The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Romans 8:16

From Abba's Child, by Brennan Manning

The sorrow of God lies in our fear of Him, our fear of life, and our fear of ourselves.

God weeps over us when shame and self-hatred immobilize us.

It is uncomfortable and intolerable to confront our true selves.

The impostor tells us to stop being our real selves because nobody likes me as I am.

In Love's service, only wounded soldiers can serve.

We stand in the Truth that sets us free and live out of the Reality that makes us whole.

It is sin to, in our cowardly refusal, to, out of fear of rejection, to think, feel, act, respond, and live from my authentic self.

The deepest desire of our hearts if for union with God.

Prayer is death to every identity that does not come from God.

He is the Savior who saves us from ourselves. His Word is freedom.

I am the Son of Compassion. You belong to Me and no one will tear you from My hand.

We are often tempted to stuff our feelings, shut down our memories, withhold our opinions, and develop social graces.

Sanctity is essentially the nobility of the soul.

Our true self is unself-conscious, unpretentious, immersed in life, absorbed in the present moment, breathing in God as naturally as a fish swimming in water.

Thomas Merton:

"God is asking me, the unworthy, to forget my unworthiness and that of my brothers, and dare to advance in the love which has redeemed and renewed us all in God's likeness and to laugh, after all, at the preposterous ideas of worthiness. ''

Define yourself radically as one beloved of God.

My only desire is to make these words reverberate in every corner of your being--"You are the Beloved"

But you have been so busy trying to prove to yourself yo uare loved that you have not heard me.

Our souls are suffused with glory.

...the God who grabs scalawags and ragamuffins by the scruff of the neck and raises them up to seat them with the princes and princesses of His people

how we view ourselves at any given moment may have very little to do with who we really are

Is my life a disappointment to You? Are You grieved by the shallowness of my soul?

Tenderness awakens within the security of knowing we are thoroughly and sincerely liked by someone.

Oh yes, my Abba is fond of me.

To open yourself to another person, to stop lying about your loneliness and your fears, to be honest about your affections, and to tell others how much they mean to you--this openness is the triumph of the child over the pharisee, and a sign of the dynamic presence of the Holy Spirit.

We have spread so many ashes over the historical Jesus that we scarcely feel the glow of His presence anymore.

The risen One is more intimate to me than I am to myself.

The heart of Jesus beats the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Sloth is our refusal to go on the inward journey--a paralysis that results from choosing to protect ourselves from passion.

The love of Jesus Christ alone establishes status and confers dignity.

Infatuation derives from the Latin in-fatuus--'to make foolish'

I sank down into the center of my soul, grew still, and listened to the Rabbi's heartbeat.

Intelligence without courage is bankrupt.

Anthony of Padua-
Of what value is learning that does not turn to love?

Our love is a need; His is a gift. Thomas Merton

He is not a refuge from reality but the Way into its depths.