Mary Alex Pooler

“Brother Lawrence did so in the kitchen of a French monastery over three hundred years ago. Instead of resenting the monotony and smallness of his chores, Brother Lawrence decided to seek God’s presence always and in everything. He writes, “Men invent means and methods of coming at God’s love, they learn rules and set up devices to remind them of that love, and it seems like a world of trouble to bring oneself into the consciousness of God’s presence. Yet it might be so simple. Is it not quicker and easier just to do our common business wholly for the love of him?”2”
― Holley Gerth, Fiercehearted: Live Fully, Love Bravely

“I’ve always said there are no mysteries, only things we don’t yet know; but lately I’ve thought not even knowledge takes all strangeness from the world.”
― Sarah Perry, The Essex Serpent

“But there comes a point when what’s empowering becomes discouraging. When we begin looking at others not for inspiration but to compare. When what we find no longer feels like tools that will help but stones that weigh us down. When that happens, it’s time to pause and remember why we’re doing this thing in the first place. And if we’ve made it this far, we usually know. After we remind ourselves of the why, we can ask, “What do I want this to look like in my life?”
― Holley Gerth, Fiercehearted: Live Fully, Love Bravely

“What are Christians?” “The people in the churches.” “Yes, I know. But why do Christians give money to strangers?” He was getting a little peeved. “It’s just what Christians do. They give things away. They’re not like normal people.” I sighed. “That makes no sense.” The ex-convict tried to explain, but I could see even he didn’t understand what he was saying. In North Korea, there was no concept of doing things for other people out of kindness. Unconditional love was not something I was familiar with. You did things because of family obligation, or because of hunger or greed, or because there was no other choice. But what he was describing—people freely giving their hard-earned cash to complete strangers—was plain crazy. We changed the subject. But the ex-convict’s stories stayed in my mind. I thought of Christians as bizarre people, almost another species. I wanted to meet them, touch them, to confirm that such creatures existed.”
― Joseph Kim, Under the Same Sky: A Memoir of Survival, Hope, and Faith