On occasions, global or personal, we may feel we are distanced from God, shut out from heaven, lost, alone in dark and dreary places. Often enough that distress can be of our own making, but even then the Father of us all is watching and assisting. And always there are those angels who come and go all around us, seen and unseen, known and unknown, mortal and immortal.

To give ourselves totally to another person, as we do in marriage, is the most trusting step we take in any human relationship.

One of the great consolations . . . is that because Jesus walked such a long, lonely path utterly alone, we do not have to do so.

In a dating and courtship relationship, I would not have you spend five minutes with someone who belittles you, one who is constantly critical of you, one who is cruel at your expense and may even call it humor. Life is tough enough without the person who is supposed to love you leading the assault on your self-esteem, your sense of dignity, your confidence, and your joy. In this person's care, you deserve to feel physically safe and emotionally secure.

I ask for a stonger and more devoted voice... a voice for good, a voice for the gospel, a voice for God.

Perhaps some have created their own difficulties but don't the rest of us do exactly the same things? Are we not all beggars?

Nowhere can anyone find a #‎ quieter or more untroubled retreat than in his or her own #‎ soul . We need to turn some things down and turn some things off. We need to be #‎ quiet .