The Protection of God

Today is the first Saturday of the Great Fast. It is the day the Church commemorates the Miracle of the Koliva by Saint Theodore. When the world is ‘out to get you’ but God has your back, miracles happen for your protection.

Christians were in danger of being poisoned by the pagan leaders. Through God’s promise to protect us, Saint Theodore inspired the Archbishop in a dream to eat only the koliva rather than the food that had been poisoned by the pagans. You can read more details here.

To celebrate this great miracle, the Church celebrates a memorial service and many people bring koliva along with the names of their departed loved ones. It is a great reminder that God will always be our protection against demonic forces.

The difficult part of God’s promise of protection is the free will of others. Because God gives each human being free will, He protects us through speaking to our hearts. It is then up to us to ‘step away’ from the danger.

I find myself reminding people that “God doesn’t play chess.” What I mean by that, is He doesn’t just ‘reach down’ and force people to act. He neither ‘stops’ people from doing bad things, nor does He force us to do good things.

When the pagans planned to poison the Christians, God’s protection was only possible because the archbishop listened to Saint Theodore. We can only be protected by God when we listen to Him and His Saints.

When you go to Church today for the traditional memorial service, let yourself see the trays of koliva as a reminder of God’s promise of protection. Then listen intently for God’s voice in your heart.