Kyrie

“At issue here is the question: "To whom do I belong? God or to the world?" Many of my daily preoccupations suggest that I belong more to the world than to God. A little criticism makes me angry, and a little rejection makes me depressed. A little praise raises my spirits, and a little success excites me. It takes very little to raise me up or thrust me down. Often I am like a small boat on the ocean, completely at the mercy of its waves. All the time and energy I spend in keeping some kind of balance and preventing myself from being tipped over and drowning shows that my life is mostly a struggle for survival: not a holy struggle, but an anxious struggle resulting from the mistaken idea that it is the world that defines me.

As long as I keep running about asking: "Do you love me? Do you really love me?" I give all power to the voices of the world and put myself in bondage because the world is filled with "ifs." The world says: "Yes, I love you if you are good-looking, intelligent, and wealthy. I love you if you have a good education, a good job, and good connections. I love you if you produce much, sell much, and buy much." There are endless "ifs" hidden in the world's love. These "ifs" enslave me, since it is impossible to respond adequately to all of them. The world's love is and always will be conditional. As long as I keep looking for my true self in the world of conditional love, I will remain "hooked" to the world-trying, failing,and trying again. It is a world that fosters addictions because what it offers cannot satisfy the deepest craving of my heart.”
― Henri J.M. Nouwen

“The windows of my soul I throw
Wide open to the sun.”
― John Greenleaf Whittier, John Greenleaf Whittier's Poetry: An Appraisal and a Selection

“The Six-Fold Definition of Being Conformed to Christ's Image
130
1. Transformed Mind: Believe What Jesus Believed
130
2. Transformed Character: Live the Way Jesus Lived
135
3. Transformed Relationships: Love as Jesus Loved
139
4. Transformed Habits: Train as Jesus Trained
142
5. Transformed Service: Minister as Jesus Ministered
144
6. Transformed Influence: Lead the Way Jesus Led”
― Bill Hull, The Complete Book of Discipleship: On Being and Making Followers of Christ

“It’s easy to take off your clothes and have sex. People do it all the time. But opening up your soul to someone, letting them into your spirit, thoughts, fears, future, hopes, dreams… that is being naked.”
― Rob Bell