This
past weekend the men at my church got away on a "Men's Recon"
to a couple cabins in the Pocono Mountains to spend time in quiet contemplation
with God. In doing so we read Brother Lawrence's classic work, "The
Practice of the Presence of God." It was revitalizing
time. I had my own copy of the book which I bought many years
ago, so I brought it with me - fragile as it is from being loaned out
and read so many times. Over the years I have copied quotes into the
many blank pages and spaces in it. So today I wanted to share some of
those quotes with you. And if you have just a moment, let me know
which one(s) hit home the most. Enjoy."Whatever we are doing, even if we are reading the Word or praying, we should stop for a few minutes -- as often as possible -- to praise God from the depths of our hearts, to enjoy Him there in secret. Since you believe that God is always with you no matter what you may be doing, why shouldn't you stop for a while to adore Him, to praise Him, to petition Him, to offer Him your heart, and to thank Him?"
Brother
Lawrence
"There
is nothing but God's grace. We walk upon it. We breathe it. We live by it and
we die in it."
Robert
Louis Stevenson
"You
have no strength but what God gives you, and you can have all the strength that
God can give."
Andrew
Murray
"Wonder
is the basis of worship."
Thomas Carlyle
"Faith
is not an effort, a striving, a ceaseless seeking, as so many earnest souls
suppose, but rather, a letting go, an abandonment, an abiding rest in God that
nothing, not even the soul's shortcomings can disturb."
Unknown
"God
never asks us to give up anything unless He intends to replace it with
something better."
George
Mueller
"He
who would not die for Jesus will never truly live for Jesus; for to earnestly
live for Him requires dying daily to the self-will that we may do His
will."
"God
insists that we ask, not because He needs to know our situation, but because we
need the spiritual discipline of asking."
Catherine
Marshall
"When
God wants to do His great works, He trains somebody to be quiet enough and
little enough, then uses that person."
Hudson
Taylor
"Enter
into the inner chamber of your mind, shut out all things except God and
whatever might aid you in seeking God, and having barred the door of your inner
chamber, seek Him."
St.
Anselm of Canterbury
"God
creates out of nothing. Therefore, until a man is nothing, God can make nothing
out of him."
Martin
Luther
"Joy
is not happiness as much as it is gladness; it is the ecstasy of eternity in a
soul that has made peace with God and is ready to do His will."
Unknown
"Faith
is not belief without proof, but trust without reservation."
Elton
Trueblood
"Be
patient with each other, there are no shortcuts to spirituality. The growing of
fruit takes time."
Unknown
"The
greatness of a man is not measured by his power or ability, but by the measure
of his surrender to God."
Unknown
"The
person who insists on seeing with perfect clarity before he follows Christ in
the way, will never obey God's call to walk by faith. To Abraham God said,
'Leave your country and your people and your father's household, and go to the
place I will (that is, in the future, far down the road) show
you."
"When,
as a husband or wife, you are confronted with a very difficult choice, do what
is best for your spouse and your children and God will honor it."
"If
you'd ever really gotten inside the mind of Jesus, ever had a single taste of
His burning love, considerations of your own loss or gain would mean
nothing."
Thomas
A'Kempis
"It
is possible to give without loving, but it is impossible to love without
giving."
Richard
Braumstein
"Though
we do not have our Lord Jesus with us in bodily presence, we have our neighbor,
who, for the ends of love and loving service, is as good as our Lord
Himself."
Teresa
of Avila
"To
do so no more is the best repentance."
Martin
Luther
"No
one gives himself freely and willingly to God's service unless, having tasted
His Fatherly love, he is drawn to love and worship Him in return."
John
Calvin
In
His Service, Pastor Jeff
