“Hold everything in your hands lightly, otherwise it hurts when God pries your fingers open.”

“Your pain could be God prying open your life and heart to remove a gift of His that you've been holding on to more dearly than Him.”

“Everybody Hurts When the day is long and the night, the night is yours alone,When you're sure you've had enough of this life, well hang onDon't let yourself go, 'cause everybody cries and everybody hurts sometimesSometimes everything is wrong. Now it's time to sing alongWhen your day is night alone, (hold on, hold on)If you feel like letting go, (hold on)When you think you've had too much of this life, well hang on'Cause everybody hurts. Take comfort in your friendsEverybody hurts. Don't throw your hand. Oh, no. Don't throw your handIf you feel like you're alone, no, no, no, you are not aloneIf you're on your own in this life, the days and nights are long,When you think you've had too much of this life to hang onWell, everybody hurts sometimes,Everybody cries. And everybody hurts sometimesAnd everybody hurts sometimes. So, hold on, hold onHold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold onEverybody hurts. You are not alone”

“My friend Adele describes fundamentalism as holding so tightly to your beliefs that your fingernails leave imprints on the palm of your hand... I think she's right. I was a fundamentalist not because of the beliefs I held but because of how I held them: with a death grip. It would take God himself to finally pry them out of my hands. (p.17-18)”

“Relationships - of all kinds - are like sand held in your hand. Held loosely, with an open hand, the sand remains where it is.The minute you close your hand and squeeze tightly to hold on, the sand trickles through your fingers. You may hold onto it, but most will be spilled. A relationship is like that. Held loosely, with respect and freedom for the other person, it is likely to remain intact. But hold too tightly, too possessively, and the relationship slips away and is lost.”

“Books. People have no idea how beautiful books are. How they taste on your fingers. How bright everything is when you light it with words.”