The following are some great quotations from the spiritual giants of the past and present.
“Help me to journey beyond the familiar and into the unknown. Give me the faith to leave old ways and break fresh ground with You.” (St. Brendan: 484-577)
“Here is a rule for everyday life: Do not do anything that you cannot offer to God.” (St. Jean Marie Vianney: 1786-1859)
“The bread you store up belongs to the hungry; the cloak that lies in your chest belongs to the naked; the gold you have hidden in the ground belongs to the poor.” (St. Basil: 330-379)
“The object of prayer is of secondary importance; what matters above all is one’s relationship with the Father. This is what prayer does: it transforms the desire and models it according to the will of God, whatever that may be, because the one who prays aspires first to union with God, who is merciful Love.” (Pope Francis: 1936-today)
“If you wish to strengthen your confidence in God still more, often recall the loving way in which He has acted toward you, and how mercifully He has tried to bring you out of your sinful life, to break your attachment to the things of earth and draw you to His love.” (St. Alphonsus Liguori: 1696-1787)
“O my God, teach me to be generous, to serve you as you deserve to be served, to give without counting the cost, to fight without fear of being wounded, to work without seeking rest, and to spend myself without expecting any reward, but the knowledge that I am doing your holy will. Amen.” (St. Ignatius of Loyola: 1491-1553)
“The secret of happiness is to live moment by moment and to thank God for what He is sending us every day in His goodness.” (St. Gianna Molla: 1922-1962)“Faith and love are like the blind man’s guides. They will lead you along a path unknown to you, to the place where God is hidden.” (St. John of the Cross: 1542-1591)
“Let all creation help you to praise God. Give yourself the rest you need. When you are walking alone, listen to the sermon preached to you by the flowers, the trees, the shrubs, the sky, the sun and the whole world. Notice how they preach to you a sermon full of love, of praise of God, and how they invite you to proclaim the greatness of the one who has given them being.” (St. Paul of the Cross: 1694-1775)
“Persevere in labors that lead to salvation. Always be busy in spiritual actions. In this way, no matter how often the enemy of our souls approaches, no matter how often he may try to come near us, he will find our hearts closed and armed against him.” (St. Cyprian: c 200-258)
“Everything, even sweeping, scraping vegetables, weeding a garden and waiting on the sick could be a prayer, if we offered it to God.” (St. Martin de Porres: 1579-1639) “God has called us to heal wounds, to unite what has fallen apart, and to bring home those who have lost their way.” (St. Francis of Assisi: 1184-1226)“If we wish to make any progress in the service of God we must begin every day of our life with new eagerness. We must keep ourselves in the presence of God as much as possible and have no other view or end in all our actions but the divine honor.” (Saint Charles Borromeo: 1538-1584) This is another way of saying that we must live in the present moment, not in the past nor in the future. Only in this moment is the grace of God actualized for us. Only in every moment of the day will we experience the presence and love of our merciful God. Living this way is hard, yet it is the only really way to live.
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