St. Teresa of Avila

Mental prayer is nothing else but being on terms of friendship with God, frequently conversing in secret with Him. 1

Christ does not force our will, He only takes what we give Him. But He does not give Himself entirely until He sees that we yield ourselves entirely to Him. 2

Before prayer, endeavor to realize whose Presence you are approaching, and to whom you are about to speak. We can never fully understand how we ought to behave towards God, before whom the angels tremble. 3

Christ does not force our will, He only takes what we give Him. But He does not give Himself entirely until He sees that we yield ourselves entirely to Him. 4

Everything seems to me to pass so quickly that we must concentrate on how to die rather than on how to live. How sweet it is to die if one has lived on the Cross with Christ. 5

It is certain that the love of God does not consist in this sweetness and tenderness which we for the most part desire; but rather in serving Him in justice, fortitude, and humility. His Majesty seeks and loves courageous souls. 6

Truth suffers, but never dies. 7

The devil will try to upset you by accusing you of being unworthy of the blessings that you have received. Simply remain cheerful and do your best to ignore the devil's nagging. If need be even laugh at the absurdity of the situation. Satan, the epitome of sin itself, accuses you of unworthiness! When the devil reminds you of your past, remind him of his future! 8

God dwells within you, and there you should dwell with Him. 9

Let us meditate today on the condition of our soul. Are we making a sincere effort to rectify our intentions, to sanctify our daily responsibilities? There are things we fail to remember, not because we have short memories but because we are short of love. The person in love does not forget! 10

I do not fear Satan half so much as I fear those who fear him. 11

Oh, my Lord! How true it is that whoever works for you is paid in troubles! And what a precious price to those who love you if we understand its value. 12

Be gentle to all and stern with yourself. 13

God has been very good to me, for I never dwell upon anything wrong which a person has done, so as to remember it afterwards. If I do remember it, I always see some other virtue in that person. 14

There are more tears shed over answered prayers than over unanswered prayers. 15

Our body has this defect that, the more it is provided care and comforts, the more needs and desires it finds. 16

Let not your inward devotion be visible unless in great necessity. 17

Anyone who has the habit of speaking before God's majesty as if he were speaking to a slave, careless about how he is speaking, and saying whatever comes into his head and whatever he's learned from saying prayers at other times, in my opinion is not praying. Please, God, may no Christian pray in this way. 18

Let him never cease from prayer who has once begun it, be his life ever so wicked; for prayer is the way to amend it, and without prayer such amendment will be much more difficult. 19

Vocal prayer . . . must be accompanied by reflection. A prayer in which a person is not aware of Whom he is speaking to, what he is asking, who it is who is asking and of Whom, I don't call prayer--however much the lips may move. 20

You pay God a compliment by asking great things of Him. 21

One must not think that a person who is suffering is not praying. He is offering up his sufferings to God, and many a time he is praying much, more truly than one who goes away by himself and meditates his head off, and, if he has squeezed out a few tears, thinks that is prayer. 22

I am afraid that if we begin to put our trust in human help, some of our Divine help will fail us. 23

Nothing seems impossible to those who love. 24

He never tires of giving. Let us never tire of receiving. 25

If we were to approach the most Blessed Sacrament with great faith and love, once would be enough to make us rich. 26

Love is the measure of our ability to bear crosses. 27

It seems that the soul's good cannot be merited or gained through all the trials one can suffer on earth. This good is a gift from the Lord of Heaven and Earth who gives accordingly to who He is. 28

Oh, how everything that is suffered with love is healed again! 29

Remain calm in times of dryness. 30

Know that even when you are in the kitchen, our Lord moves amidst the pots and pans. 31

Lord, your hand of love is always stretched out toward me, even when I stubbornly look the other way. 32

Never address your words to God while you are thinking of something else. 33

Patience obtains everything. 34

If we practice love of neighbor with great perfection, we will have done everything. 35

Every part of the journey is of importance to the whole. 36

We shall never completely know ourselves if we don't strive to know God. 37

To suffer or to die. St. Teresa of Avila (Her motto) 38

St. Teresa Margaret Redi

When an action is blamable, let us excuse the intention. 1

St. Symeon Metaphrastis

The signs that accompany those who wish to submit to the Logos of God and who bring forth good fruit are: sighing, weeping, sorrow, stillness, shaking of the head, prayer, silence, persistence, bitter grief, tribulation of heart arising from religious devotion. In addition, their actions manifest vigilance, fasting, self-control, gentleness, forbearance, unceasing prayer, study of the divine Scriptures, faith, humility, brotherly affection, submission, rigorous toil, hardship, love, kindli­ness, courtesy and-the sum of all-light, which is the Lord. The signs that accompany those who are not producing the fruit of life are listlessness, day-dreaming, curiosity, lack of attention, grumbling, instability; and in their actions they manifest gluttony, anger, wrath, back-biting, conceit, untimely talk, unbelief, disorderliness, forgetfulness, unrest, sordid greed, avarice, envy, factiousness, contempt, garrulity, senseless laughter, willfulness and - the sum of all - darkness, which is Satan. 1

St. Symeon MetaphrastisIn accordance with divine providence, the devil was not sent at once to the Gehenna assigned to him, but his sentence was postponed in order to let him test and try men's free will. In this way, he unintentionally fosters greater maturity and righteousness in the saints by promoting their patient endurance, and so is the cause of their greater glory; and, at the same time, through his malevolence and his scheming against the saints he justifies more fully his own punishment. In this way, too, sin becomes more utterly sinful, as St. Paul puts it. (cf. Rom. 7:13) 2

St. Servinus

We must acknowledge that God is happiness itself or we will never know what true happiness is! 1
Highest Providence often works a wonderful miracle: that of having evil men make others who are evil to become good. 2

St. Seraphim of Sarov

The true aim of our Christian life consists in the acquisition of the Holy Spirit of God. As for fasts, and vigils, and prayer, and almsgiving, and every good deed done for Christ's sake, they are only means of acquiring the Holy Spirit of God. 1

St. Sebastian Valfre

When it is all over you will not regret having suffered; rather you will regret having suffered so little, and suffered that little so badly. 1

St. Rose Philippine Duchesne

God does not require great achievements but a heart that holds back nothing for self. 1

St. Rose of Viterbo

Prayer reveals to souls the vanity of earthly goods and pleasures. It fills them with light, strength and consolation; and gives them a foretaste of the calm bliss of our heavenly home. 1

St. Rose of Lima

If only mortals would learn how great it is to possess divine grace, how beautiful, how noble, how precious. How many riches it hides within itself, how many joys and delights! No one would complain about his cross or about troubles that may happen to him, if he would come to know the scales on which they are weighed when they are distributed to men. 1

St. Robert Bellarmine

Let prayer delight thee more than disputations, and the charity which buildeth up more than the knowledge which puffeth up. 1

St. Richard Pampuri

Pray that neither self indulgence nor pride, nor any other evil passion, prevent me from seeing in my patients Jesus who suffers, and from healing and comforting Him. 1

St. Richard of Chichester

Thanks be to Thee, my Lord Jesus Christ. For all the benefits Thou hast given me. For all the pains and insults which Thou has borne for me. O most merciful Redeemer, Friend, and Brother, may I know Thee more clearly, love Thee more dearly, follow Thee more nearly, day by day. Amen. 1

St. Remigius Isoré

I have heard that it is very difficult to convert Chinese, and so I had never, ever, wanted to go to China. A kind of resentment had slipped into my heart at the very word, China. But the Provincial enlightened me. I understood that it was the will of God that I should go to China. Joy and gratitude then filled my heart. 1

St. Raphael Kalinowski

God refuses only the person who does not admit his own weakness; ...The life of a soul who seeks true happiness clearly and indisputably depends on this: that those who seek their joy in God are the ones who give joy to God. 1

St. Rafqa Al-Rayes

O Christ, I unite my sufferings to yours, my pains with your pains, as I look at your head crowned with thorns. 1

St. Probus (Martyr)

The more my body suffers for Jesus Christ, the more is my soul refreshed. 1

St. Pope Pius X

My hope is in Christ, who strengthens the weakest by His Divine help. I can do all in Him who strengthens me. His Power is infinite, and if I lean on him, it will be mine. His Wisdom is infinite, and if I look to Him for counsel, I shall not be deceived. His Goodness is infinite, and if my trust is stayed in Him, I shall not be abandoned. 1

St. Philip Neri

Give me ten truly detached men. and I will convert the world with them. 101 St. Philip Neri
Do not grieve over the temptations you suffer. When the Lord intends to bestow a particular virtue on us, He often permits us first to be tempted by the opposite vice. Therefore, look upon every temptation as an invitation to grow in a particular virtue and a promise by God that you will be successful, if only you stand fast. 1

If we wish to keep peace with our neighbor, we should never remind anyone of his natural defects. 2

First, let a little love find entrance into their hearts; and the rest will follow. 3

It is very useful for those who minister the Word of God to give themselves up to prayer, to read the works of authors who's names begin with "s", such as St. Augustine, St. Bernard, etc.. 4

When God intends to grant a man any particular virtue, it is His way to let him be tempted to the opposite vice. 5

St. Peter of Verona

Credo in unum Deo. - I believe in one God. (Written by him in his own blood from the Creed, while he was dying.) 1

St. Peter of Alcantara

He does much in the sight of God who does his best, be it ever so little. 1

I have made a contract with my body. It has promised to accept harsh treatment from me on earth, and I have promised that it shall receive eternal rest in heaven. 2

Truly, matters in the world are in a bad state; but if you and I begin in earnest to reform ourselves, a really good beginning will have been made. 3