Dave Furman > Quotes

“You probably have your own scenes you've lived through---scenes where you think that if only people knew what was really going on, they might cut you some slack and help you.”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“Maybe you've thought that as a Christian you have to smile and pretend to be okay when someone asks you how you are doing. Perhaps you think that if you're grieving, then you're dishonoring God. This isn't so.”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“You must be much with Christ before you are anything for anybody else. Even”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“It's imperative that you are honest about the pain that you are going through. Rather than trying harder and keeping it to yourself, it's important that you grieve your loss and come to terms with your reality.”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“John Flavel says: Consider how you are daily and hourly wronging God and you will not be so easily inflamed with revenge against those who have wronged you. You are constantly affronting God, yet he does not take vengeance on you, but bears with you and forgives; and will you rise up and avenge yourself upon others?8 The mercy of God toward you and me should turn our hearts in mercy for others. How can we now not forgive someone who sins against us? Forgiving flows from forgiven-ness.”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“Death is a defeated enemy who can only serve God’s good purposes, decrepit as dying is. Remind”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“...it's essential that you don't stay in denial. You must make it known that it's difficult, that you're struggling.”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“...we're often made to feel like we need to choke down our tears and grief instead of dealing with it in healthy and honest ways.”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“Grief is work, and sometimes it's very hard work. It can be overwhelming.”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“While an incredible preacher in London, Charles Spurgeon often battled depression and massive despair. On one occasion he was out of ministry for six months and had to leave the country. He was so depressed he ha difficulty getting out of bed. He said that when depression would come upon him, he felt like a man who was fighting the mist; it was everywhere, and he couldn't hit it.”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“As one prone to depression, I find comfort in remembering that Jesus went through the most depressing state possible: being separated from God the Father on the cross. When the nerve damage in my arms is unbearable, I think about the nails that pierced Jesus’s arms right through the nerves. When I go through difficult family circumstances, I recall that Jesus’s family didn’t believe he was Lord. When I miss my friends who live half the world away from me, I remember that Jesus left his throne in heaven to come to earth. When money is tight, I remember that Jesus was poor and didn’t own more than the clothes he wore. When I am facing endless temptation, I know Jesus can sympathize with my weaknesses because he was tempted just like we are. Friend, Jesus knows.”
― Dave Furman, Kiss the Wave: Embracing God in Your Trials

“When you go overseas, the goal for the end of your ministry is that you should be able to say this: Do you love God more today than when you first stepped foot on the sand of the Arabian Peninsula?” Steve’s point in telling us this was that if we don’t first love God, we won’t have any strength for ministry. One flows directly out of the other. Wow!”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“True joy is a joy that is not subject to ever-changing circumstances. It is a joy that is grounded in truth. As we suffer, we can work hard to try to numb our painful circumstances or try to deny that they exist. But what we need instead of denial or distraction is a truth that will overwhelm the trouble. In the resurrection we have that truth and it cannot be undone. It means that everything Jesus said and did was trustworthy.”
― Dave Furman, Kiss the Wave: Embracing God in Your Trials

“Other truths can bring you some measure of joy, but why not remind yourself of and reflect on the greatest news in all the world? Why look for lesser truths to bring you hope in your pain than the most joy-inflicting, radical reminder that Jesus went to the cross in your place?”
― Dave Furman, Kiss the Wave: Embracing God in Your Trials

“Grieving is a messy process, and you yearn for it to just go away. You don't know when a sunset or a trip to the pharmacy is going to trigger a memory that crushes your spirit.”
― Dave Furman, Being There: How to Love Those Who Are Hurting

“Joy in our trials can begin to take root in our hearts when we understand the magnitude of grace God has given us. Unless we stand in Barabbas’s sandals and find they fit us, we won’t see the gravity of God’s love for us. This is our story. You and I are Barabbas. We needed someone to take our place, and Jesus has done that for us. He willingly took the wrath of God upon himself. On the cross, Jesus absorbed all our wickedness. He has poured out his perfect love upon us.”
― Dave Furman, Kiss the Wave: Embracing God in Your Trials