Quotessence
Home / Books / Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith

Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith

Book by Henri J.M. Nouwen · 4 quotes · Christianity, God, Solitude

Filter quotes by topic

AllChristianityGodSolitudeRelationshipsCommunityCompassionJesusPovertyAttentionAuthorityBe YourselfBelovedBusyClosenessComparisonContradictionsEmpathyFriendshipHospitalityImmanuel

Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith Quotes

“How can we embrace poverty as a way to God when everyone around us wants to become rich? Poverty has many forms. We have to ask ourselves: 'What is my poverty?' Is it lack of money, lack of emotional stability, lack of a loving partner, lack of security, lack of safety, lack of self-confidence? Each human being has a place of poverty. That’s the place where God wants to dwell! 'How blessed are the poor,' Jesus says (Matthew 5:3). This means that our blessing is hidden in our poverty. We are so inclined to cover up our poverty and ignore it that we often miss the opportunity to discover God, who dwells in it. Let’s dare to see our poverty as the land where our treasure is hidden.”

GodChristianityPovertyPoor In Spirit
Book:Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith
Create image

“Many voices ask for our attention. There is a voice that says, 'Prove that you are a good person.' Another voice says, 'You’d better be ashamed of yourself.' There also is a voice that says, 'Nobody really cares about you,' and one that says, 'Be sure to become successful, popular, and powerful.' But underneath all these often very noisy voices is a still, small voice that says, 'You are my Beloved, my favor rests on you.' That’s the voice we need most of all to hear. To hear that voice, however, requires special effort; it requires solitude, silence, and a strong determination to listen. That’s what prayer is. It is listening to the voice that calls us 'my Beloved'.”

GodPrayerSilenceSolitudeBeloved
Book:Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith
Create image

“The many contradictions in our lives – such as being home while feeling homeless, being busy while feeling bored, being popular while feeling lonely, being believers while feeling many doubts – can frustrate, irritate, and even discourage us. They make us feel that we are never fully present. Every door that opens for us makes us see how many more doors are closed. But there is another response. These same contradictions can bring us into touch with a deeper longing, for the fulfillment of a desire that lives beneath all desires and that only God can satisfy. Contradictions, thus understood, create the friction that can help us move toward God.”

GodLongingParadoxContradictions
Book:Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith
Create image

“One of the reasons that hiddenness is such an important aspect of the spiritual life is that it keeps us focused on God. In hiddenness we do not receive human acclamation, admiration, support, or encouragement. In hiddenness we have to go to God with our sorrows and joys and trust that God will give us what we most need. In our society we are inclined to avoid hiddenness. We want to be seen and acknowledged. We want to be useful to others and influence the course of events. But as we become visible and popular, we quickly grow dependent on people and their responses and easily lose touch with God, the true source of our being. Hiddenness is the place of purification. In hiddenness we find our true selves.”

GodChristianitySolitude
Book:Bread for the Journey: A Daybook of Wisdom and Faith
Create image