Patristic Teachings: “Speak to God in this way, as though you were picking up the telephone”

Orthodoxos Typos | September 18, 2026

 

“But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you” (Luke 12:31): You should seek, above all else, to live the life of grace and obedience to God. (This will make you members of His kingdom already in this life and will secure for us the inheritance of its heavenly blessings in the age to come. And all earthly goods will be given to you together with those.)

God has commanded us to ask Him for what we need, and He knows better what He ought to give us.

St. John says: The wisdom of God is unsearchable. For if one who is unskilled cannot understand the art of men, much more is it impossible for the human mind to comprehend the infinitude of God’s providence.

Whatever we ask for, we should ask for it with faith.

We shall never become good Christians unless we keep the flame of faith unextinguished in our hearts.

Blessed Ambrosios Lazaris [of Dadiou, +2006] advises us:

“When you ask for the help of a Saint and say, ‘My Saint, help me,’ at the very moment you ask, the Saint is beside you. He does not allow you to perceive it. He offers you help, not immediately, but gently, little by little, just as God approaches man, so that your egoism may not increase. Day by day, you will see that what you asked for is being resolved and coming to pass, if it is for the benefit of your soul…”

“Speak to God as though you were picking up the telephone…”

 

 

In the book Memories of Elder Sophrony of Essex, by Dimitra V. Daviti, published by Athos Publications, Saint Sophrony emphasizes:

“Whenever I had something to do and had to avoid making a mistake in the decision I would take, I always wanted to have the Elder’s blessing. For this reason, at times my telephone calls were frequent.

One evening, during a telephone call, he did not tell me anything about the matter, but instead spoke emphatically about the love and providence of God. Several times he repeated the phrase to me: ‘There is providence, there is providence. Do not be afraid—rejoice. Regard the providence of God as an umbrella, and remain beneath it.’”

Everything he was saying was very moving; his words were clear, spoken slowly and distinctly. At the end he said to me:

“You know, now we are speaking by telephone. Speak to God in the same way, as though you were picking up the telephone and telling Him directly whatever you want. Always keep the line open; never break that connection.”

He wanted everything in our life to be oriented in such a way that it would always have a relationship with God. Once again, he placed in my heart the meaning and the essential substance of prayer.

The Prayer-Rope Telephone of Fr. Zosimas (1850–1936)

…Eventually, the Starets became bedridden, for he was so ill that there was no hope of any restoration of his health. He was joyfully ready to pass into eternity and had received assurance from God that he would die within a few days. The Starets himself read the prayer for the dying and softly chanted the Canon of the Resurrection, in a voice that could barely be heard.

Then, however, he suddenly felt in his heart that Metropolitan Tryphon needed him and that the Lord would prolong his life and grant him a little more time.

“What is this? Why?” the Starets groaned in his prayer. “But why does Vladyka Tryphon want me so much? I think I shall call him here. Let him tell me himself what all this means.”

Then the Starets took his prayer rope, placed it against his forehead, and, in the presence of E.G.P., the landlady of his apartment, said:

“Well then, let this prayer rope be a telephone for me. Tryphon, my dear, come here to me at once. I was ready to die, but my heart tells me that you still need me. Come, so that I may speak with you.”

The landlady looked at the Starets with pity:

“Now why are you joking and acting like a madman? You say that your prayer rope is a telephone… Are you a baby playing some kind of game? Who is going to hear you? And even if you really were telephoning Metropolitan Tryphon, he would not come.”

“I have called him, and we shall see what happens,” the Starets said gently.

Half an hour later, the doorbell rang. They opened the door. Metropolitan Tryphon’s subdeacon had arrived to inform them that the Metropolitan would be coming to see the Starets and had already set out. The landlady’s astonishment knew no bounds.

“The meeting of the two Elders was very moving.”

 

 

Prayer is direct communication with God, with our Most Holy Theotokos, and with our Saints.

 

Greek source:

https://orthodoxostypos.gr/%cf%80%ce%b1%cf%84%ce%b5%cf%81%ce%b9%ce%ba%ce%b1%ce%b9-%ce%b4%ce%b9%ce%b4%ce%b1%cf%87%ce%b1%ce%b9-355/