Faith

"Of course, Mary Magdalene would have very little tolerance for the Christian platitudes and vapid optimism that seem to swirl around these kinds of tragic events. Those platitudes are tempting, but they're nothing but luxuries for people who've never had demons (or at least have never admitted to them). But equally, she would reject nihilism, or the idea that there is no real meaning in life or death - ideas present in so much of postmodernity. Those ideas, too, are luxuries, but they are for those who have never been freed from demons."

"Amri ya Kristo ilipima imani ya yule kipofu, ikiithibitisha na kuiimarisha. Bila kuchelewa au kusita, kipofu alitii amri ya Mungu: Alikwenda kuosha macho yake katika bwawa la Siloamu na aliona. Wengi wanaweza kuona ni kazi ya kipuuzi kwa mtu ambaye ni kipofu kufanya kazi ndogo kama hiyo ili aone. Lakini kwa vile alitii, kipofu alipona. Baraka huja kupitia utii. Kwa maana nyingine, kipofu alimtii Yesu bila kuona. Lakini matokeo yake, alipata kuona papohapo; ambapo baadaye, hatimaye, alipokea uponyaji halisi wa kiroho."

"I carried a bravado about my drinking like I was a hero of debauchery. But on that Christmas Day, I felt like shit. I had a vague realisation that I was just trying to keep up with some version of myself that I had decided was accurate."

"Turns out, I wasn't the only one struggling with doubt. I wasn't the only one questioning my church's position on homosexuality and gender roles, and a whole host of other issues. I wasn't the only one who felt lonely on Sunday mornings."

"I played my role as the good Christian girl and spared everyone the drama of an argument. But that decision to remain silent split me in two. It convinced me that I could never really be myself in church. That I had to check my heart and mind at the door."

"My former bishop Allan Bjorberg once said that the greatest spiritual practice isn't yoga or praying the hours or living in intentional poverty, although these are all beautiful in their own way. The greatest spiritual practice is just showing up. And Mary Magdalene is the patron saint of just showing up. Showing up, to me, means being present to what is real, what is actually happening. Mary Magdalene didn't necessarily know what to say or what to do or even what to think when she encountered the risen Jesus. But none of that was nearly as important as the fact that she was present and attentive to him."

"There were moments when it hurt so bad you couldn’t breathe, yet somehow you survived the pain. There were days when you could barely put one foot in front of the other, yet somehow you arrived at your destination. There were nights when you cried yourself to sleep, yet somehow you held on until the morning. Your life is nothing less than a miracle."

"Always carry champagne! In victory You deserve it & in defeat You need it!"

"A colorful body with fabrics, tattoos and jewelry is attractive, but a colorful heart with love, truth and faith is beautiful."

"Prayers bring comfort, not change. Change requires tangible human efforts."

"Believers believe in their own selves first- that’s the foundation for believing in others. For achieving anything, you have to have self confidence and faith in your own self."

"Love is the unity of two souls but one spirit."

"You have to go through the fires to be tested by faith."

"Live can only be fully lived by faith in the spirit of love."

"If we put faith in Christ Jesus, we are justified by faith in Christ."

"Faith is a fertile field."

"Whoever blessings, shall be abundantly blessed."

"Without faith, we faint."

"Whoever believed in Jesus Christ, shall be justified by faith in Son of God."

"I don't understand how can people hold faith and reasoning in the same head. To my understanding, faith, like love, is blind."