Borrowed Words

The wisdom of others often penetrates our hearts and minds and helps us hear God in new ways. This is just one reason of many why we need to read and listen to others much wiser than us. Why I am thankful we are surrounded by the “great crowd of witnesses” that stretch our growing. Why I seek and sit at the feet of lamplighters.

Here are a few thoughts from others lately that have invited me to pause, pray and ask God what are you asking me to do with these words in my life right now, Lord? Maybe they will bless your journey too:

“Here’s to the bridge-builders, the hand-holders, the light-bringers, those extraordinary souls wrapped in ordinary lives who quietly weave threads of humanity into an inhumane world. They are the unsung heroes in a world at war with itself. They are the whisperers of hope that peace is possible. Look for them in this present darkness. Light your candle with their flame. And then go. Build bridges. Hold hands. Bring light to a dark and desperate world. Be the hero you are looking for. Peace is possible. It begins with us.” L.R. Knost

“I have found that Saint Teresa’s call to focus on the goodness of God when I need to discern helps me fight the demons of despair, self-rejection, and fear, and has overcome the powers of darkness with the power of God many times. I have often prayed the prayer of Saint Teresa, “Solo Dios basta, God alone is enough,” when I have needed to discern whether what I was hearing and experiencing was of God or not. Praying these words slowly and out loud can help me enter into God’s presence, where there is peace and certainty that God is always with me and loves me.

‘Let nothing disturb you

Let nothing frighten you.

Those who cling to God

will lack nothing

Let nothing disturb you

Let nothing frighten you

God alone is enough.’”

-Henri Nouwen

“Do you want to know
what goes on in the core of the Trinity?
I will tell you.
In the core of the Trinity
the Father laughs
and gives birth to the Son.
The Son laughs back at the Father
and gives birth to the Spirit.
The whole Trinity laughs
and gives birth to us.”

Meister Eckhart, Meditations with Meister Eckhart, trans. and ed. Matthew Fox

“May God bless us with discomfort — discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships, so that we may live deep within our hearts.
May God bless us with anger — anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that we may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless us with tears — tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, hunger, and war, so that we may reach out our hands to comfort them and turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless us with foolishness — enough foolishness to believe that we can make a difference in this world, so that we can do what others claim cannot be done.”
A Franciscan blessing

What have you read lately that has blessed your heart?