You are not conscious of the messages that God is sending to you through me. He is giving you great graces, and you do not comprehend them. Pray to the Holy Spirit for enlightenment. If you only knew how great are the graces God is granting you, you would be praying without ceasing. Our Lady of Medjugorie, November 8, 1984. Words from Heaven, P.5.
It is your grace that teaches us the truth, tells us what rule of life to follow, brings light to our hearts and comfort in our troubles; it drives away sadness, washes away fear, feeds our devotion and moves us to tears of repentance. Without it, what am I but a tree without rain, a useless bit of timber fit only to be thrown out? Thomas A Kempis, III.55.6
(...) although I am always making good resolutions, yet through the lack of grace to help my weakness, I recoil in failure at the least sign of opposition. Thomas A Kempis, Imitation of Christ, III.55.3
The gifts of nature are shared by good and bad alike, whereas grace, or love, is given especially to God's chosen; those who bear its mark are thought worthy of eternal life. Thomas A Kempis, III.55.4
So then, before everything you do, you ought willingly to place yourself in God's hands as an offering, if you desire to win freedom and grace. Thomas A Kempis, IV.8.2
But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, long-suffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth. Ps 86:15
O Lord! You always inspire and direct my intellect towards the righteous path so that I escape evil deeds. Make my memory sharp so that I always cherish your nectar-like teachings and your sweet and playful activities in my mind. I always yearn for your graciousness. Lord O Mine! Shower Thy Grace on me. Bless me! Bless me! Shanti Vachan Bhandar, 655.
A spiritual striver aspiring for Lord's grace must acquire the following virtues: Abdicate cleverness and acquire simplicity, bind yourself within the limits of the Lord's commands, cultivate tolerance, patience, contentment, humanitarian outlook, forego lethargy, seek holy company and abide by the rules of concentration and meditation. When man abides these virtues in his practical life, the Lord reigns over his heart's throne, making his life ever blissful. Shanti Vachan Bhandar, 708.
Grace is most beneficial, no doubt of it, when stored in silence during this uncertain life, a life that is nothing but temptation and warfare. Thomas A Kempis, Imitation of Christ, III.45.5
Of course, it is impossible in this life to see and possess God fully but, with His grace and in His own time, it is possible to taste something of Him as He is in Himself. The Cloud of Unknowing, P.60.
Those times that you are occupied with material things, no matter how good in themselves, you must realize that you are occupied with that which is exterior to you and beneath you in the hierarchy of nature. At other times you will be introspectively absorbed in the subtle variations of your consciousness. (...) At such times you are involved with what is interior to you and on a par with you as man. But there will come times when your mind is free of involvement with anything material or spiritual and totally taken up with the being of God Himself. (...) at such times you transcend yourself, becoming almost divine, though you remain beneath God. (...) because you have gained by grace what is impossible to you by nature, for this union with God in spirit, in love, and in oneness of desire is the gift of grace. The Cloud of Unknowing, P.134-135.
Leave your thought quite naked, your affection uninvolved, and your self simply as you are, so that grace may touch and nourish you with the experimental knowledge of God as He really is. The Book of Privy Counseling, P.151.
(...) God never violates our free will. It is up to us whether we want to receive God's grace or not. It is up to us whether we will cooperate with it or waste it. Faustina Kowalska, The Diary, 1107.
(...) by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me has not been in vain. 1Cor 15:10.
The winds of God's grace are always blowing; it is for us to raise our sails. Ramakrishna, quoted after: Novak Philip, The World's Wisdom, P.41.
Divine Grace, the healing and illuminating energy that rains down ceaselessly upon the human mind, heart, and soul, cannot be absorbed or assimilated by the high, rocky hill of personal interest and personal importance. Ramakrishna, quoted after: Novak Philip, The World's Wisdom, P.42.
God's grace is the beginning, the middle and the end. When you pray for God's grace, you are like someone standing neck-deep in water and yet crying for water. It is like saying that someone neck-deep in water feels thirsty, or that a fish in water feels thirsty, or that water feels thirsty. Ramana Maharishi, quoted after: Novak Philip, The World's Wisdom, P.48.
He who has realized the Atman becomes a storehouse of great power. From him as a center a spiritual force emanates, working within a certain radius; people who come within this circle become inspired by his ideas and are overwhelmed by them. Thus without much religious striving they derive benefit from the spiritual experience of an illuminated person. This is called grace. Vivekananda, quoted in: Nikhilananda, Vivekananda, A Biography, P.169.
The inner search is from You.
The blind are cured by Your gift.
Without our searching, You gave us this search.
Rumi, Mathnawi I, 1337-1338, quoted in: Helminski, Kabir (2000). The Rumi Collection. P.61.
(...) Grace never ceases to help us secretly; but to do good - as far as lies in our power - depends on us. St. Mark the Ascetic (4th Century C.E.), quoted in: The Philokalia, Vol. I., P.130.
Again, grace may be hidden in advice given by a neighbor. Sometimes it also accompanies our understanding during reading, and as a natural result teaches our intellect the truth about itself. If, then, we do not hide the talent given to us in this way, we shall enter actively into the joy of the Lord. St. Mark the Ascetic (4th Century C.E.), quoted in: The Philokalia, Vol. I., P.130.
Here I sit on the balcony over the sea, sipping coffee, feeling the warm sun, and the cool breeze - enjoying this bit of paradise. Deep down in some little corner of my soul there is a voice urging me to feel a bit guilty. (...). We tend to find it difficult to simply receive good things, especially when they are so completely undeserved. Pennington, Basil. (1978). O Holy Mountain! Journal of a Retreat on Mount Athos. P.72.
Last updated: 2008/03/04
See the related subjects: God's Attributes