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth,
2:14.5	they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your
2:19.3	room, close the door, and pray to your father who is unseen, then your father who sees what
2:24.2	is done in secret will reward you. And by the way, when you pray, do not keep on babbling like
2:30.9	pagans. They think they'll be heard because of their many words. Do not be
2:34.8	like them. Your father knows what you need before you even ask him. This then is how you should
2:41.1	pray. Our father, who art in heaven, hallow it be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
	...

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