#grace

Grace works ahead of us to draw us toward faith, to begin its work in us. Even the first fragile intuition of conviction of sin, the first intimation of our need of God, is the work of preparing, prevening grace, which draws us gradually toward wishing to please God. Grace is working quietly at the point of our desiring, bringing us in time to despair over our own unrighteousness, challenging our perverse dispositions, so that our distorted wills cease gradually to resist the gift of God. ↗

— Thomas C. Oden

#christianity #conviction #god #grace #prevenient-grace

...there is a God, there always has been. I see him here, in the eyes of the people in this [hospital] corridor of desperation. This is the real house of God, this is where those who have lost God will find Him... there is a God, there has to be, and now I will pray, I will pray that He will forgive that I have neglected Him all of these years, forgive that I have betrayed, lied, and sinned with impunity only to turn to Him now in my hour of need. I pray that He is as merciful, benevolent, and gracious as His book says He is. ↗

— Khaled Hosseini

#grace #mercy #prayer #faith

Life is grace. Sleep is forgiveness. The night absolves. Darkness wipes the slate clean, not spotless to be sure, but clean enough for another day's chalking. ↗

— Frederick Buechner

#grace #life #forgiveness

Some people are desperate because they don't know how to ask for His grace. ↗

— Bree Despain

#grace #mercy #pastor-divine #the-dark-divine #forgiveness

To be convinced in our hearts that we have forgiveness of sins and peace with God by grace alone is the hardest thing. ↗

— Martin Luther

#god #grace #forgiveness

She glanced up at him, and in that moment he pulled his wet shirt over his head. She forced her mind blank. Blank as a new sheet of paper, blank as a starless sky. He came to the fire and crouched before it. He rubbed the water from his bare arms and flicked it in the flames. She stared at the goose and sliced his drumstick carefully and thought of the blankest expression on the blankest face she could possibly imagine. It was a chilly evening; she thought about that. The goose would be delicious, they must eat as much of it as possible, they must not waste it; she thought about that. ↗

— Kristin Cashore

#graceling #katsa #po #imagination

But when women are moved and lend help, when women, who are by nature calm and controlled, give encouragement and applause, when virtuous and knowledgeable women grace the endeavor with their sweet love, then it is invincible. ↗

— Jose Marti

#calm #controlled #encouragement #endeavor #give

A graceful taunt is worth a thousand insults. ↗

— Louis Nizer

#insults #thousand #worth

Poverty us no disgrace to a man, but it is confoundedly inconvenient. ↗

— Sydney Smith

#inconvenient #man #poverty #us

I seek constantly to improve my manners and graces, for they are the sugar to which all are attracted. ↗

— Og Mandino

#constantly #graces #i #improve #manners