“If it weren't for all the setbacks and problems of life, there would be nothing to look forward to.”

“A setback is a lesson to push you forward.”

“Whatever setbacks he had faced in his life, he said, however daunting or dispiriting the unfolding of events, he always knew that he would make it through, as long as when he woke in the morning he was looking forward to his first cup of coffee. Only decades later would I realize that he had been giving me a piece of advice.”

“In all the setbacks of your life as a believer, God is plotting for your joy.”

“He seemed to be waiting for me to move forward. Weren't we all.”

“I am magnificently prepared for the long littleness of life. There is diddley-squat for me to look forward to. Zilch, zero, zip-all, sweet lipperty-pipperty nothing. The only thought that will give me the energy to carry on is that someone has a life which would be diminished by my departure from it.”