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July 29, 2019 - May 3, 2020
Jesus would want us to feel as good as possible about God’s creation within us,”
“Love. That’s what makes persons know who they are.”
“It’s so easy to pick up a gun and shoot somebody. It’s so much healthier—and so much more dramatic—to work out something interpersonally with somebody and to come to a resolution that means weal in both people’s life.”
And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us, we will not fear, for God hath willed his truth to triumph through us. The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him; his rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure; one little word shall fell him.
‘You know, Fred, there is one thing that evil cannot stand, and that’s forgiveness.’
“It’s one of the toughest things in the world when somebody has hurt you, and you can find within yourself the strength to begin the whole process of forgiveness. And it turns out to be the gift to you, not so much the gift to the person you’re forgiving.”
It is possible to see the best in our neighbor because of one thing: forgiveness. It’s possible to solve problems without machine guns because of one thing: forgiveness. That’s not a concept unique to the Neighborhood of Make-Believe but to the kingdom of God.
there is one thing that evil cannot stand, and that’s forgiveness.
God’s love is not only for us but also for our neighbors, and that’s what allows us to cultivate the toast sticks for the eyes: encouraging others to be their honest selves, being a good neighbor, and offering forgiveness.
“Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these”
parting the Red Sea is not the same as walking through it.)
When Jesus told His followers, “Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:3), He was pointing toward the vulnerability and openness that are essential for those of us who aren’t children to inherit the kingdom of God.
if parents can remember what it was like to be a child, they are going to be much more empathic with their own children.”
“Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”
God can be depended upon, that He is always there: “The tough times I’ve been through . . . turned out to be times in which God’s presence was so clear—so real
To fully see others, we need to recognize who we are as individuals, love our neighbor as ourselves, and forgive often.
“Do unto others” is a command to act.
‘Preach the Gospel at all times, when necessary use words.’
When your heart can cry another’s sadness, Then your heart is full of love.
“Life is so generous a giver, but we, judging its gifts by their covering, cast them away as ugly or heavy or hard. Remove the covering and you will find beneath it a living splendor, woven of love, by wisdom, with power. Welcome it, grasp it, and you touch the angel’s hand that brings it to you. Everything we call a trial, a sorrow, or a duty, believe me, that angel’s hand is there; the gift is there, and the wonder of an overshadowing presence.”
Frankly, I think that after we die, we have this wide understanding of what’s real. And we’ll probably say, “Ah, so that’s what it was all about.”
What is essential is invisible to the eye.
“It’s quite simple: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”
“The connections we make in the course of a life, maybe that’s what heaven is, Tom. We make so many connections here on earth.”5
Yet all are one; that’s our hope.
Well, I would want [those] who were listening somehow to know that they had unique value, that there isn’t anybody in the whole world exactly like them and that there never has been and there never will be. And that they are loved by the Person who created them, in a unique way. If they could know that and really know it and have that behind their eyes, they could look with those eyes on their neighbor and realize, “My neighbor has unique value too; there’s never been anybody in the whole world like my neighbor, and there never will be.” If they could value that person—if they could love that
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But an inheritance is nothing we ask for or earn or deserve. It is something we are given by the testator, and we can either accept or betray the responsibility.
“All that matters is your motives,”
“God will lead the way. You know that.”
“Adventure can be scary and unpredictable, but the more you continue in it, the more you lose that sense of fear and doubt (and the less you care about being late for dinner). You begin to gather up your internal resources with confidence.”
