Artificiality is one curse that will drop away the moment we kneel at Jesus' feet and surrender ourselves to His meekness. Then we will not care what people think of us so long as God is pleased. Then what we are will be everything; what we appear will take its place far down the scale of interest for us. Apart from sin we have nothing of which to be ashamed. Only an evil desire to shine makes us want to appear other than we are.

Nothing's easier to talk about than surrendering ourselves and dying on the Cross. Nothing's harder than actually doing it.

For it is not mere words that nourish the soul, but God Himself, and unless and until the hearers find God in personal experience they are not the better for having heard the truth.

Compare yourself only with Jesus.

Among the plastic saints of our times, Jesus has to do all the dying, and all we want to hear is another sermon about his dying.

We need never shout across the spaces to an absent God. He is nearer than our own soul, closer than our most secret thoughts

Outside of the will of god, there is nothing I want. And in the will of god there is nothing I fear.