“The work that you are doing in the office is sacred work. Never do it slap dash . . . it is Jesus there. Your hands are feeding the hungry Christ, your hands are clothing the naked Christ, your hands are giving home to the homeless Christ in some part of the work. So, do your work well, and do it with great love. Otherwise it is not worth doing it. It is not worth doing it half-half. That is the means for you to become holy because Jesus our God is there.”
“It’s not how much we do but how much love we put in the action that matters to Almighty God and that is love for God—that God keeps on loving the world through each one of us, through the work that has been entrusted to you.”
“Prayer, true prayer, is a communication—and it occurs only when two people, two minds, are truly present to each other in some way. So in prayer we must do more than merely visualize God as present as some sort of father figure. His fictionalized presence will not do; his imaginative presence will not do.
"If we could constantly live in the realization that we are [children] of a heavenly Father, that we are always in his sight and play in his creation, then all our thoughts and every action would be a prayer. For we would be constantly turning to him, aware of him, questioning him, thanking him, asking for his help, or begging his pardon when we have fallen. And every true prayer begins precisely here: placing oneself in the presence of God.”
“Let us go forth, then let us go forth to offer everyone the life of Jesus Christ… If something should rightly disturb us and trouble our consciences, it is the fact that so many of our brothers and sisters are living without the strength, light and consolation born of friendship with Jesus Christ, without a community of faith to support them, without meaning and a goal in life…”
“As I grow older, I discover more and more that the greatest gift I have to offer is my own joy of living, my own inner peace, my own silence and solitude, my own sense of well-being…
“When focusing on our talents, we tend to forget that our real gift is not so much what we can do, but who we are. The real question is not 'What can we offer each other?' but 'Who can we be for each other?'
“You must put your love for God in a living action. It is not just I have to do it but I love to do it. And you are sharing through you, through your hands what God is proving to the world: That he loves the world and through you he keeps on giving Jesus to the world.”
“What you are doing I cannot do, what I’m doing you cannot do, but together we are doing something beautiful for God, and this is the greatness of God’s love for us—to give us the opportunity to become holy through the works of love that we do because holiness is not the luxury of the few. It is a very simple duty for you, for me, you in your position, in your work and I and others, each one of us in the work, in the life that we have given our word of honor to God…”
“Sometimes of course, when we enter into God’s presence we will not find ourselves speechless. We will be ready to speak to him and to hear what he has to say to us. Usually he will respond in quiet inspirations and in the silent movement of our heart. His voice will fill our souls with consolation and courage. So if you are able to speak to the Lord, do it with words of prayer. Praise him. Listen to him.
But, if no matter how full your heart is with things you wish to say to God, your voice still fails you, stay right where you are in his presence. He will see you there, and bless your silence. And perhaps he will reach down and take you by the hand, walking with you, chatting with you, leading you gently through the garden of his love. Whatever happens, it is a great grace.”