Quotes

 

Johnny Cash once said: ‘I read novels but I also read the Bible. And study it, you know? And the more I learn, the more excited I get.’ This seems to describe a bit of where I am on my journey right now.

We are reaching the midway point of September so that means that a large amount of Canadians are back in school. This truth also applies for myself. After being out of a classroom for nearly 10 years, I’m back to class and homework. I am adjusting to a school schedule, balancing time between classes, reading (and lots of it) for each class and preparing for class, doing assignments and the reality of community life. Always learning something new which is exciting.

Reading everything from scripture to politics, from early church history to humanitarian efforts, from information on Jesus to information on how to apply for certain things, reading consumes a lot of my time. Thank goodness I like to read! It all comes down to having books surround me when I was a child!

All this reading allows for me to encounter words that inspire me, challenge me, make me laugh and make me think. It reminds me how much I love a good quote!

Around my room I have quotes of all kinds that I use as motivation, which serve as reminders and which keep me focused on the true prize. All this reading also allows me to find new quotes to aid on this journey. This past week alone I discovered four that really stand out.

'Father,' said I, 'do you see, let us say, this vessel lying here to be a little pitcher, or something else?' And he said, 'I see it to be so.' And I replied to him,
'Can it be called by any other name than what it is?'
And he said, 'No.' 'Neither can I call myself anything else than what I am, a Christian.'

– St. Perpetua – 3^rd Century Martyr.
 

‘Read assiduously and learn as much as you can. Let sleep find you holding your Bible,

and when your head nods let it be resting on the sacred page.’

 – St. Jerome – Doctor of the Church
 

‘Life is the question and life is the answer, and God is the reason and love is the way.’

 – Johnny Cash – The Man in Black
 

‘My arms are too short to box with God.’

– Johnny Cash – The Man in Black

You just never know how words are going to strike you and sit with you. I love that! So as I continue my studies, as I continue to read both for class and for pleasure I pray for openness. May the words continue to touch my heart, cause me to ponder and cause me to seek truth more. I hope you too can experience this gift and if you know of someone who needs to be read to (a child, the elderly, the sick) please share that gift!

 

 

Note: You may notice a lot of Johnny Cash references in this post. September 12 is Johnny Cash Memorial Day, so he was in the mix a bit more this past week.