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Thread: Prayer advice
There can be a lot of pitfalls when it comes to prayer, and you really should have a spiritual father or priest let you know what you should do. Many times when people convert they are really excited and want to jump in quickly and do a lot of things, and then get very burned out. A spiritual father or priest can help you do the right amount of prayers to start... and when the times comes to do more and more, then he'll let you know. As far as kneeling, prostrations and so on, this should be talked over with your priest as well. Many people are different, and its always good to talk with a spiritual father. It teach us obedience and humilty which helps us in prayer.
I remember reading something from a book on Elder Cleopa about doing things too quickly. (Excuse me for not writing it directly...but I don't have the book, so it will have to be in my own words.) He basically said, that a man who is going to cut wood on the mountain knows that he can not cut down the whole forest immediately and load up his wagon and go down the mountian. He would be killed! The wagon would overtake him, and crush him. He knows that instead he should work slowly, taking only what his wagon can hold, and slowly put surely he can work away at the forest.
There is so many wonderful things to learn in Orthodoxy, I've been Orthodox 13 years and still learning! God bless!
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