{"id":26070,"date":"2023-06-15T16:35:54","date_gmt":"2023-06-15T13:35:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nazarevich-art.com\/art-therapy\/parables-about-god\/"},"modified":"2023-06-15T16:35:54","modified_gmt":"2023-06-15T13:35:54","slug":"parables-about-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nazarevich-art.com\/en\/parables-about-god\/","title":{"rendered":"Parables about God"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"nature_spiked_shell_wds_1920x1200<\/a>
\nGod help in the wilderness
\nOne person got lost in the desert. Later, telling his friends what torments he had to go through, he said that in complete despair he knelt down with pleas for help to the Lord.
\nDid God hear your prayers? his friends asked.
\n– Yes, what is there! Even before He heard them, a traveler came and showed me the way.<\/p>\n

footprints in the sand
\nOne day a man had a dream. He dreamed that he was walking along a sandy shore, and next to him was the Lord. Pictures from his life flashed in the sky, and after each of them he noticed two chains of footprints in the sand: one from his feet, the other from the feet of the Lord.
\nAs the last picture of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. And he saw that often only one chain of footprints stretched along his life path. He also noticed that these were the most difficult and unhappy times in his life. He became very sad and began to ask the Lord:
\n– Didn’t You tell me: if I follow Your path, You will not leave me. But I noticed that during the most difficult times of my life, only one chain of footprints stretched across the sand. Why did You leave me when I needed You the most?
\nThe Lord answered:
\n– My sweet, sweet child. I love you and will never leave you. When there were sorrows and trials in your life, only one chain of footprints stretched along the road. Because in those days I carried you in my arms.<\/p>\n

Happiness
\nThe Almighty, creating a man, took clay, molded the body, attached arms, legs, and a head to it. I put my soul into it, breathed in the spirit.
\nWhen He finished the work, He saw that there was a small piece of clay left.
\nAnd then the creator asked the man:
\n– My son, what else can I give you?
\n\u201cGive me happiness, my Father,\u201d the man replied.
\nThe Almighty thought a little, took a piece of clay and silently put it in the palm of a man.<\/p>\n

God forgets sins
\nOne elderly peasant woman said that she began to have divine visions. The local priest demanded proof of the authenticity of this.
\n– Next time you see God, ask him about my sins, known only to him. That will be enough,\u201d said the priest.
\nA month later, the woman reappeared. The priest asked her if God had appeared and if she had asked him the agreed question.
\n\u201cI did,\u201d she replied.
\n– And what did he tell you?
\n– He said: “Tell your priest that I forgot about his sins.”<\/p>\n

Why pray to Allah?
\nOnce a neighbor came to Khoja Nasreddin in a very upset mood.
\n\u201cToday I thought,\u201d he said, \u201cwhy pray at all, ask Allah about this and that… Really, He Himself does not know what is better or worse for me?
\n\u201cAllah knows for sure,\u201d Hodja answered.
\n– The question is, do you know it.<\/p>\n

Faith in Providence
\nBelieving in providence is like going to an expensive restaurant without a penny and ordering a dozen oysters in the hope of finding a pearl among them and paying for dinner.<\/p>\n

Weak fox
\nTale of the Arab mystic Saadi.
\nOnce in the forest, a man saw a fox that had no legs. He wanted to know how she could survive. And suddenly he saw a tiger with game in its mouth. The tiger ate a little and gave the rest to the fox. The next day, God again sent the tiger to feed the fox. The man thought about the mercy of God and thought: “I, too, will lie in the corner and count on the mercy of God.” For a whole month he lay in a corner and was almost at death’s door when he suddenly heard a voice: \u201cOh, you, walking the path of errors and delusions, open your eyes and see the Truth! Take a cue from the tiger, not the fox.”<\/p>\n

child on the street
\nOn the street I saw a naked child. He was hungry and shivering from the cold. I got angry and turned to God, \u201cWhy are you allowing this? Why aren’t you doing something?”<\/p>\n

God didn’t answer. But at night, suddenly, his voice was heard: \u201cI have done something. I created you.” Let go of the thread. One day an atheist fell off a cliff. Falling down, he still managed to grab onto a branch of a young tree. So he hung between the sky and the abyss, realizing that he would not last long. Suddenly an idea struck him. “God!” he shouted with all his might. Silence! Nobody answered him. “God! he shouted again. – If you are in heaven, save me. I swear I will believe in You! I will try to pass on my faith to other people!\u201d Silence again! As his grip began to loosen and he felt that the branch was about to slip out of his hands, a loud voice came from above, echoing through the valley:
\n“Everybody says that when they’re in trouble.” \u201cNo, Lord, no! pleaded the poor man, emboldened by hope. – I’m not like others. I have already begun to believe in You, can’t you see – I can already hear your voice. Just save me and I will honor Your name until my last days.\u201d \u201cVery well,\u201d said the voice, \u201cI will save you. Now let go of the thread.” “Release the thread? squealed the man, distraught with fear. \u201cDo you think I\u2019m completely crazy?\u201d<\/p>\n

Absolute Faith
\nIt was a dry summer, and the farmers, the inhabitants of a small village, were worried about what would happen to their crops. One Sunday after Mass, they turned to their pastor for advice.
\n\u201cFather, we must do something or we will lose the harvest!\u201d
\n\u201cAll you have to do is pray with absolute faith. Prayer without faith is not prayer. It must come from the heart,\u201d replied the priest.
\nFor the next week, the farmers gathered twice a day and prayed that God would send them rain. On Sunday they came to the priest.
\n\u201cNothing works, father! Every day we gather together and pray, but there is still no rain and no rain.
\nDo you really pray with faith? the priest asked them.
\nThey began to assure him that it was so. But the priest replied:
\n\u201cI know you pray without faith, because none of you, coming here, brought an umbrella with you!\u201d<\/p>\n

Three of us and three of you
\nWhen the ship made a one-day stop on a distant island, the bishop decided to use his free time to the maximum advantage. Walking along the seashore, he met three fishermen mending their nets. In poor English, they told him that they had been converted centuries ago by Christian missionaries.
\n– We are Christians! they said proudly, pointing at each other.
\nThe bishop was surprised. Do they know prayer? They hardly ever heard her.
\n– What do you say when you pray? – he asked.
\n– We raise our eyes to the sky and say: \u201cThere are three of you and three of us, have mercy on us!\u201d
\nThe bishop was horrified by the heresy he heard. All day long he taught them true prayer to God. The fishermen had a hard time learning, but they tried very hard. The next day, before the ship sailed, the bishop finally heard that the fishermen were unmistakably repeating the prayer, and he rejoiced greatly. It so happened that a few months later the ship again passed by this island. Walking along the deck of the ship and reading the evening prayer, the bishop remembered with satisfaction the three fishermen who learned to pray thanks to his efforts and patience. Suddenly, from the direction of the east, the bishop noticed a beam of light that was approaching the ship. He was very surprised when he saw three fishermen walking on the water. Everyone ran to the railings to get a better view of what was happening. Of course, these were the same fishermen.
\n\u201cBishop,\u201d they shouted, \u201cwe saw your ship passing by and hastened to meet you.
\n– What you need? asked the clergyman, seized with awe.
\n– Bishop, forgive us. We have forgotten your beautiful prayer. We say: \u201cOur Father in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come\u2026\u201d And then we don\u2019t remember. Tell us again how to pray properly.
\nThe resigned Bishop replied:
\n– Go home, my children, and pray as before: “We are three and you are three, have mercy on us.”<\/p>\n

Cross
\nOne person seemed to have a very hard life. And one day he went to God, told about his misfortunes and asked him:
\n– May I choose another cross for myself?
\nGod looked at the man with a smile, led him into the vault, where there were crosses, and said:
\n– Choose.
\nA man entered the vault, looked and was surprised: there are so many crosses here – small, and large, and medium, and heavy, and light.
\nFor a long time a man walked around the vault, looking for the smallest and lightest cross, and, finally, he found a small, small, light, light cross, approached God and said:
\n– God, can I have this one?
\n\u201cYes, you can,\u201d God replied. – After all, it is your own.<\/p>\n

Buy at least one lottery ticket
\nFor one devout man, hard times have come. He prayed to God for help:
\n– Lord, remember, all these years I served You faithfully, without demanding anything in return. Now I am old, bankrupt, and for the first time in my life I ask you to show me one favor. I hope You will not refuse me: let me win the lottery.
\nThe days have passed. Then weeks and months. Nothing special happened. One night a man cried out with desperation in his voice:
\n– Why don’t you help me?
\nAnd suddenly he heard a voice from above:
\n– Help me yourself! Why don’t you buy at least one lottery ticket?<\/p>\n

Flood
\nThe flood grew rapidly, the water rose higher and higher, overflowed its banks and destroyed the city. On its outskirts, Darrell lived on a hill.
\nWill the water get to Darrell’s house? Is it necessary to build a dam, to protect it?
\n\u201cNo need,\u201d Darrell replied. – I will read a prayer and ask God for protection. I’m sure everything will be fine.
\nThe water kept coming. Soon the first floor of his house was already flooded. Darrell went up to the second floor and looked out the window.
\nA lifeboat was passing by. \u201cHey Darrell, are you coming with us?\u201d The water keeps coming!
\n– There is no need, – said Darrell, – go without me. I live on a hill, besides, I read a prayer. Everything will be fine.
\nThe flood was getting stronger. Water flooded the second floor. Darrell climbed onto the roof and recited another prayer, asking God for help.
\nSuddenly, a helicopter appeared over the house. The pilot shouted into the loudspeaker: – Darrell! Come here! The water is coming!
\n“Don’t worry about me,” Darrell replied. \u201cI have everything under control.
\nThe helicopter flew away, the water continued to rise. It soon rose up to Darrell’s neck, then swallowed him whole. Darrell drowned.
\nHe led a God-fearing life, so he was not surprised to see that he was in paradise. Saint Peter led him through paradise and then introduced him to the Lord.
\n\u201cYou know, Lord, heaven is great,\u201d Darrell said, \u201cbut I didn’t mean to get here so fast. I was going to do many other good deeds on earth, but suddenly this flood … I thought that You were listening to the prayers of the righteous, but after the flood I doubted. Don’t You listen to the prayers of those devoted to You there on Earth? Don’t you remember how I prayed for your protection?
\n\u201cSo I sent you a boat and a helicopter,\u201d the Lord replied.
\nProphet and long spoons
\nOne believer once came to the prophet Elias. He was very worried about what hell and heaven were, because he wanted to live righteously.<\/p>\n

Where is hell and where is heaven?
\nWith this question, the man turned to the prophet, but Elias did not answer. He took the questioner by the hand and led him through dark alleys to the palace. Through the iron gate they entered a great hall with many people, poor and rich, in rags and in precious robes. In the middle of the hall there was a huge cauldron on fire, in it was boiling soup, which in the East is called “ash”. From the brew there was a pleasant smell throughout the hall. People with sunken cheeks and blank eyes crowded around the cauldron, trying to get their portion of soup. The companion of the prophet Elias was amazed when he saw in their hands a spoon, the size of themselves. The whole spoon was made of metal, red-hot from the soup, and only at the very end of the handle was there a wooden handle. Greedily, the hungry people poked their spoons into the cauldron. Everyone wanted to get their share, but no one succeeded. They had difficulty pulling heavy spoons out of the soup, but since they were too long, even the strongest could not put them in their mouths. Too zealous burned their hands and face, and, seized with greed, poured soup on the shoulders of their neighbors. Cursing, they attacked each other and fought with the same spoons that could satisfy their hunger. The prophet Elias took his companion by the hand and said: \u201cThis is hell!\u201d They left the hall and soon heard no more hellish cries. After a long wandering through the dark corridors, they entered another room. Here, too, there were many people sitting around. In the middle of the hall stood a cauldron of boiling soup. Each had the same huge spoon in his hand, which Elias and his companion had already seen in hell. But the people were well-fed, only quiet satisfied voices and the sounds of dipping spoons were heard in the hall. People came in pairs. One dipped a spoon into the cauldron and fed the other. If a spoon was too heavy for someone, then immediately another couple helped with their spoons, so that everyone could eat in peace. As soon as one was sated, another took its place. The prophet Elias said to his companion: \u201cBut this is paradise!\u201d<\/p>\n

Heaven and hell
\nA man walked through the desert, with him were his faithful companions – a horse and a dog. They had come a long way when they suddenly saw a door and a guard standing next to it.
\nThe man asked:
\n– What’s behind the door?
\nThe guard replied:
\n– It’s heaven. If you want, you can pass.
\n– Can I take my friends with me? the man asked, pointing to the animals.
\n\u201cNo, only you are allowed to pass,\u201d the guard replied.
\nThe man thought. He remembered how they walked together through forests and swamps, mountains and meadows, overcoming cold and heat, bad weather and illness, how they shared food and lodging for the night.
\n– I think I’ll go, – said the man and walked away, the horse and dog followed him. But they had not gone ten kilometers when they saw another door and a guard standing at the entrance.
\nAnd the man asked again:
\n– Tell me, what’s behind the door?
\n– There is paradise, – the guard answered and opened the door.
\n– Can I pass? the man asked cautiously.
\nOf course, the guard replied.
\n– What about my friends?
\n– Of course, go all.
\n– Strange, I saw the door to heaven not far away, but they let me through only. I don’t understand\u2026
\nAnd the guard replied:
\n– That was hell. A place for those who betrayed their loved ones.<\/p>\n

In God’s shop
\nOnce a woman had a dream that the Lord God was standing behind the counter of the store.
\n– God! It’s you? she exclaimed with joy.
\n\u201cYes, I am,\u201d God replied.
\n– What can I buy from you? the woman asked.
\n\u201cYou can buy everything from me,\u201d came the answer.
\n– In that case, please give me health, happiness, love, success and a lot of money. God smiled benevolently and went to the utility room for the ordered goods. After a while he returned with a small paper box.
\n– And it’s all?! exclaimed the surprised and disappointed woman.
\n\u201cYes, that\u2019s all,\u201d God replied. \u201cDidn\u2019t you know that my store only sells seeds?\u201d<\/p>\n

About two babies
\nTwo people talking in the belly of a pregnant woman
\nbabies. One of them is a believer, the other is a non-believer.
\n– Do you believe in life after childbirth?
\n– Yes, sure. Everyone understands that life after childbirth exists. We are here to become strong enough and ready for what comes next.
\n– It is nonsense! There can be no life after childbirth! Can you imagine what such a life could look like?
\n– I don’t know all the details, but I believe that there will be more light, and that we may be able to walk and eat with our own mouths.
\n– What nonsense! It is impossible to walk and eat with your mouth! It’s totally funny! We have an umbilical cord that feeds us. You know, I want to tell you: it is impossible that there is life after childbirth, because our life – the umbilical cord – is already too short.
\n– I’m sure it’s possible. Everything will just be a little different. It can be imagined.
\nBut no one has ever returned from there! Life just ends with childbirth. And in general, life is one big suffering in the dark.
\n– No no! I don\u2019t know exactly what our life will look like after giving birth, but in any case, we will see mom and she will take care of us.
\n– Mom? Do you believe in mom? And where is she?
\n– It is everywhere around us, we abide in it and thanks to it we move and live, without it we simply cannot exist.
\n– Complete nonsense! I didn’t see any mother, and therefore it is obvious that she simply does not exist.
\n– I can’t agree with you. After all, sometimes, when everything around is quiet, you can hear and feel how she strokes our world. I firmly believe that our real life will begin only after childbirth. And you?”<\/p>\n

Sting
\nOne saint miraculously learned to speak the language of ants. One day he approached an ant who looked very learned and asked:
\nWhat does the Almighty look like? Does he look like an ant?
\nThe ant replied:
\n– The Almighty? Of course not! You see, we ants have only one sting, and the Almighty has two!
\nWhen the ant-scientist was asked what paradise is, he solemnly said:
\n– There we will be almost like Him, we will have two stingers, only smaller.<\/p>\n

Prayer to God
\nToday I asked God to give me many different gifts! All that, as it seemed to me, would bring me closer to my cherished goal.
\nDid I know what I’m asking? The words of the Teacher sounded in the mind:
\nYes, you know what you want! However, the Lord knows what you NEED! Get ready to receive it.
\nEveryone who prays to God: \u201cLord, give me humility,\u201d should know that he is asking God to send him some offender.
\nEveryone who prays to God: \u201cLord, give me strength,\u201d should know that he is asking God to send him trials in order to be tempered.
\nEveryone who prays to God: \u201cLord, give me wisdom,\u201d must understand that he will forgive God to send him problems over which he will have to rack his brains.
\nEveryone who prays to God: \u201cLord, give me courage,\u201d should know that he is asking God to send him dangers.
\nEveryone who prays to God: \u201cLord, give me good things,\u201d should know that he is asking God for an opportunity. Whether he uses them or not is another question.
\nEveryone who prays to God: “Lord, let me love,” should know that he is asking God to send him the unfortunate and those in need of his help.<\/p>\n

Request to God
\nI asked God to take away my pride, and God told me “No!”. He said that pride is not taken away. They refuse her.
\nI asked God to grant me patience and God told me “No!”. He said that patience is the result of trials. It is not given, it is deserved.
\nI asked God to give me happiness, and God told me “No!”. He said that he gives Blessings, and whether I will be happy depends on me.
\nI asked God to save me from pain, and God told me: “No!”. He said that suffering separates a person from worldly concerns and brings them closer to Him.
\nI asked God for spiritual growth, but God told me “No!”. He said that the spirit must grow by itself, and He will only cut me to make me bear fruit.
\nI asked God to help me love others the way HE loves me, and God said, “Finally you know what to ask for.”
\nI asked for strength, and God sent me trials to harden me.
\nI asked for wisdom, and God sent me problems to wrestle with.
\nI asked for courage and God sent me danger.
\nI asked for love, and God sent me those who needed my help.
\nI asked for blessings, and God gave me opportunities.
\nI didn’t get anything I asked for. I got everything I needed. God answered my prayers!<\/p>\n

Why God Allows Suffering
\nOne man went to the barber to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed. During the work, the hairdresser and the client got into a conversation. They talked about many things. But when they touched on the subject of God, the hairdresser said, “I don’t believe there is a God.”
\n“Why do you say that?” the client asked. “Go outside and you will see. Tell me, if God existed, would there be so many sick people? Or abandoned children? If God existed, there would be no suffering or pain in the world. I cannot imagine a loving God, which resolves all this.
\nThe client thought for a moment, but did not support the argument. The hairdresser finished work and the client left the hairdresser. As soon as he left the barbershop, he saw a tramp with long, dirty hair and an untidy beard. The client came back and said to the barber, “You know what? Barbers don’t exist.”
\n“How can you say such a thing?” asked the surprised hairdresser.
\n“Here I am, I’m a hairdresser, I just cut your hair!”
\n“No!” the client said. “Hairdressers don’t exist, because if they did, there wouldn’t be people with long, messy, uncut hair like that man over there.”
\n“But barbers EXIST! That’s what happens when people don’t come to me.”
\n“Right!” the client confirmed.<\/p>\n

Debate about God
\nA professor at a university asked his students this question.
\nIs everything that exists created by God?
\nOne student boldly replied:
\nYes, created by God.
\nDid God create everything? the professor asked.
\n“Yes, sir,” replied the student.
\nThe professor asked:
\n\u201cIf God created everything, then God created evil, since it exists. And according to the principle that our deeds define ourselves, then God is evil.
\nThe student fell silent upon hearing this answer. The professor was very pleased with himself. He boasted to the students that he proved once again that God is a myth.
\nAnother student raised his hand and said:
\n“May I ask you a question, professor?”
\n\u201cOf course,\u201d the professor replied.
\nThe student stood up and asked:
\n\u201cProfessor, does the cold exist?\u201d
\n– What a question? Of course there is. Have you never been cold?
\nThe students laughed at the young man’s question. The young man replied:
\n\u201cActually, sir, there is no cold. According to the laws of physics, what we think of as cold is actually the absence of heat. A person or object can be examined to see if it has or transmits energy. Absolute zero (-460 degrees Fahrenheit) is the complete absence of heat. All matter becomes inert and unable to react at this temperature. Cold does not exist. We created this word to describe how we feel in the absence of heat.
\nThe student continued:
\n\u201cProfessor, does darkness exist?\u201d
\n\u2014 Of course, there is.
\nYou are wrong again, sir. Darkness also does not exist. Darkness is really the absence of light. We can study light, but not darkness. We can use Newton’s prism to split white light into many colors and explore the different wavelengths of each color. You cannot measure darkness. A simple ray of light can break into a world of darkness and illuminate it. How can you know how dark a space is? You measure how much light is presented. Is not it? Darkness is a concept that a person uses to describe what happens in the absence of light.
\nIn the end, the young man asked the professor:
\nSir, does evil exist?
\nThis time hesitantly, the professor replied:
\n\u201cOf course, as I said. We see him every day. Cruelty between people, many crimes and violence around the world. These examples are nothing but manifestations of evil.
\nTo this the student replied:
\n\u201cEvil does not exist, sir, or at least it does not exist for itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It looks like darkness and cold. Evil is a word created by man to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is not faith or love, which exist as light and heat. Evil is the result of the absence of Divine love in the human heart. It is like the cold that comes when there is no heat, or the kind of darkness that comes when there is no light.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

God help in the wilderness One person got lost in…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1000],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26070","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-art-therapy"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nazarevich-art.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26070","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nazarevich-art.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nazarevich-art.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nazarevich-art.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nazarevich-art.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26070"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nazarevich-art.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26070\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nazarevich-art.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26070"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nazarevich-art.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26070"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nazarevich-art.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26070"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}