Profound Augustine quotation

The following quote, attributed to Augustine of Hippo, is quite profound and provides food for thought.

   "The

world
is a

book,
and those who don't travel only read one page."

   I personally know this to be true. In my travels to different places-whether here in Canada or other countries-I believe that it has expanded my horizons, and facilitated growth and inspiration as well as a deeper appreciation for other people, their culture and history, as well as God's creation.

   The photo of the Bible I deliberately inserted into this post also reminds me that there is a huge, wonderful world within the Bible itself-the greatest book ever written, which continues to be a best-seller. If we dig deep into the Bible we shall be deeply enriched in our faith and life journey. Augustine's quote, I think, can also be applied to the world of the Bible. If one doesn't travel much into its pages, then it is like reading only one page, and we then lose out on so much of what God wants for each one of us. So, dear readers, be sure to do a lot of travelling in the world of the Bible, there are discoveries beyond measure, just waiting for you! :-)  

Thought-provoking Bonhoeffer Quote

While doing my devotions this morning I came upon this thought-provoking Bonhoeffer quotation. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in his Letters & Papers From Prison, pp. 382-383, shared a vision of the church, which he had hoped to put forth in another book. This vision, in my humble opinion, is still as fresh and pertinent for us today as it was back in the 1940s when Bonhoeffer spent his last days in prison prior to his martyrdom.

“The church is the church only when it exists for others. To make a start, it should give away all its property to those in need. The church must share in the secular problems of ordinary human life, not dominating, but helping and serving. It must tell people of every calling what it means to live in Christ, to exist for others. It must not under-estimate the importance of human example (which has its origins in the humanity of Jesus and is so important in Paul’s teaching); it is not abstract argument, but example, that gives its word emphasis and power.”

Krister Stendahl Quote

"How can I sing my song to Jesus fully and with abandon without feeling it necessary to belittle the faith of others? I believe that question to be crucial for the health and vitality of Christian theology in the years ahead." -Krister Stendahl

Quote

 “Faith is different from theology because theology is reasoned, systematic, and orderly, whereas faith is disorderly, intermittent, and full of surprises….Faith is homesickness. Faith is a lump in the throat. Faith is less a position on than a movement toward, less a sure thing than a hunch. Faith is waiting.” –Frederick Buechner

Quotation from Laurens van der Post

"Life decreed that I survive it, unlike a great many people who deserved to survive more than I did. In that sense, it was significant. I think everything in life is significant. But it's dangerous to look back--though it's good to remember. Look what happened to Lot's wife. Remembering is an act of making the past present. Looking back is an act of wishing the present into the past."