No fact in human nature is more characteristic than its willingness to live on a chance. The existence of the chance makes the difference… between a life of which the keynote is resignation and a life of which the keynote is hope.

I will assume for the present---until next year---that it is no illusion. My first act of free will shall be to believe in free will.

SURRENDER—Pray Psalm 139:23—24: Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Commit to respond to whatever the Holy Spirit reveals to you.

Then I started really studying what the Scriptures say, and God showed me that it wasn't my job to do the heavy lifting. No. That was something that only He could do. It was my job to seek Him, to trust Him, and to stand on His Word.

Clara had said to ask God for the truth. "Discover the truth about God, who He is, how He works, how much He loves. And then you'll uncover the truth about yourself, your sin, the ways you displease God. The truth about your life is always better to know, even if it hurts.

It seems to me there are times when you have to act and times when you have to wait, but the hardest times are those when you want to do one but you have to do the other and you're not sure which is the best.

God has a way of working on His own timetable. And it usually is a lot different from ours.

It's funny how aimless a person can feel at times, even when they know God is in control.

Prayer, at its most basic level, was surrender. Like Jesus in the garden, saying, "Not My will, but Yours, be done." The ironic thing was, when a person surrendered their will, they got God's, and then they received what they were really looking for all along. This was what she believed.

Never bend your head. Hold it high. Look the world straight in the eye.

Dear God, I am so afraid to open my clenched fists! Who will I be when I have nothing left to hold on to? Who will I be when I stand before you with empty hands? Please help me to gradually open my hands and to discover that I am not what I own, but what you want to give me.

the real "work" of prayer is to become silent and listen to the voice that says good things about me. To gently push aside and silence the many voices that question my goodness and to trust that I will hear the voice of blessing-- that demands real effort.