The Wing of the Spirit

Οὐδὲν γὰρ οὔτω λυπεῖ ψυχῆς ὀφθαλμὸν καὶ θολοῖ, ὡς ὁ τῶν βιωτικῶν φροντίδων ὄχλος, καὶ ὁ τῶν ἐπιθυμιῶν ἐσμός· ταῦτα γὰρ τοῦ καπνοῦ τούτου τὰ ξύλα. Καὶ καθάπερ τὸ πῦρ, ὅταν ὑγρᾶς καὶ διαβρόχου τινὸς ἐπιλαβηταυ ὕλυς, πολὺν ἀνάπτει τὸν καπνον, οὔτω καὶ ἡ ἐπιθυμία ἡ σφοδρὰ αὔτη καὶ φλογώδης, ὅταν ὑγρᾶς τινος καὶ διαλελυμένης ἐπιλαβηται ψυχῆς, πολύν καὶ αὐτὴ τίκτει τὸν καπνόν. Διὰ τοῦτο χρεία τῆς δρόσου τοῦ Πνεύματος, καὶ τῆς αὔρας ἐκείνης, ἵνα τὸ πῦρ σβέσῃ, καὶ τὸν καπνὸν διαχέη καὶ πτηρὸν ποιὴσῃ ἡμῖν τὸν λογισμόν. Οὐ γὰρ ἔστιν, οὐκ ἔστι τοσούτοις βαρυνόμενον κακοῖς πρὸς τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀναπτῆναι· ἀλλ’ ἀγαπητὸν, εὐζωνους ἡμᾶς ὅντας δυνηθῆναι ταύτην τεμεῖν τὴν ὁδόν· μάλλον δὲ οὐδε οὕτω δυνατὸν, ἂν μὴ τοῦ Πνεύματος λάβωμεν τὸ πτερόν. Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος, Ὁμῖλία B' ,Ὑπόμνημα Εἰς την προς Ἁγιον Ματθαίον

For nothing so hurts and blinds the eye of the soul as the crowd of worldly worries and the swarm of desires; for these are as wood for the smoke, and as fire, when it lays hold of any thoroughly damp material, kindles much smoke, so this desire, so vehement and burning, when it lays hold of the dissolute matter of the soul, generates much smoke. Thus there is need of the dew of the Spirit, and of that air, that it may extinguish the fire, and scatter the smoke, and give wings to our thoughts. For it is not so, it cannot be, that being weighed down with evils one could soar up to heaven; but, beloved, unencumbered we are able to make this our way; or rather it is not possible unless we receive the wing of the Spirit. Saint John Chrysostom, Second Homily on Matthew,