Discouragement is disillusioned self-love, and

Who are the people who have influenced us most? Certainly not the ones who thought they did, but those who did not have even the slightest idea that they were influencing us. In the Christian life, godly influence is never conscious of itself. If we are conscious of our influence, it ceases to have the genuine loveliness which is characteristic of the touch of Jesus.

You know when you're in yoga and you're looking around, thinking, Wow, I wish I were that flexible, or How come she can hold that pose? Well, my friend has a saying: "Stay on your own mat." Not physically, but mentally. In life, we're all made differently: our families, our frames, our personalities and talents. Appreciate how you were made, and stay on your mat. That's where happiness lies.

If we are unfaithful to true self, we will extract a price from others. We will make promises we cannot keep, build houses from flimsy stuff, conjure dreams that devolve into nightmares, and other people will suffer - if we are unfaithful to true self.

From first days in school, we are taught to listen to everything and everyone but ourselves, to take in all our clues about living from the people and powers around us.

The first step to knowing God's plan for our lives is the commitment to see ourselves as we really are.

the identity we assign to ourselves shapes and defines the way that we live our lives.

It's pointless to blame someone for being themselves and looking to their own interests.

If I were to persuade just one person to stop fighting for something they were convinced was worthwhile, I would end up persuading myself, and my whole life would be diminished.

It is both possible and necessary that we work with wolves without joining the pack.

Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel was shapely and beautiful.

But Gideon answered them, “Now what have I accomplished compared to you? Are not the gleanings of Ephraim better than the grape harvest of Abiezer?