Truth
“There’s a fundamental difference between the need to convince someone and the need to convey the truth. Truth, being the fullness of knowledge and unchangeable in its integrity, doesn’t need to convince. Therefore, when Christ was asked by Pilate: What is truth?, He didn’t respond (Jn. 18:38). That’s not how it goes for people gripped by the need to convince others they’re right—convictions that can be nothing more than simple ideas, not stemming from any personal experience
Tears
“Jesus wept. These two words show that God arranged the salvation of people not coldly and indifferently, not because He had to, was forced to, but because He desired this fervently. Christ's tears reveal the Lord's inner world: He loves His creation, He grieves that death deforms people, separates them from one another, brings anguish and melancholy into the world, and deprives people of happiness…Jesus's tears show that God does not fit into the framework of human deductive
God's Personal Nature
“God is not an idea, something that we think about, that we discuss or read about, but a Person with Whom we come into living and personal communion. It is something we live, and somebody from Whom we receive experience. Then we see what a great, unspeakable and inexpressible joy it is to have Christ within us.” (Archimandrite George) “Christ did not come to bring us a philosophy from God. He did not provide us with mere proverbs or good advice. He came to reveal God the Fath
Praise and Popularity
“When we do something well, we want to tell others and be recognized. But recognition is dangerous—it can lead to inflated pride…Often...
Intimacy and Knowing
“To know and be known by another is a deep desire of the heart. This desire is implanted in us by God. He tells Jeremiah, “Before I...