No long ago, I learned of 55 maxims from an Orthodox priest, Father John Hopko. He originally came up with 40, which coincided with the number of days in Lent, but over the years, he came up a total of 55 before his death.
These 55 Maxims for Life (listed at the end of this article) are the key to finding life long peace in your heart. Unlike most instructions from influencers and psychologists, these are practical, actionable, and realistic.
But more than anything else, they work.
Father Evans Armatas goes through each of them in groups over a 7 week course. Taking each week, pick one or two to practice and make it a part of your daily life.
These 55 Maxims for Life (listed at the end of this article) are the key to finding life long peace in your heart.
By the end of the 7 weeks, you can see where your weaknesses are that are reflected in some of those maxims. Once embraced and a habit, move on to others you struggle with.
Gaining that mastery takes time. A lifetime. But putting it into daily practice, making those traits something you resolve to work on daily, brings that inner peace that the world longs for but can never give.
It removes all the excuses that we give ourselves in the Western world for how we behave. There are no excuses for being at peace. It’s a change of perspective that makes the difference.
The podcasts can be found on Ancient Faith Ministries , as well as Apple and Google Podcasts. The title of the series is, “I’m as Christian, Now What?”.
55 Maxims for Life, by Father John Hopko:
- Be always with Christ and trust God in everything.
- Pray as you can, not as you think you must.
- Have a keepable rule of prayer done by discipline.
- Say the Lord’s Prayer several times each day.
- Repeat a short prayer when your mind is not occupied.
- Make some prostrations when you pray.
- Eat good foods in moderation and fast on fasting days.
- Practice silence, inner and outer.
- Sit in silence 20 to 30 minutes each day.
- Do acts of mercy in secret.
- Go to liturgical services regularly.
- Go to confession and holy communion regularly.
- Do not engage intrusive thoughts and feelings.
- Reveal all your thoughts and feelings to a trusted person regularly.
- Read the scriptures regularly.
- Read good books, a little at a time.
- Cultivate communion with the saints.
- Be an ordinary person, one of the human race.
- Be polite with everyone, first of all family members.
- Maintain cleanliness and order in your home.
- Have a healthy, wholesome hobby.
- Exercise regularly.
- Live a day, even a part of a day, at a time.
- Be totally honest, first of all with yourself.
- Be faithful in little things.
- Do your work, then forget it.
- Do the most difficult and painful things first.
- Face reality.
- Be grateful.
- Be cheerful.
- Be simple, hidden, quiet and small.
- Never bring attention to yourself.
- Listen when people talk to you.
- Be awake and attentive, fully present where you are.
- Think and talk about things no more than necessary.
- Speak simply, clearly, firmly, directly.
- Flee imagination, fantasy, analysis, figuring things out.
- Flee carnal, sexual things at their first appearance.
- Don’t complain, grumble, murmur or whine.
- Don’t seek or expect pity or praise.
- Don’t compare yourself with anyone.
- Don’t judge anyone for anything.
- Don’t try to convince anyone of anything.
- Don’t defend or justify yourself.
- Be defined and bound by God, not people.
- Accept criticism gracefully and test it carefully.
- Give advice only when asked or when it is your duty.
- Do nothing for people that they can and should do for themselves.
- Have a daily schedule of activities, avoiding whim and caprice.
- Be merciful with yourself and others.
- Have no expectations except to be fiercely tempted to your last breath.
- Focus exclusively on God and light, and never on darkness, temptation and sin.
- Endure the trial of yourself and your faults serenely, under God’s mercy.
- When you fall, get up immediately and start over.
- Get help when you need it, without fear or shame.