Priest (Priest, #1)

by Sierra Simone

“You may not ever be able to get out of bed in the morning with that security. That moment of okay may never come. All you can do is try to find a new balance, a new starting point. Find whatever love is left in your life and hold on to it tightly. And one day, things will have gotten less gray, less dull. One day, you might find that you have a life again. A life that makes you happy.”

Guilt is a sign from your conscience that you’ve strayed from the Lord. Confess your sin to God openly and sincerely. Ask for forgiveness and the strength to overcome the temptation should it arise again. And lastly, remove yourself from the temptation altogether.

If I was forgiven, why hadn’t God also removed this temptation from me? Or given me more strength to bear it? To resist it?

“I can’t stop myself, I’m sorry,” I said at the same time she said, “I tried to stay away from you.” And then I kissed her.

and I could tell by the way she made little sighs into my mouth, the way her fingers twisted in the fabric of my shirt, that she was as far gone for me as I was for her, and I never wanted to stop, never wanted this to end.

“God is bigger than our sins. God wants you as you are—stumbling, sinning, confused. All He asks of us is love—love for Him, love for others, and love for ourselves. He asks us to lay down our lives—not to live like ascetics, devoid of any pleasure or joy, but to give Him our lives so that He may increase our joy and increase our love.”