Lord Jesus, I believe; help my unbelief. Grant me the strength, courage, wisdom, and grace to remain faithful forever. Amen.
When misguided public opinion honors what is despicable and despises what is honorable, punishes virtue and rewards vice, encourages what is harmful and discourages what is useful, applauds falsehood and smothers truth under indifference or insult, a nation turns its back on progress and can be restored only by the terrible lessons of catastrophe. (Frederic Bastiat, 19th-century French political economist)
Our unity must be in God or we will fall as other nations that have abandoned God have fallen and will fall. There are too many divisions and classes among us in America now; too many hates, too few deep loves; too much tolerance based on expediency and not enough tolerance grounded in charity; too much tolerance of evil, not enough intolerance for righteousness.
There can be differences in our national life without animosity, varying lights of conscience without bitterness, provided we have a really good reason for loving one another. And the only good reason for loving everyone, whomsoever he be, is because he is a creature of God, redeemed by the precious blood of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. This is important, for unfortunately the basis of unity among many of us is a common hate, and too often a hatred of a person rather than a hatred of wrong. We know whom we hate, but whom do we love? . . .
We cannot and we must not hate any person whom God made even though he be our enemy. But in forgetting evil we have substituted a hatred of persons. It is very well for us to sing God Bless America, but how can He bless us, if we hate? (Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, 12/15/40)
If you are on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; and in that case the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive man. (C.S. Lewis)
The LORD is our God, the LORD alone! Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. Take to heart these words which I enjoin on you today. (Deuteronomy 6:4-6)
. . . not my will but yours be done. (Luke 22:42b)
The life of a Christian is nothing but a perpetual struggle against self; there is no flowering of the soul to the beauty of its perfection except at the price of pain. (saying of Padre Pio)
If you are going to be a Christian at all, you might as well live entirely for God. (Blessed Cyprian Michael Iwene Tansi)
Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves (Philippians 2:3)
Let us be selfish with our sufferings, and generous with our joy. (Blessed Rafael Arnáiz Barón)
A simple-hearted faith bestow upon me, O Lord.
He must increase; I must decrease. (John 3:30)
Every moment comes to us pregnant with a command from God, only to pass on and plunge into eternity, there to remain for ever what we have made of it. (St. Francis de Sales)
If you walk, just walk. If you sit, just sit; but whatever you do, don't wobble. (Unmon, a Zen worthy)
Thou movest us to delight in praising Thee; for Thou hast formed us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless till they find rest in Thee. (St. Augustine, The Confessions, c. 398)
. . . work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure. (Philippians 2:12b-13)
Be still, and know that I am God! (Psalms 46:10)
We must know before we can love. In order to know God, we must often think of Him. And when we come to love Him, we shall then also think of Him often, for our heart will be with our treasure. (Bro. Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God)
Let nothing trouble you
Let nothing frighten you
Everything passes
God never changes
Patience
Obtains all
Whoever has God
Wants for nothing
God alone is enough.
(St. Teresa of Avila)
If that which God Himself chooses for you does not content you, from whom do you expect to obtain what you desire? (Fr. Jean-Pierre de Cassaude, Abandonment to Divine Providence)
You need endurance to do the will of God and receive what he has promised. (Hebrews 10:36)
Wait for the LORD, take courage;
be stouthearted, wait for the LORD! (Psalm 27:14)
I tell God very simply what I want and He always understands. For me, prayer is an upward leap of the heart, an untroubled glance towards heaven, a cry of gratitude and love which I utter from the depths of sorrow as well as from the heights of joy. It has a supernatural grandeur which expands the soul and unites it with God. (St. Thérčse of Lisieux)
Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose hope is the LORD. He is like a tree planted beside the waters that stretches out its roots to the stream: It fears not the heat when it comes, its leaves stay green; In the year of drought it shows no distress, but still bears fruit. (Jeremiah 17:7-8)
I have all these thoughts, but I'm pretty sure they all contradict each other. (Cordelia, Buffy 1.11)
A Zen Master said to his disciple: "Go get my rhinoceros-horn fan." Disciple: "Sorry, Master, it is broken." Master: "Okay, then get me the rhinoceros."
If the whole human race lay in one grave, the epitaph on its headstone might well be: "It seemed a good idea at the time." (Dame Rebecca West, Irish-born author and journalist, 1892-1983)