St Mercurius (Abu Sifein)
On the 25th day of the Coptic month of Hator we celebrate the life of Saint Mercurius.
Mercurius, known as the saint with the two swords (Abu-Saifain), was born in the city of Rome. His parents were Christians and they called him Philopateer (which means "Lover of the Father") and they raised him in a Christian manner. When he was old enough, he enlisted in the army during the days of Emperor Decius, the pagan. The Lord gave Philopateer the strength and the courage, for which he earned the satisfaction of his superiors. They called him Mercurius and he grew very close to the Emperor.

When the Berbers rose up against Rome, Decius went out to fight them. When he saw how many there were, he became terrified. Mercurius assured him saying, "Do not be afraid, because God will destroy our enemies and will bring us victory." When he left the Emperor, the archangel Michael appeared to him in the shape of a human being, dressed in white apparel. The angel gave him a sword saying, "When you overcome your enemies, remember the Lord your God." (That is why he is called, "of the two swords", one is the military sword and the other is the sword of the divine power).

When Emperor Decius conquered his enemies and Mercurius came back victorious, the angel appeared to him and reminded him of what he told him previously, that is, to remember the Lord his God.

Decius, and his soldiers with him, wanted to offer up incense to his idols and Mercurius lagged behind. When they informed the Emperor of what had happened, he called Mercurius and expressed his amazement at his abandoning of his loyalty to him. The Emperor reprimanded him for refusing to come and offer incense to the idols. Mercurius took off his military uniform and laid down before the Emperor and said, "I do not worship anyone except my Lord God Jesus Christ." The Emperor became angry and ordered him to be beaten with whips and stalks. When the Emperor saw how the people of the city and the soldiers were attached to Mercurius, the Emperor feared that they might revolt. So instead, he bound him in iron fetters and sent him to Caesarea where they cut off his head. He thus completed his holy fight and received the crown of life in the kingdom of heaven.

Lessons from this story
“Be a man of your word.” My dad used to say to me. He was old school, did all his business on a handshake. He believed that a man’s word was worth more than a contract. In this day an age, that kind of business is considered foolish. But still there many business owners that want to meet you, talk with you and know who they are doing business with before they sign any contract. Are you honorable? Can we trust you? A smart business person understands that a contract is important to capture the details of the agreement, but they also recognize that a piece of paper is worthless if the individual signing is not honorable.
Saint Mercurius enjoyed a prestigious lifestyle. He had favor with the Emperor and the people. But he was raised as a man of honor, and when the time came to honor his agreement with the angel, he kept it.
How many times have we asked God for this or that and forgotten to give Him thanks once received. All too often we get excited about receiving the gift we forget to kiss the hand that delivered it. Everything we have can easily be taken away. Sure we can reason to ourselves that we worked hard for what we have, or believe that I earned everything I have and nothing was given to me - but all of it can be gone in a flash. Your money, your house, your family, your reputation, everything. Just ask Job.
Be honorable in your dealings with others, and the Lord will always be honorable with you - even if for a while it may not appear that way.

Prayer
God help us to know you that you provide us with the sword to defeat the enemy each day. You cover us and guide us even at times when we...