True devotion does no harm whatever, but rather gives perfection to all things; but when it goes contrary to our lawful vocation, without doubt, it is false.
The sun’s warm rays give life to all things; nature depends on the sun for fertility. God’s goodness to gives life to the souls of men inspires all hearts to love him.
The indifferent heart is as a ball of wax in the hands of God, receiving with equal readiness all the impressions of the divine pleasure.
Holy indifference goes beyond resignation: for it loves nothing except for the love of God’s will.
A sad saint is a sorry saint.
Humility believes in being able to achieve nothing, being aware of our poverty and weakness when left to ourselves.
The bee collects honey from flowers in such a way as to do the least damage or destruction to them, and he leaves them whole, undamaged and fresh, just as he found them.
Walk always near to God, for the gentleness of his shadow is more healthy than the brightness of the sun.
There are many who say to the Lord, “I give myself wholly to Thee, without any reserve,” but there are few who embrace the practice of this abandonment, which consists in receiving with certain indifference every sort of event, as it happens in conformity with Divine Providence, as well afflictions as consolations, contempt and reproaches as honour and glory.
Our business is to love what would have done. He wills our vocation as it is. Let us love that and not trifle away our time hankering after other people’s vocations.
To be pleased at correction and reproofs shows that one loves the virtues which are contrary to those faults for which he is corrected and reproved. And, therefore, it is a great sign of advancement in perfection.
The love which precedes repentance is usually imperfect; once it is dipped in the bitterness of penance, however, it intensifies, becomes perfect
Faiths, Hope and Charity come to us from heaven, from God. We ought ever to keep our hearts upturned, uplifted in his direction, to win a continuous, ever-growing supply of those cardinal virtues.
Retire at various times into the solitude of your own heart, even while outwardly engaged in discussions or transactions with others and talk to God.
To be an angel in prayer and a beast in one’s relations with people is to go lame on both legs.
The thoughts of those moved by natural human love are almost completely fastened on the beloved, their hearts are filled with passion for it, and their mouths full of its praises. When it is gone, they express their feelings in letters, and can’t pass by a tree without carving the name of their beloved in its bark. Thus, too those who love God can never stop thinking about him, longing for him, aspiring to him, and speaking about him. If they could, they would engrave the name of Jesus on the hearts of all humankind.
Love everyone with great love but have no friendship except for those that communicate with you in the things of virtue.
God requires a faithful fulfilment of the merest trifle given to us to do, rather than the most ardent aspiration to things to which we are not called.
Most of us wouldn’t come away from a walk in a beautiful garden without having picked a few flowers. Likewise, before leaving our morning prayer, we should pick one or two inspiring thoughts and “remind ourselves of them during the day, breathing in their fra¬grance.
If you gather and hold the gifts of the world with one hand you should always hold fast with the other to your heavenly Father’s hand and turn toward Him from time to time to see if your actions or occupations are pleasing to Him.
The difference between love and devotion is just that which exists between fire and flame. What devotion adds to the fire of love is that flame which makes it eager, energetic and diligent in obeying God’s commands.
It is no great merit to serve one’s king during times of peace amid the delights of court life. To serve him during the hardships of war and amid troubles and persecutions is a true mark of constancy and fidelity.
Nothing really counts except the soul. If I could live as long as I already have lived with the certainty of all the happiness that thus life can offer, what would it all amount to in the light of eternity?
We should examine how we have acted in fear of the perils of sin and of the loss of this world’s goods. We fear the one too much and the other too little.
Our love for God is the one inevitable result of his love for us.
In the midst of all the occupations of each day, see to it that you do not become too absorbed in material things. Keep a tight grasp of Christ’s hand. Whenever you find yourself with more than you can handle, do not panic, but look to Christ.
Genuine, living devotion (holiness) presupposes love of God, and hence it is simply true love of God.. When divine love has reached a degree of perfection at which it not only makes us do good but also do this carefully, frequently, and promptly, it is called devotion.
Devotion must be exercised in different ways by the gentleman, the worker, the prince, the widow, the young girl, and the married woman. The practice of devotion must also be adapted to the strengths, activities, and duties of each particular person.
God has placed you in this world not because he needs you in any way but only to exercise his goodness in you by giving you his grace and glory. For this purpose he has given you intellect to know him, memory to be mindful of him, will to love him, imagination to picture to yourself his benefits, eyes to see his wonderful works, tongue to praise him, and so on with the other faculties.
In prayer we talk to God and God also speaks to us, we aspire to him and he inspires us; we are alive to him and he lives in us. But what do we talk about in prayer? God, nothing else. After all, what does a lover talk about but his beloved?
All that remains is for us to state the necessary conditions to pray well. I know indeed that the ancients who treat this matter cite a great many such conditions; some count fifteen, others eight. But since this number is so large, I limit myself to mentioning only three. The first is that one be little in humility; the second that one be great in hope; and the third, that one be grafted onto Jesus Christ crucified. In order to pray well, then, we must acknowledge that we are poor, and we must greatly humble ourselves; for do you not see how a marksman with a crossbow, when he wishes to discharge a large arrow, draws the string of his bow lower the higher he wants it to go? Thus, must we do when we wish our prayer to reach Heaven; we must lower ourselves by the awareness of our nothingness.
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