Ashley

“The experience of loss does not have to be the defining moment in our lives. Instead the defining moment can be our response to the loss. It is not what happens to us that matters so much as what happens in us.”
― Jerry Sittser, A Grace Disguised: How the Soul Grows through Loss

“The quickest way for anyone to reach the sun and the light of day is not to run west, chasing after the setting sun, but to head east, plunging into the darkness until one comes to the sunrise.”
― Gerald Lawson Sittser, A Grace Disguised: How the Soul Grows through Loss

“I see now that my faith was becoming an ally rather than an enemy because I could vent anger freely, even toward God, without fearing retribution.”
― Jerry Sittser, A Grace Disguised: How the Soul Grows through Loss

“Gifts of grace come to all of us. But we must be ready to see and willing to receive these gifts. It will require a kind of sacrifice, the sacrifice of believing that, however painful our losses, life can still be good — good in a different way then before, but nevertheless good. I will never recover from my loss and I will never got over missing the ones I lost. But I still cherish life. . . . I will always want the ones I lost back again. I long for them with all my soul. But I still celebrate the life I have found because they are gone. I have lost, but I have also gained. I lost the world I loved, but I gained a deeper awareness of grace. That grace has enabled me to clarify my purpose in life and rediscover the wonder of the present moment.”
― Jerry Sittser, A Grace Disguised: How the Soul Grows through Loss