"Art is a collaboration between God and the artist, and the less the artist does the better."

-Andre Gide

John 16:33

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

John 16:33

Titus 3:3-5

"At One time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy."

Titus 3:3-5

Romans 12:12

"Be joyful in hope,
Patient in affliction,
Faithful in prayer."

Romans 12:12

2 Corinthians 4:16-18

"Therefore we do not lose heart, though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Ecclesiastes 3:14

"I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it."

Ecclesiastes 3:14

2 Corinthians 7:4b

"I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds."

2 Corinthians 7:4b

Ecclesiastes 8:17

"Then I saw all that God has done. No one can comprehend what goes on under the sun. Despite all his efforts to search it out, man cannot discover its meaning. Even if a wise man claims he knows, he cannot really comprehend it."

Ecclesiastes 8:17

Ephesians 3:17b-21

"I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wise and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge- that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."

Ephesians 3:17b-21

Ephesians 4:9-10

"What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe."

Ephesians 4:9-10

Ephesians 4:32-5:2b

"Be kind and compassionate to one another,

forgiving each other,
just as in Christ God forgave you.

Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children

and live a life of love,
just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us…"

Ephesians 4:32-5:2b

Philippians 3:8-11

"I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ- the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead."

Philippians 3:8-11

"The artist who aims at perfection in everything achieves it in nothing."

-Eugene Delacroix

My Soul Purpose (Ch. 2)

Quotes from "My Soul Purpose" by Richard Leslie Parrott.

"When you have time with the one you love, how tempting and disappointing it is to focus attention and energy on "what we will do today." The more significant purpose and value is simply being together. How many honeymoons have been marred or family vacations ruined because attention was focused on the itinerary instead of intimacy. The same is true of your soul's life. Some people concentrate on getting things done for themselves, for others, or even for God, to the neglect of answering the invitation to live in God."

"Often, prayer changes things because you are changed in prayer." 

"When you enter the soul, you remain in darkness as long as you clutch the weapons of the outer life in your hands. It is an inner act of trust; turn loose of all you have. Turn loose of your achievements and failures. Turn a deaf ear to the praise and rebuke of others. Let it go and you will find what you need. You will discover the light, the truth."

"To escape dealing with hatred and fear, you set up defenses. Defenses serve as emotional and relational drugs that we believe we need in order to survive. The defensive posture serves two purposes, to be rewarded and protected. In one moment, you want both: to get on the radar, yet remain hidden under it. You want to be notices and invisible. The motivating factors are to maintain control and protect your security. You feel impelled to control the sources of potential pain and rewards while insulating yourself from your worst fears and deepest resentments. Defenses attempt to create a life that is comfortable and filled with happy assurances." 

"When God's story touches your story, your story is changed." 

"Pray that God's kingdom will be the core of your being, the fountain of true value. Your eternal worth is not in your accomplishments or acknowledgements, but in the single fact that God's kingdom of love is advancing in your life and in the world."

"Don't do what the world needs you to do.
Find out what keeps you alive and do that.
For what the world needs is you, full of life!"

-Howard Thurman

"Our Spiritual life is His affair; because, whatever we may think to the contrary, it is really produced by His steady attraction, and our humble and self-forgetful response to it. It consists in being drawn, at his pace and in his way, to the place where he wants us to be; not the place we fancied for ourselves."

-Evelyn Underhill

"Our Father, give us the faith to believe that it is possible to live victoriously even in the midst of dangerous opportunity that we call crisis.
Help us to see that there is something better that patient endurance or keeping a stiff upper lip, and that whistling in the dark is not really bravery.
Bless us with the greatness of humility that we may feel no shame in expressing our need of a living God.
Forgive the pride that causes us to strut about like knights in shining armor when we know full well we are but beggars in tattered rags.
Plant a seed of faith in us today and nurture it that it may grow. Then, trusting in thee may we have the faith that goes singing in the rain, knowing that all things work together for good to them that love thee."

-Carlo Carretto

"There are people who try to raise their souls like a man continually taking standing jumps in the hopes that , if he jumps higher every day, a time may come when he will no longer fall back but will go right up the sky. Thus occupied he cannot look at the sky. He cannot take a single step toward heaven. It is not our power to travel in a vertical direction. If, however, we look heavenward for a long time, God comes and takes us up. He raises us easily.

-Simone Weil

My Soul Purpose (Ch. 1)

I am reading "My Soul Purpose" by Richard Leslie Parrott.
My hair dresser actually gave it to me to read.
So far, I'm loving it. It's speaking truth into many areas in my life that I have been praying about.
I just want to share some of my favorite parts of what I read as I go along.
It will also be nice for me to use as a quick reference to go back and re-read in the future.

"Beneath my Educated, professional, competent, and genuine concern for others, the facts, failures, and falsehood if my own life rose up to face me."

"The only way to humanly relate to God is through you: your fears, your failures, and your falsehood, as well as your trust, your commitment, and your potential."

"Energized by the presence of God, the soul's purpose is to bring your true and best in Christ to life every day."

"A deep, rich soul life births and matures authentic living."

"The soul's strength of authentic vitality is characterized by inner compassion, commitment, confidence, and courage."

"When the soul's vitality is drained, the inner compassion that supports healthy relationships gives way to apathy and cynicism. Life withers in the soul and concern for the good of others and the greater good of all dissolves into selfish ambition, toxic interactions, and dangerous, personal isolation.
When the soul loses vitality, the strength of inner commitment which births and matures good character, gives way to pervasive emptiness. The needle on the inner compass spins, unable to find true north. Ethical breakdowns litter the highways that connect home, commerce, and government.
When the vitality of the soul recedes, inner confidence, the spring that feeds personal and meaningful purpose in life, gives way to a feeling of powerlessness. It leaves you feeling like a victim waiting for rescue. It turns the holy calling of life into a quite, desperate search for the next means of escape from the pain and fear.
When soul vitality wanes, the inner courage that strengthens mature wisdom gives way to low-level anxiety that permeates life. The fear is masked in a multitude of defenses. Appearing incognito, anxiety puts life under its cold hand of control. Inner wisdom is silenced, and the need to control the pain is made master."

"Receive God into your fears. Recognize Him and welcome Him. The life of the soul is not about appearing strong, but facing weakness, especially fear. The Scripture promises "...perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment" (1 John 4:18). God's love can drive out fear if you confess the fear in your soul and receive God's love."

"Your soul is bound in eternal allegiance to God. God loves you and longs to take residence in your soul. God, the creator, has chosen to work in you to create your life. You have the privilege of cooperating with God."

"I see quite clearly that I owe my present inner happiness,
my peace, my confidence and my joy essentially to one fact:
I am certain that I am infinitely loved by God."

-Douglas V. Steere