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“Biblical lament is an expression of sorrow and grief that gives us room to be honest with what we are feeling before God.”
― Jennifer Lucy Tyler, When Dreams Fall Apart: How Unanswered Prayers Can Deepen Your Intimacy with God

“In order to do this effectively, we must have a healthy theology of suffering. The enemy of our souls knows that we are most vulnerable when we are sad. This is how so many of us find ourselves using unhealthy coping mechanisms—such as substance or alcohol abuse, overworking, or mindlessly scrolling online. Our enemy seeks to draw us into these things for superficial yet instantaneous comfort, instead of sitting and dealing with our grief in a healthy way.”
― Jennifer Lucy Tyler, When Dreams Fall Apart: How Unanswered Prayers Can Deepen Your Intimacy with God

“People need people. Everyone needs a community. Isn’t that what is behind the exploding success of social networks such as Facebook and Twitter? People seeking people. We have a longing to be needed and to belong to something bigger than ourselves. It’s just the way God wired us. The sayings “No one is strong enough to bear his burdens alone” and “Compassion puts love into action”
― Suzanne Woods Fisher, Amish Proverbs: Words of Wisdom from the Simple Life

“Non-Amish Christians typically (maybe not accurately, but typically) believe that their faith will deliver them from adversity. The Amish believe they will be delivered in adversity. When bad things happen, they don’t question if God exists or why he would allow such a thing. “That does not mean that they do not grieve a death, for example, but their grief always seems lighter to me,” says Dr. Wittmer. “Maybe because it is shared by the entire community. An individual really has no control over adversity or much of anything else, for that matter.”
― Suzanne Woods Fisher, Amish Proverbs: Words of Wisdom from the Simple Life