kindness
Shared Wisdom: Words of Love and Friendship
I love finding quotations that speak of love and friendship. Whenever I read them they remind of the great blessings I have in my many friends and the gift that I receive when someone loves me. I believe that these are human manifestations of what God feels toward us. So here are a few quotations that caught my attention and my heart’.
“Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend.” (Martin Luther King)
“Too many of us stay walled because we are afraid of being hurt. We are afraid to care too much, for fear that the other person does not care at all.” (Eleanor Roosevelt)
“The supreme happiness of life is the conviction of being loved for yourself, or more correctly, of being loved in spite of yourself.” (Victor Hugo)
“For whoever knows how to return a kindness he has received, must be a friend above all price.” (Sophocles)
“Like everyone else I feel the need of relations and friendship, of affection, and I am not made of stone or iron, so I cannot miss these things without feeling, as does any other intelligent man, a void and deep need. I tell you this to let you know how much good your visit has done me.” (Vincent Van Gogh)
“Today a new sun rises for me; everything lives, everything is animated, everything seems to speak to me of my passion, everything invites me to cherish it.” (Anne De Lenclos)
“Wishing to be friends is quick work, but friendship is a slow-ripening fruit.” (Aristotle)
And this last one I treasure most of all.
“Human love and the delights of friendship, out of which are built the memories that endure, are also to be treasured up as hints of what shall be hereafter.” (Bede Jarrett)
So as we approach Thanksgiving Day, I will offer a gratitude for all the people who love me and for the friendships that bring me so much joy.
Shared Wisdom: My Friend Max
If you follow my postings you already know about my “love affair” with Max Lucado. In my opinion, no other modern day spiritual writer touches on the affairs of the soul in such a compassionate and human manner. His words reach into my heart like the comforting embrace of a friend. So I was overjoyed to receive a copy of his Grace For The Moment – 365-Day Journaling Devotional from my husband for Christmas.
In the front of this book, as part of the introductory section, are four pages of writing with which I was already familiar from a previous book. They are what I refer to as “The Choice” pages and whenever I need some extra grounding in my day I go to them and take a few minutes to read them. I would like to share these daily choices which, as Max Lucado explains, because of Calvary we are free to choose.
I CHOOSE LOVE…..
No occasion justifies hatred; no injustice warrants bitterness.
I choose love. Today I will love God, and what God loves.
I CHOOSE JOY…..
I will invite my God to be the God of circumstance. I will refuse the temptation to be cynical ….. the tool of the lazy thinker.
I will refuse to see people as anything less than human beings created by God. I will refuse to see any problem as anything less than an opportunity to see God.
I CHOOSE PEACE…..
I will live forgiven. I will forgive so that I may live.
I CHOOSE PATIENCE…..
I will overlook the inconveniences of the world. Instead of cursing the one who takes my place, I’ll invite him to do so. Rather than complain that the wait is too long, I will thank God for a moment to pray. Instead of clenching my fist at new assignments, I will face them with joy and courage.
I CHOOSE KINDNESS…..
I will be kind to the poor, for they are alone. Kind to the rich, for they are afraid. And kind to the unkind, for such is how God has treated me.
I CHOOSE GOODNESS…..
I will go without a dollar before I take a dishonest one. I will be overlooked before I will boast. I will confess before I will accuse. I choose goodness.
I CHOOSE FAITHFULNESS…..
Today I will keep my promises. My debtors will not regret their trust. My associates will not question my word. My wife will not question my love. And my children will never fear that their father will not come home.
I CHOOSE GENTLENESS…..
Nothing is won by force. I choose to be gentle.
If I raise my voice may it be only in praise.
If I clench my fist, may it be only in prayer.
If I make a demand, may it be only of myself.
I CHOOSE SELF-CONTROL…..
I am a spiritual being…… After this Body is dead, my spirit will soar.
I refuse to let what will rot, rule the eternal. I choose self-control. I will be drunk only by joy. I will be impassioned only by my faith.
I will be influenced only by God. I will be taught only by Christ.
I choose self-control.
Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness and self-control. To these I commit my day.
If I succeed, I will give thanks. If I fail, I will seek His grace.
And then, when this day is done, I will place my head on His pillow and rest.
Max Lucado
When God Whispers Your Name
Shared Wisdom: Gratitude, Love, Selflessness
Gratitude. More aware of what you have than what you don’t. Recognizing the treasure in the simple – a child’s hug, fertile soil, a golden sunset. (Max Lucado)
When we find someone who surpasses us, be thankful that such gifts are in our midst, a public banquet to which we are all invited. (Dale E. Turner)
When the heart is flooded with love there is no room in it for fear, for doubt, for hesitation. (Anne Morrow Lindberg)
Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around. (Leo Buscaglia)
Every gift of kindness bears the sign of love. (Janet L. Weaver Smith)
There are those whose lives affect all others around them. Quietly touching one heart, who in turn, touches another. Reaching out to ends further than they would ever know. (William Bradfield)
On our path to the light, we often examine our growth with an eye to what we have yet to achieve. It is very important, however, to become aware of what we have already accomplished. ……….. Write down the ways in which you have changed, and the gifts you have allowed into your life. ….. Consider how your family and friends have helped to bring you to this place on your path. Include those people who have served as great mirrors and teachers in your healing. (Shakti Gawain)
These are the days that must happen to you. You shall scatter with a lavish hand all that you learn or achieve, and those who love you shall rise to your example and be inspired. (Walt Whitman)
You’ve touched people and known it. You’ve touched people and never may know it. Either way, you have something to give. It is in giving to one another that each of our lives becomes meaningful. (Laura Schlessinger)
To be alive, to be able to see, to walk, to have a home, music, paintings, friends – it’s all a miracle. I have adopted the technique of living life from miracle to miracle. (Artur Rubenstein)
If love is anything, it is a gradual process, the long round curve that must be carefully negotiated, not the sharp right angle turn that is made in an instant, once and for all. (John Powell, S.J.)