Quotations

Most of all, you have to keep the child in yourself, especially the sense of wonder.

I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a child quieted at its mother's breast;
like a child that is quieted
is my soul ...

Each second we live is a new and unique moment of the universe, a moment that will never be again... And what do we teach our children? We teach them that two and two make four, and that Paris is the capital of France. When will we also teach them what they are? ...

Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique. In all the years that have passed, there has never been another child like you... You have the capacity for anything. Yes, you are a marvel. And when you grow up, can you then harm another who is, like you, a marvel?

We must all work to make the world worthy of its children.

What sets monks apart from the rest of us is not an overbearing piety by a contemplative sense of fun. They know, as Trappist monk Matthew Kelty reminds us, that "you do not have to be holy to love God. You have only to be human. Nor do you have to be holy to see God in all things. You have only to play as a child with an unselfish heart."

And, how do you express your gratitude? -- by simply having the attitude of gratefulness... Gratitude and attitude!These two thoughts are similar, in that gratitude is an attitude, one that keeps you inside the flow of All Good, which is God.When you can maintain the attitude of gratefulness throughout each day, you are well on your way to growth, spiritually and in every other area.

For me, prayer is a lifting up of the heart, a simple glance towards Heaven, a cry of gratitude and love in the midst of trial as well as joy. It is something great, supernatural, which expands my soul and unites me to God.

GRATITUDE is a choice that becomes a habit. It is a major ingredient in the alchemy of transformation and is closely related to love... Gratitude creates a combustion of energy that powers our living cells. That's why all spiritual traditions teach the importance of gratitude. It certainly isn't because the deity needs any reassurance. Rather it's because when we are in the state of gratitude, we're affirming our faith in our own highest good and denying authority to the paralyzing, constricting energy of fear.

The Great Source is always reaching out for people who are moved by the spirit of love rather than fear. And blessed are those who are willing to hear the teachings of peace and pass their inspirations along to the world with courage and confidence. Would that more of us trusted the inner voice of healing and honored its gifts in action with gratitude.

It is often difficult for us to see how, or sometimes even to believe that, God weaves the threads of difficulty, serendipity, challenge, and blessing together in our lives. That is why it is important at times to stop and look with fresh eyes and open hearts at what our Creator has been weaving around, within, and through us. From this new perspective, this vantage point of grace, we begin to discern God's artistry, the extraordinary ways in which unruly, unwanted, and unexpected threads are being woven deftly into a strong, resilient, and beautiful fabric. We see not only how the various threads of our individual lives are woven together, but also how they are woven into the lives of others.

In sharing, the meaning of our lives
is given back to God:
The One who gives
The One who receives
The One who is.

Sacred silence engenders stillness. It IS stillness. And that stillness opens up the dimension of spiritual existence -- that luminous world that awaits our discovery as soon as we redirect our attention from external things to our own radiant depths... Silence is not merely a discipline; rather, it is primarily a state of being. It is in, through, and as silence that we discover our authentic identity, the Self.

Another silence began, rich and profound. I looked at the next question on my list and laughed. "You work in silence. This is because silence is the ultimate and final initiation, isn't it?" "Yes." Ma adjusted the bangle on her right wrist. "Why is silence powerful?" "God is silent. Everything comes out of silence. In silence more work can be done. the true experience of Bliss is without words." The silence returned, this time ringing with her sound.

In Silence is perfect Rest,
and here the ever-so-faint sound
of the Comforter's voice
rings as notes struck from the crystal glass.
Certainty resides there,
and there alone.

...I bid you come to the Silence,
that the Voice may finally be heard.
Here marks the gentle turning point
in your long Journey.
Herein is the way home rediscovered ...
Come into Silence
let the journey end.

There is nothing so much like God in all the universe as silence.

I sit and stare
Into the where
Of within me
At the world of words and sounds and sights,
Peoples and places and empty spaces,
And under it all
A small oasis of Silence
Where time ceases to be
And I am part of eternity.

Oh silence, thou art an inestimable bliss,
Thou coverest the follies of the foolish
And givest inspiration to the wise!

Be still and know I AM.

If you would know deeper dimensions of yourself and the Divine, my friends, befriend the Silence.

In silence will you hear Me;
In silence will you come to know Me.
Listen well.

Another will is greater, wiser and more intelligent than my own. So I wait. Waiting means that there is Another whom I trust and from whom I receive. My will, important and essential as it is, finds a Will that is more important, more essential. .. In prayer we are aware that God is in action and that when the circumstances are ready, when others are in the right place and when my heart is prepared, I will be called into action. Waiting in prayer is a disciplined refusal to act before God acts. Waiting is our participation in the process that results in the "time fulfilled".

How I like things to be done quietly and without fuss... Let truth be done in silence "till it is forced to speak," and then should it only whisper, all those whom it may concern will hear.

To create from joy, to create from wonder, demands a continual discipline, a great compassion. It demands a severity of mind towards all vanity and posturing of the ego that loves its suffering, and clings to its despairs and depressions and fears; it demands a continual objectivity of spirit, a continual looking out at, and beyond, the world created by the senses, towards a spiritual reality, whose lineaments only emerge slowly, after years of experience and meditation. You do not need to stop working, but you need to strive for a new relationship with your work... With time and sincerity you will discover a way to work that does not harm you spiritually, does not tempt you to vanity, that is the deepest expression of your spirituality.

Nicholas of Cusa described human creativity as a participation in the act of God creating the cosmos. God creates the cosmos, we create the microcosmos, the "human world". As we do our daily work, make our homes and marriages, raise our children, and fabricate a culture, we are all being creative... The ultimate work is an engagement with soul, responding to the demands of fate and tending the details of life as it presents itself. We may get to a point where our external labors and the OPUS of the soul are one and the same, inseparable. Then the satisfactions of our work will be deep and long lasting, undone neither by failures nor by flashes of success.

Contemplation is an excellent practice for integrating our meditations into everyday life... Simply reading one line of something inspirational each morning can provide excellent material for contemplation if we design a practice that helps to encourage contemplative moments throughout the day... For people in a busy, active environment, it is perhaps the most accessible spiritual practice. A few moments of contemplation can be accomplished even in the middle of a business meeting. This experience is not like a passing daydream, but affects the quality of life, deepening our spiritual connections, drawing us into reflection and constant realization of the soul's quest to be at one with its divine source at all times and in all places.

A story of three brick masons illustrates the great difference our attitude toward our work makes:

The first person, when asked what he was building, replied gruffly, without even looking up, "I'm laying bricks."

The second person answered, "I'm building a wall."

But the third person said enthusiastically and with obvious pride and wonder, "I'm building a cathedral."

TO WORK IS TO PRAY

The work you do out of love without a thought of reward is the work of God.