If asked whether I am finally letting God love me, just as I am, I would answer, 'No, but I'm trying.

No man can adequately reach and explain a single word of God with all his words

To affirm a person is to see the good in them that they cannot see in themselves and to repeat it in spite of appearances to the contrary. Please, this is not some Pollyanna optimism that is blind to the reality of evil, but rather like a fine radar system that is tuned in to the true, the good, and the beautiful.

The dominant characteristic of an authentic spiritual life is the gratitude that flows from trust

Won't the awareness God loves us no matter what lead to spiritual laziness and moral laxity? Theoretically, this seems a reasonable fear, but in reality the opposite is true. . . . The more rooted we are in the love of God, the more generously we will live our faith.

Jesus comes for sinners, for those outcast...and those caught up in squalid choices and failed dreams.

A ragamuffin knows he's only a beggar at the door of God's mercy.