Clothed in Virtue

  "Lord, I am Yours, and I must belong to no one but You. My soul is Yours, and must live only for You. I must love You as my first cause, since I am from You. I must love You as my end and rest, since I am for You. I must love You more than my own being, since my being subsists by You. I must love You more than myself, since I am all Yours and all in You." - St. Francis De Sales * "My God, if I knew that even one fiber of my heart did not beat for you, I would tear it out at once and throw it far from me." - St. Francis de Sales * “Everything that has no bearing on eternity is mere vanity.” - St. Francis de Sales * "It is a pity to sow vain and foolish affections in our heart's soil. They usurp the place of worthwhile interest and hinder the sap of our soul being used for good inclinations. I do not hold that we can never use these things, but I say that we can never put our affection on them without damage to devotion. When a man's heart is burdened w...

  "To make us appreciate more keenly the necessity to turn our eyes to eternal blessings, God has filled our hearts with desires so vast and so magnificent that nothing in creation is capable of satisfying them. Thus it is that in the hope of finding some pleasure, we attach ourselves to created objects and that we have no sooner possessed and sampled that which we have so ardently desired than we turn to something else, hoping to find what we wanted. We are, then, through our own experience, constrained to admit that it is but useless for us to want to derive our happiness here below from transient things. If we hope to have any consolation in this world, it will only be by despising the things which are passing and which have no lasting value and in striving towards the noble and happy end for which God has created us. Do you want to be happy, my friends? Fix your eyes on Heaven; it is there that your hearts will find that which will satisfy them completely." - St. John Via...

  "Do not think that you live in the world to have fun, to become rich, to eat, drink and sleep. The end for which you were created in the first place is infinitely more noble and sublime, and it is this: to love and serve God in this life, and that way save your soul." - St. John Bosco “Let’s go on as we have done so far and leave everything in God’s hands. He will let us know when to change course.” - St. John Bosco

  "I fear only one thing---to keep my own will; take it, my God, for I choose all that You choose." - St. Thèrése of Lisieux “Now abandonment alone guides me, I have no other compass! I can no longer ask for anything with fervor except the accomplishment of God’s will in my soul.” - St. Thèrése of Lisieux “After seven years in the religious life, I still am weak and imperfect. I always feel, however, the same bold confidence of becoming a great saint because I don't count on my merits since I have none, but I trust in Him who is Virtue and Holiness. God alone, content with my weak efforts, will raise me to Himself and make me a saint, clothing me in His infinite merits.”  - St. Thèrése of Lisieux

“I’m not asking you to do anything more than look at Him.” - St. Teresa of Avila “O Jesus, how long is man’s life, although we say that it is short! It is short, O my God, since by it we are to gain a life without end; but it seems very long to the soul who aspires to be with You quickly...” - St. Teresa of Avila “Whoever makes a habit of prayer should only think of doing everything to conform his will to God’s. Be assured that in this conformity consists the highest perfection that we can attain, and those who practice it with the greatest care will be favored with God’s greatest gift and will make the quickest progress in the interior life. Do not imagine that there are other secrets. All our good consists in this.” - St. Teresa of Avila “Lord, You see how often I fail, but I am never astonished at it ... I enter into myself and say: Alas, I am once more at the first step as before! But I say this in great peace without sadness, because I know that You know perfectly how fragile is o...

 

“‘A fool,’ says the Holy Spirit, ‘is changed as the moon; but a holy man continueth in wisdom as the sun.’ (Eccus. 27:12). The fool, that is, the sinner, is as changeable as the moon, today he laughs, tomorrow he cries; today he is meek as a lamb, tomorrow cross as a bear. Why? Because his peace of mind depends on the prosperity or the adversity he meets; he changes with the changes in the things that happen to him. The just man is like the sun, constant in his serenity, no matter what betides him. His calmness of soul is founded on his union with the will of God; hence he enjoys unruffled peace. This is the peace promised by the angel of the Nativity: “And on earth, peace to men of good will.” (Luke 2:14). Who are these “men of good will” if not those whose wills are united to the infinitely good and perfect will of God?” - St. Alphonsus Liguori, Uniformity With God’s Will “When I think that Thou, the Son of God, did lead a life of such tribulation upon this earth, so poor and neglect...

“Make me understand, O Lord, that beauty and all other gifts of creatures are but dust; that their charm and attractiveness are only smoke and wind, and that I must esteem them for what they are, so as not to fall into vanity. In all these things help me to direct my heart to You, joyfully and cheerfully, remembering that You are, and have in Yourself, all beauties and graces in a most infinite degree; You are infinitely high above all created things, for, as David says, ‘They are all like a garment which shall grow old and pass away, and You alone remain immutable forever.’” - St. John of the Cross, Ascent of Mount Caramel “God has to work in the soul in secret and in darkness because if we fully knew  what was happening and what mystery, transformation, God and grace will eventually ask of us,  we would either try to take charge or stop the whole process.”  - St. John of the Cross