Quotessence
Home / Books / Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose

Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose

Book by Michael J Heil · 21 quotes · Drugs, Sex, Emotions

Filter quotes by topic

AllDrugsSexEmotionsWellbeingApprovalConsequencesPeaceUniverseAddictionChangeChoseCoreDarknessEternalFailureGuiltHealHeartHelpHope

Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose Quotes

“Looking up into the infinite splendor, I couldn’t help but notice the stars dancing with light, as harmonious in their movements as an orchestra. The purple, black, blue, yellow, and golden streaks of light melted together into a glimmering pool so thick you could drink it. Each beam of light flickering through countless light years of time and space, each star shining so huge that it could fit tens, billions, or even quadrillions of earth-sized planets into it, so huge and significant and yet, at the very same moment, smaller than the point of a needle. I couldn’t help but be in awe.”

AweHarmoniousSplendorGlimmering
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“I had failed more times than I could count. I had turned from Him both intentionally and unintentionally. Yet He kept coming at me, saying, “I’m not giving up on you. Your failures will never define you, nor will your successes. You are not hopeless, nor will you ever be, because I am with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. I will not let you slip from my hands. You can ignore me, you can defy me, you can be unfaithful, but nothing will deter my love for you.”

My Love For YouFailedIntentionally
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“Samuel responded compassionately, “I’m here because I care about you. I want you to have a bright life and future. I spend time with you because I see that you’re hurting inside, and you lack guidance. When I was your age, someone sought me out and helped me tackle the lies in my life and fight my way through them and find hope again. I believe that there’s hope for you and I want to help you get unstuck the same way they helped me.”

CareFutureGuidanceHelpBrightUnstuck
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“I couldn’t help but wonder if the God who had been answering my prayers, cleaning my slate, and erasing the evidence against me, even that which was entwined in my very blood, also made all of this. If He made it all, He must also be bigger than all of it. And yet, somehow, it seemed that this great Being was willing to be intimately involved in my life.”

EvidencePrayersErasing
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“I tried to think and hope for the best, but it didn’t change who I was. It didn’t change my core, my desires, my actions, nor my life, for that matter. Did it matter how many nice thoughts I put out into the universe if I remained a self-centered prick? Did it matter how many “selfless” thoughts and deeds I had if the only reason I performed them was to benefit myself, or gain a better future for myself?”

HopeChangeCoreBestBenefitDid It Matter
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“Common sense told me that I didn’t want to lie to my family constantly, steal all the time, and drug myself into a coma. Common sense also told me that if I didn’t want to keep making these same stupid mistakes, I would need to change and stop performing the same stupid actions. But I didn’t have the power or discipline to change. So, I kept doing the same things over and over, each time feeling more hopeless than before.”

DrugMistakesLieSteal
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“I went to a few AA meetings and realized that, in essence, the Twelve Steps were supposed to teach me how to have a conscience, how to care about things other than myself, how to correct my mistakes and act with honor and integrity, as well as how to understand good behavior and taking responsibility for bad behavior. They taught me how to understand a sense of “good” that went beyond my personal feelings, lusts, desires, and opinions. These very basic concepts of good and bad gave me a concrete foundation.”

CareHonorIntegrityMistakesCorrect
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“Tears dripped down my face as I realized He died for me when I was at my worst. He didn’t die for a good, well-put-together man, He loved and died for a junkie kid who was selfish. Not only did He die for me when I was snorting ketamine off a girl’s butt and being a sleaze bag, but He made sure she sat on the ketamine so that when I snorted it, there wasn’t enough to kill me.”

WorstTearsSelfishJunkieKill Me SoftlyKetamine
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“In an instant, I suddenly knew it was all true. He was real, and in Him was the life I’d been longing for, one of purpose, meaning, and hope. I could lean on Him. Whatever I might face, He would hold me through it all. He would lead me in a dance that would free me from all the weights holding me down, from all the sin eating me up. He would show me true joy, peace, and delight. He would lead me out of death and into life.”

LifeRealJoyPeaceLongingDanceInstantFreeLeadLean
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“If you use sex outside its proper context, it will hijack your emotions, get you into a bunch of stupid situations, and eventually control your wellbeing. I’m sure you’ve been hurt by all sorts of relationships in the past, and they’ve probably torn you up, caused you to get into fights, ate away at your self-worth, made you sick to your stomach. Well, that’s why. Acknowledgement and appreciation are legitimate needs, but sleeping around is not the way to meet them.”

SexHurtEmotionsAppreciationSelf WorthWellbeingLegitimateConttext
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“In moments of compromise and failure, my positive affirmations flip-flopped around in my mind like fish out of the water. In those moments, I could not remain positive, so the affirmations I tried to persuade myself with were empty and misleading more than anything else. In some moments, if I were to force myself to be positive, I would be lying to myself. I would be neglecting reality. Life wasn’t always good, and I wasn’t always happy. Was something wrong with me because of that fact, or is that just how life is? Positive psychology was good, but it was not enough.”

RealityPositiveFailureCompromise
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“After that first night, I expected not to see them again, as the campus was massive, and none of us had the same major. None of us lived near one another and all of us were in different grades. Yet, everywhere I went, I kept running into these same three individuals. Even though there were well over 30,000 students on campus, these same three popped up everywhere I went. At first, it seemed like an uncanny coincidence. My whole life had been void of these types of caricatures, now they were everywhere. In reality, God was pursuing me; He refused to let me slip through the cracks.”

RealityUncannyEverywherePursuing
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“To be known wholly and completely by the Creator of all things; to face the reality that He sees our every thought, deed, and idle word, and still wants us and He is willing to look past who we are and what we’ve done, and die for us, to be valued like this is the greatest feat in life. This promise is not only for those who have gotten their act together, but for any willing to trust in Him.”

RealityKnownPromiseCreatorCompletelyValued
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“He loved me as I was; He had reached into my darkness and sat with me there. He didn’t blame me for my faults or struggles. He hadn’t grown impatient with my endless cycles of failure, and He wasn’t going to. He didn’t show me this kindness because of my good qualities or characteristics, or because I had potential. He didn’t save me because of my track record, but in spite of it.”

DarknessStrugglesLoved
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“I realized I’d been teetering on a cliff for a very long time now. I needed to find something stable to build my life on, something solid and reliable. I would need help, but after tonight, I realized I hadn’t ever been entirely alone in this battle. At first light, the moment the hue of the darkness began to lift, I forced myself to get up and take my first wobbly step towards freedom.”

DarknessStableCliffTeeteringWobbly Balance
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“Jesus offers a type of peace that the world cannot offer (John 14:27). The “peace” that the world gives is fleeting and never fully satisfies. The peace that Jesus gives is real and lasting. It’s everything you’ve been looking for. I can promise you that.”

RealJesusPeaceLastingEverything
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image

“No picture could have more aptly described the feeling of transcendent peace that I felt that day. I was beginning to grow fond of these little love nudges that God kept sending in my direction. I used to be completely incapable of seeing these things, but I was starting to see signs like these more often. Each time I did, I felt like God was winking at me. Not in an attempt to get my attention, but as a reminder that He was near, that He would remain faithful even if I were not. I wondered how many times He’d displayed acts like this before to a blind audience?”

PeaceWinkingFondNudges
Book:Pursued: God’s relentless pursuit and a drug addict’s journey to finding purpose
Create image