125 Inspiring Christian Quotes

Inspiration knows no bounds, especially when it comes to the profound messages found within Christian teachings. These timeless words of wisdom, love, and faith have the power to kindle hope and encouragement in our daily lives. Whether you're seeking solace during challenging times or simply looking to deepen your spiritual journey, the right quote can offer a beacon of light and guidance. We've thoughtfully gathered a collection of the top 125 inspiring Christian quotes that capture the essence of faith, hope, and love. Prepare to be uplifted and inspired as you explore these reflections that echo the heart of Christian spirituality.

1. “There are times when solitude is better than society, and silence is wiser than speech. We should be better Christians if we were more alone, waiting upon God, and gathering through meditation on His Word spiritual strength for labour in his service. We ought to muse upon the things of God, because we thus get the real nutriment out of them. . . . Why is it that some Christians, although they hear many sermons, make but slow advances in the divine life? Because they neglect their closets, and do not thoughtfully meditate on God's Word. They love the wheat, but they do not grind it; they would have the corn, but they will not go forth into the fields to gather it; the fruit hangs upon the tree, but they will not pluck it; the water flows at their feet, but they will not stoop to drink it. From such folly deliver us, O Lord. . . .” - Charles Spurgeon

2. “That is the idea -- that we should all be wicked if we did not hold to the Christian religion. It seems to me that the people who have held to it have been for the most part extremely wicked. You find this curious fact, that the more intense has been the religion of any period and the more profound has been the dogmatic belief, the greater has been the cruelty and the worse has been the state of affairs. In the so-called ages of faith, when men really did believe the Christian religion in all its completeness, there was the Inquisition, with all its tortures; there were millions of unfortunate women burned as witches; and there was every kind of cruelty practiced upon all sorts of people in the name of religion.You find as you look around the world that every single bit of progress in humane feeling, every improvement in the criminal law, every step toward the diminution of war, every step toward better treatment of the colored races, or every mitigation of slavery, every moral progress that there has been in the world, has been consistently opposed by the organized churches of the world. I say quite deliberately that the Christian religion, as organized in its churches, has been and still is the principal enemy of moral progress in the world.You may think that I am going too far when I say that that is still so. I do not think that I am. Take one fact. You will bear with me if I mention it. It is not a pleasant fact, but the churches compel one to mention facts that are not pleasant. Supposing that in this world that we live in today an inexperienced girl is married to a syphilitic man; in that case the Catholic Church says, 'This is an indissoluble sacrament. You must endure celibacy or stay together. And if you stay together, you must not use birth control to prevent the birth of syphilitic children.' Nobody whose natural sympathies have not been warped by dogma, or whose moral nature was not absolutely dead to all sense of suffering, could maintain that it is right and proper that that state of things should continue.That is only an example. There are a great many ways in which, at the present moment, the church, by its insistence upon what it chooses to call morality, inflicts upon all sorts of people undeserved and unnecessary suffering. And of course, as we know, it is in its major part an opponent still of progress and improvement in all the ways that diminish suffering in the world, because it has chosen to label as morality a certain narrow set of rules of conduct which have nothing to do with human happiness; and when you say that this or that ought to be done because it would make for human happiness, they think that has nothing to do with the matter at all. 'What has human happiness to do with morals? The object of morals is not to make people happy.” - Bertrand Russell

3. “The moment God is figured out with nice neat lines and definitions, we are no longer dealing with God.” - Rob Bell

4. “...we are to be lights in the world. It is God's business to light us, to set us on the lampstand, and to bring the people into the house. Our only duty is to shine forth with the gospel.” - Marva J. Dawn

5. “You may choose to look the other way but you can never say again that you did not know.” - William Wilberforce

6. “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord builds the city, the guard keeps watch in vain.” - Anonymous

7. “If Christ were here there is one thing he would not be—a Christian.” - Mark Twain

8. “No woman wants to be in submission to a man who isn't in submission to God!” - T D Jakes

9. “Christian, n.: one who believes that the New Testament is a divinely inspired book admirably suited to the spiritual needs of his neighbor.” - Ambrose Bierce

10. “God loves human beings. God loves the world. Not an ideal human, but human beings as they are; not an ideal world, but the real world. What we find repulsive in their opposition to God, what we shrink back from with pain and hostility, namely, real human beings, the real world, this is for God the ground of unfathomable love.” - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

11. “While we exert ourselves to grow beyond our humanity, to leave the human behind us, God becomes human; and we must recognize that God wills that we be human, real human beings. While we distinguish between pious and godless, good and evil, noble and base, God loves real people without distinction. ” - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

12. “But isn't it time for Christians to admit that we should reject bargains if they are gained by the exploitation of the poorest of the poor in developing countries?” - Tony Campolo

13. “Perhaps because our culture and politics have gone so off course, with values so contrary to those of Jesus, more and more people intuitively recognize that His vision of God's kingdom-a new world of compassion, justice, integrity and peace- is the Good News they've been searching and waiting for.” - Tony Campolo

14. “Forgive me for being so ordinary while claiming to know so extraordinary a God.” - Jim Elliot

15. “When you ask God for a gift, Be thankful if he sends, Not diamonds, pearls or riches, but the love of real true friends.” - Helen Steiner Rice

16. “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.” - Max Lucado

17. “If the Almighty directs our steps, we've no need to look back over our shoulders.” - Liz Curtis Higgs

18. “If any accolades come in the writing of this story, all praise will be His, all Glory will rightly go to Him. If He will allow me to share some part in this, I am truly humbled.” - Lynn Dove

19. “She heard Adrian say to Christian, ʺYou know, your shirtʹs kind of grungy-looking. Seems like you could put in a little more effort since youʹre dating a princess.ʺ” - Richelle Mead

20. “If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition and then admit that we just don't want to do it.” - Stephen Colbert

21. “Well, you've finally got a license to kill. It's about time.” - Richelle Mead

22. “Kas was right: a woman could destroy a man. This one could do so, simply by knowing his name. She could do so, simply with her eyes.” - V.S. Carnes

23. “She was an extension of his dreams. A sprinkling of magic dust, of unfeasible wishes, on his stable existence. The one thing-the one bright, marvelous thing-he wanted more than the world, but didn't deserve. However much he was tortured for her sake, however much blood he had spilled to protect her, the bruises to his body and the thrashings to his sanity, it would never be enough to make a wretch like him worthy of such a miracle.” - V.S. Carnes

24. “She was a little thing, too, inciting that basic compulsion in him as a man to protect her in so hectic a place as post-war Israel. Even so, his actions were borne out of an entirely different instinct, altogether: to fool her and anyone within a dart's range... to protect himself.” - V.S. Carnes

25. “If all the Christians- I mean all of 'em- got outta the pews on Sundays and into the streets, we'd shut the city down.We'd shut down hunger.We'd shut down loneliness.We'd shut down the notion that there is any such of a thing as a person that don't deserve a kind word and a second chance.” - Ron Hall, Denver Moore

26. “You see, Yousef, you can't force someone in their hearts to believe the way you do. They all tried and failed. They judged by their own convictions--not even by the truth of the teachings of Isa. No one is above God's judgment. No one has the right to judge for him.” - Pola Muzyka

27. “To me there is no more tragic sight than the average missionary. …We have given so much, yet not the one thing that counts; we aspire so high, and fall so low; we suffer so much, but so seldom with Christ; we have done so much and so little will remain; we have known Christ in part, and have so effectively barricaded our hearts against His mighty love, which surely He must yearn to give His disciples above all people.” - Amy Carmichael

28. “I felt the fangs against my neck and knew I was going to die. It was horrible. I wanted to live so, so badly...but this was how it would end. With my last moments, I started to yell at Christian to run, but then the Strigoi above my suddenly lit up like a torch. He jerked back, and I rolled out from underneath him.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I turned to Christian, who was crouched on the ground. "Wow," I said, helping him up. Obviously, he was the one who had saved me. "No shit," he said. "Didn't know I had that much power.” - Richelle Mead

29. “The wish to pray is a prayer in itself.” - George Bernanos

30. “Fruitfulness may be a better measurement for success than productivity because it is based more in the evaluations of others as to the meaningful role we have played in their lives then in our own importance determined according to the amount of accomplishments we can list.” - Karen Mains

31. “Socrates: Have you noticed on our journey how often the citizens of this new land remind each other it is a free country? Plato: I have, and think it odd they do this.Socrates: How so, Plato?Plato: It is like reminding a baker he is a baker, or a sculptor he is asculptor.Socrates: You mean to say if someone is convinced of their trade, they haveno need to be reminded.Plato: That is correct.Socrates: I agree. If these citizens were convinced of their freedom, they would not need reminders.” - E.A. Bucchianeri

32. “There's enough grief in this world without always getting into whose fault it is.” - Lisa Samson

33. “It’s not unpatriotic to denounce an injustice committed on our behalf, perhaps it’s the most patriotic thing we can do.” - E.A. Bucchianeri

34. “There are two kinds of leaders, cowboys and Shepherds. Cowboys drive and Shepherds lead.” - John Paul warren

35. “Every great leader can take you back to a defining moment when they decided to lead” - John Paul warren

36. “Hope is putting Faith "on the line" and expecting results!(from Mission Possible - Spiritual Covering)” - Deborah L. McCarragher

37. “Fellowship is a place of grace, where mistakes aren't rubbed in but rubbed out. Fellowship happens when mercy wins over justice.” - Rick Warren

38. “Life in Christ is like traveling on a metro link train, with a predetermined destination. You are not the driver, Jesus is, and God provided the route on this one time trip. He plotted everything, the date and the time of your travel and arrival. There will be stops and delays along the way, but remember this, at the bottom of a traffic light is always a green light.” - Rolly Lavapie

39. “Count the cost of your calling, find the value of your dream, and most of all find your place in His love.” - Deborah Brodie

40. “These days when Christians bicker they exaggerate passion into a legalistic belief and prosperity into a lukewarm belief.” - Criss Jami

41. “We may be unlovely yet we are not unloved.” - John Ortberg

42. “Our feelings are unreliable and cannot be trusted to convey truth.” - Joyce Meyer

43. “I learned that what happened to me did not have to define who I was. My past could not control my future unless I allowed it to.” - Joyce Meyer

44. “Gaining a victory is more difficult than maintaining it once you have it.” - Joyce Meyer

45. “Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body and prayer is to the soul.” - Matthew Kelly

46. “You know, we can quote the written Word all day to our friends, but nothing will touch them like our own hunger and love for the Word himself. It is not dutiful love that attracts but love freely lavished from a heart familiar with the gardens of heaven.” - Amy Layne Litzelman

47. “He does not call those who are worthy, but those whom He will.” - "Therese of Lisieux

48. “Success is not what you have done compared to what others have done. Success is what you have done compared to what you were supposed to do.” - Tony Evans

49. “You can do more than pray after you have prayed but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed.” - S.D. Gordon

50. “The Lord will provide.” - Francine Rivers

51. “Have faith have faith. When you have nothing else have faith.” - Francine Rivers

52. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.” - Anonymous

53. “We see a hearse; we think sorrow. We see a grave; we think despair. We hear of a death; we think of a loss. Not so in heaven. When heaven sees a breathless body, it sees the vacated cocoon & the liberated butterfly.” - Max Lucado

54. “On the concept of unity- “Thatʼs right-Jesusʼ most pressing concern beforeleaving the earth was our unity. He was looking ahead, to every generation ofbeliever. And as he prayed, he made it clear that our witness as his body in thisfractured , messed-up, chaotic world would depend on our love for another.” - Ed Galisewski

55. “Southern hospitality and Amish cooking - Ya'll Come Back, Danki.” - Karen Harper

56. “It is unfortunate that in most cases when the sins of the father fall on the son it is because unlike God, people refuse to forgive and forget and heap past wrongs upon innocent generations.” - E.A. Bucchianeri

57. “The word "Christianity" is already a misunderstanding; in reality there has been only one Christian, and he died on the cross.” - Friedrich Nietzsche

58. “She wondered how a man could look into a woman’s eyes and lie so completely, so convincingly. She wondered how he could have looked and not seen the love that had glowed there, the blind faith, the unconditional devotion. She wondered how he would sleep at night, knowing he had betrayed her so effortlessly.” - V.S. Carnes

59. “There has to be a cut-off somewhere between the freedom of expression and a graphically explicit free-for-all.” - E.A. Bucchianeri

60. “God isn't looking for perfect people. He is looking to perfect people.” - John Hileman

61. “Again, a conversation with the doctor. We always come back to the same point: "The church may not mix in politics." he says. And I tell him that when you are a Christian and profess that God is almighty, there is no single area of life from which you can eliminate God. -From the diary of Diet Eman” - Diet Eman

62. “By the end of the war, I could pick out Jewish people almost as if I had a sixth sense about it, even if they had blue eyes and blond hair. I would have been a very valuable Gestapo person.” - Diet Eman

63. “But miracles still happen, even if we don't think they do.” - Diet Eman

64. “By trying to grab fulfillment everywhere, we find it nowhere.” - Elisabeth Elliot

65. “Lord Randall barreled inside, brandishing his cane in Drew's face."You beggarly knave, I was told this marriage was in name only! Who gave you permission to consummate the vows?""Theodore Hopkin, governor of this colony, representative of the kind, and it's going to cost you plenty, for that daughter of yours is nothing but trouble. What in the blazes were you thinking to allow her an education?"Drew bit back his smile at the man's shocked expression. Nothing like landing the first punch.Lord Randall furrowed his bushy gray brows."I knew not about her education until it was too late."Drew straightened the cuffs of his shirt. "Well, be prepared to pay dearly for it. No man should have to suffer through what I do with the constant spouting of the most addlepated word puzzles you could imagine."-----------------------------------------"I require fifteen thousand pounds."Lord Randall spewed ale across the floor. "What! Surely drink has tickled your poor brain. You're a FARMER, you impudent rascal. I'll give you five thousand."Drew plopped his drink onto the table at his side, its contents sloshing over the rim. A satisfied smile broke across his face."Excellent." He stood."When will you take her back to England with you? Today? Tomorrow?"The old man's red-rimmed eyes widened. "I cannot take her back. Why, she's already birthed a child!" Drew shrugged. "Fifteen thousand or I send her AND the babe back, with or without you.” - Deeanne Gist

66. “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person's strength” - Bible, Jake

67. “Our God is Greater, Our God is Stronger, God, you are Higher than any other, Our God is Healer, Awesome in Power, Our God,Our God.” - Chris Tomlin

68. “CRUEL HARVEST by Fran Elizabeth Grubb is a compelling, riveting, unforgetable memoir that will keep you turning the pages. Published by Thomas Nelson and due for release August 2012. Kidnapped from an orphanage Frances is dragged across the country working in the fields. Youtubefrangrubb to see video book trailer.” - Fran Elizabeth Grubb

69. “His coworker was velvety-skinned, a sexy boy-on-the-cusp-of man.” - Karen Marie Moning

70. “From the pastor who has an affair with his secretary, to the jerk at the office who happens to be a deacon, to the overbearing boss who can’t miss his Monday night Bible study, Christians today cause more problems for the gospel than all the devil’s demons put together.” - Wes Moore

71. “When did wishing someone a Merry Christmas become politically incorrect?” - Suzanne Woods Fisher

72. “For though, I walk through the valley of shadows of Death, I will never fear. For You are in Me and I know You will never let me Go. ” - Jestoni Revealed

73. “On feeling guilty about lack of 'productivity':"In a time of infirmity, the illness IS one's work. Taking care of all the disciplines that our health problems require IS the other part of the small daily fidelity to which we are called, beside the faithfulness of being attentive to God. We can be well simply by our diligence in being who we are at the moment."--Marva Dawn, Being Well When We're Ill pg 137” - Marva Dawn

74. “Oftentimes people expect Christians to be perfect but the reality is...Spiritual perfection is imperfection! God then does His best work.” - Sanjo Jendayi

75. “Are you living up to your potential? God made you with potential - potential for greatness! If you do what you can do, and trust Him to do what you can't, you will grow into the person He gave you the potential to be!” - Joyce Meyer

76. “The devil has not vanished simply because people refuse to believe he exists, no more than God has...” - E.A. Bucchianeri

77. “My body kills me, so I kill it.” - Dorotheus the Theban

78. “As Christians, we are not to beg for signs and wonders but, to command them all the time and not some of the time.” - Ifeanyi Enoch Onuoha

79. “Faith reminds us that change is always possible.” - Jim Wallis

80. “Two of the greatest hungers in our world today are the hunger for spirituality and the hunger for social change. The connection between the two is the one the world is waiting for, especially the new generation. And the first hunger will empower the second.” - Jim Wallis

81. “Suddenly, as one, all the Greys stop talking and gape at Christian. What? Christian is singing softly to himself at the piano. Silence descends on us all as we strain to hear his soft, lyrical voice. I've heard him sing before, haven't they? He stops, suddenly conscious of the deathly hush that's fallen over the room. Kate glances questioningly at me and I shrug. Christian turns on the stool and frowns, embarrassed to realize he's become the center of attention.'Go on,' Grace urges softly. 'I've never heard you sing, Christian. Ever.” - E.L. James

82. “The child asks of the Father whom he knows. Thus, the essence of Christian prayer is not general adoration, but definite, concrete petition. The right way to approach God is to stretch out our hands and ask of One who we know has the heart of a Father.” - Dietrich Bonhoeffer

83. “If you have never been saved,you need to stop right where you are and admit to God that you are a sinner in need of salvation. Then ask Him for the gift of eternal life that was made available to you when Christ took your punishment and died for your sins on the cross.Whosoever will call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” - Jerry L. Ross

84. “The presence of the messianic salvation is also seen in Jesus' miracles of healing, for which the Greek word meaning "to save" is used. The presence of the Kingdom of God in Jesus meant deliverance from hemorrhage (Mk 5:34), blindness (Mk 10:52), demon possession (Lk 8:36), and even death itself (Mk 5:23). Jesus claimed that these deliverances were evidences of the presence of the messianic salvation (Mt 11:4-5). They were pledges of the life of the eschatological Kingdom that will finally mean immortality for the body. The Kingdom of God is concerned not only with people’s souls but with the salvation of the whole person.” - George Eldon Ladd

85. “The miracles of healing, important as they were, were not an end in themselves. They did not constitute the highest good of the messianic salvation. This fact is illustrated by the arrangement of the phrases in Matthew 11:4-5. Greater than deliverance of the blind and the lame, the lepers and the deaf, even than raising of the dead, was the preaching of the good news to the poor. This “gospel” was the very presence of Jesus himself, and the joy and fellowship that he brought to the poor.” - George Eldon Ladd

86. “The Mayflower sped across the white-tipped waves once the voyage was under way, and the passengers were quickly afflicted with seasickness. The crew took great delight in the sufferings of the landlubbers and tormented them mercilessly. "There is an insolent and very profane young man, Bradford wrote, "who was always harrassing the poor people in their sickness, and cursing them daily with greivous execrations." He even laughed that he hoped to 'throw half of them overboard before they came to their journey's end.' The Puritans believe a just God punished the young sailor for his cruelty when, halfway through the voyage, 'it pleased God...to smite the young man with a greivous disease, of which he died in a desperate manner." He was the first to be thrown overboard.” - Tony Williams

87. “Hurry means that we gather impressions but have no experiences, that we collect acquaintances but make no friends, that we attend meetings but experience no encounter. We must recover eternity if we are to find time, and eternity is what Jesus came to restore. For without it, there can be no charity.” - D.T. Niles

88. “He came to destroy sin because it is fatal.” - John Piper

89. “Werewolves did not consider wolves one of their own; in fact, wolves were inferior. They were hunters, strong and ravenous like them, but they weren't as big or as intelligent.” - Janiera Eldridge

90. “Hot is really not an adequate enough word for this guy. He is crazy beautiful. And it’s more than his looks—the intentionally messy waves of his dark hair; the strong eyebrows that make his expression a bit serious, even when he smiles; his eyes, which I notice can look emerald in one light and hazel in another; the sweetly sculpted angles of his face; the curve of his full lips.” - Cynthia Hand

91. “Once again, my hero. And here I’m supposed to be the one saving him.” - Cynthia Hand

92. “If I invite God into my life, I am and always will be good enough.” - Kate Wicker

93. “I'm sixteen with what I hope will be a long life ahead, but I'm willing to give it up, to give anything to let her live, to let her make it through the night.” - Travis Thrasher

94. “A hero is not measured by the lives that he has saved. A hero is measured by the number of the dead that he did not join.” - Robert J.A. Gilbert

95. “A judgment with an evil design comes about when we compare a person to our pre-conceived beliefs about what is right or wrong and then condemn that person.” - John Kuypers

96. “Our lives, as short as they may be, are a test. And one of the biggest tests we can endure is how we respond to those moments when we don’t feel the presence of God in our lives. I believe deeply that one of God’s greatest gifts is to teach us there is a purpose behind every single one of our trials or problems.Treat them as a gift, an opportunity to move forward and draw closer to God. Problems often times compel us to look to God and count on him, rather than ourselves.” - Matt Patterson

97. “The cross is proof of both the immense love of God and the profound wickedness of sin.” - John F. MacArthur Jr.

98. “God, thank you for waking me up this morning. I want to embrace every day, however limited my day may be, as a gift from God. I want to live this day to its fullest. I know there are things I can no longer do. I know I am facing daily limitations. But I want to focus on what I can do, not on what I cannot do. So help me God. I know this day will never be repeated. I know I cannot live it over again. Help me to live it to its fullest.” - Ed Dobson

99. “It is a sinful abomination for one part of the world's Christians to grow richer year by year while our brothers and sisters ache and suffer for lack of minimal health care, minimal education, and even—in some cases—enough food to escape starvation.” - Ronald J. Sider

100. “As a Christian, my highest calling is not motherhood; my highest calling is to follow Christ.” - Rachel Held Evans

101. “It’s like, it doesn't honor God to pretend like everything is OK. That’s the beauty of Jesus that so many people miss. The beauty is that he died on the cross for our sins, but also that he existed the way we exist. He understands what it’s like to lose a friend. He’s not unfamiliar with those emotions. He’s not unfamiliar with the difficulty of human life. To me that’s what makes Jesus as God beautiful. He totally understands. He went out of his way to prove to us that he understands our situation. So when he has something to say, it’s not coming from this high and lofty standpoint. It’s coming from this person who understands intricately the perils of human existence.” - John Mark McMillan

102. “The man who has God for his treasure has all things in One. Many ordinary treasures may be denied him, or if he is allowed to have them, the enjoyment of them will be so tempered that they will never be necessary to his happiness. Or if he must see them go, one after one, he will scarcely feel a sense of loss, for having the Source of all things he has in One all satisfaction, all pleasure, all delight. Whatever he may lose he has actually lost nothing, for he now has it all in One, and he has it purely, legitimately and forever.” - Tozer, A. W.

103. “Mankind has a mandate to care for the earth and all that is within it, especially the animals, and an animal should never be placed in a position where he needs to be concerned about such things. But this is not that time.” - Tara Pollard

104. “Those in the West who have adopted Christ as their own should remember that he was an Oriental. Love and sympathy for Jesus should be expanded into love and sympathy for all Orientals, and for all the world.” - Paramahansa Yogananda

105. “When you observe that the fire in your room is getting dull, you do not always put on more coal, but simply stir with the poker; so God often uses the black poker of adversity in order that the flames of devotion may burn more brightly.” - Arthur W. Pink

106. “A desperate plea to the Trinityis not something you can justapologize for in the morning-Drunk Dialing the Divine” - Amber Koneval

107. “Radical Muslims fly planes into buildings. Radical Christians kill abortion doctors. Radical Atheists write books.” - Hemant Mehta

108. “Most of [her ashes] fell into the river in a long gray curtain. But some was caught by the wind and blown upward toward the blue spring sky where it swirled a moment in the air, before dissolving into sunlight.” - Kimberly Cutter

109. “The only way to prevent pride from taking root in our heart and our life is to embrace a life filled with faith, understanding, and forgiveness.” - Heather Bixler

110. “Never give up never give in to anything that does not seems worth it because good has a plan for every little thing.” - Neiko Travis Burrowes

111. “It is one thing to read the Scriptures and affirm their truth. But until you are in the trenches of trial, until you are faced with life circumstances that test your faith, until you are pressed to the absolute limit of your physical and emotional capacity, until you face the unrelenting stress of ongoing trauma, you never really know how you'll respond to what you may have embraced so easily during a comfortable Bible study.” - Kevin Malarkey

112. “Billos ran. He tore down the shore, bounded up on the rock, and dove into the air. The warm water engulfed him. A boiling heat knocked the wind from his lungs. The shock alone might kill him. But it was pleasure that surged through his body, not pain. The sensations coursed through his bones in great unrelenting waves. Elyon. How he was certain, he did not know. But he knew. Elyon was in this lake with him. Billos opened his eyes. Gold light drifted by. He lost all sense of direction. The water pressed in on every inch of his body, as intense as any acid, but one that burned with pleasure instead of pain. He sank into the water, opened his mouth and laughed. He wanted more, much more. He wanted to suck the water in and drink it. Without thinking, he did just that. The liquid hit his lungs. Billos pulled up, panicked. He tried to hack the water from his lungs, but inhaled more instead. No pain. He carefully sucked more water and breathed it out slowly. Then again, deep and hard. Out with a soft whoosh. He was breathing the water! Billos shrieked with laughter. He swam into the lake, deeper and deeper. The power contained in this lake was far greater than anything he'd ever imagined. "I made this, Billos." Billos whipped his body around, searching for the words' source. "Elyon?" His voice was muffled, hardly a voice at all. "Do you like it?" "Yes!" Billos said. He might have spoken; he might have shouted--he didn't know. He only knew that his whole body screamed it. Billos looked around. "Elyon?" "Why do you doubt me, Billos?" In that single moment the full weight of Billos's foolishness crashed on him like a sledgehammer. "I see you, Billos." "I made you." "I love you." The words crashed over him, reaching into the deepest folds of his flesh, caressing each hidden synapse, flowing through every vein, as though he had been given a transfusion. "I choose you, Billos." Billos began to weep. The feeling was more intense than any pain he had ever felt. The current pulled at him, tugging him up through the colors. His body trembled with pleasure. He wanted to speak, to yell, to tell the whole world that he was the most fortunate person in the universe. That he was loved by Elyon. Elyon himself. "Never leave me, Billos." "Never! I will never leave you." The current pushed him through the water and then above the surface not ten meters from the shore. He stood on the sandy bottom. For a moment he had such clarity of mind that he was sure he could understand the very fabric of space if he put his mind to it. He was chosen. He was loved.” - Ted Dekker

113. “Quia amasti me, fecisti me amabilem. (In loving me, you made me lovable.)” - Brennan Manning The Furious Longing of God

114. “A Spiritual Discipline is an intentionally directed action which places us in a position to receive from God the power to do what we cannot accomplish on our own....The deep waters of God's life are already flowing. We simply learn the strokes that will enable us more and more to be at home in them....The human body is our power-pack of mind-body-spirit -- we discipline it in order to practice cooperation with God. (Life with God, p. 135-137)” - Richard Foster

115. “Worrying does not take away tomorrow’s troubles. It takes away today’s peace.” - Randy Armstrong

116. “Don't canonize me too soon. I'm perfectly capable of fathering a child.” - St. Francis Of Assisi

117. “He has chosen not to heal me, but to hold me. The more intense the pain, the closer His embrace.” - Joni Eareckson Tada

118. “If I go back home to Wittenberg, I'll lie down in a coffin and give the maggots a fat doctor to eat.” - Martin Luther

119. “The time of my departure is here. Place your hand gently on the soil beside my own, and feel the rumble of the earth beneath. The power of a thousand thousands is coming... evil warriors fighting against the Noble One. Here I stand with Him. Take up your sword and come with me, for the Prince is calling. And if you do not go... who will?” - Chuck Black

120. “There’s a beautiful poem at the beginning of a collection of books we call the Bible. In that poem, it is written: "Then God said, ‘Let us make man.’” God then recognized that it was not good for man to be alone. We can all agree on that one, I think. Loneliness is one of the most excruciating pains that the human heart, or any heart, has to go through.What did God do about it?What was His remedy?What was His answer?He created marriage. He didn’t create dating, He didn’t create courting - He created marriage.” - Cole Ryan

121. “There’s a certain worth that can only be given to us by God. You see, if you think about it, worth has nothing to do with the object. Worth has everything to do with how much someone is willing to pay for the object. God paid for each and every one of us with His son’s life. That gives me chills. That makes us worth a lot.” - Cole Ryan

122. “If you want to be an honorable man, then be what you pretend to be.” - Shannon L. Alder

123. “I realized that I could never really function fully on this earth until I understood this: Until you know WHOSE you are, you will never know WHO you are.” - Yvette R. Dempster

124. “If we are not receiving some type of ridicule for our beliefs, we are probably doing something wrong.” - Dillon Burroughs

125. “Your life clock is ticking. But you know what? God made the clock. ~ Strength Renewed” - Shirley Corder