Home > Work > The Journey of Desire: Searching for the Life We Always Dreamed of
1 " Should the king in exile pretend he is happy there?Should he not seek his own country?His miseries are his ally; they urge him on. Let them grow, if need be. But do not forsake the secret of life; do not despise those kingly desires. We abandon the most important journey of our lives when we abandon desire. We leave our hearts by the side of the road and head off in the direction of fitting in, getting by, being productive, what have you. Whatever we might gain – money, position, the approval of others, or just absence of the discontent self – it’s not worth it. "
― John Eldredge , The Journey of Desire: Searching for the Life We Always Dreamed of
2 " We are made in the image of God; we carry within us the desire for our true life of intimacy and adventure. To say we want less than that is to lie. "
3 " Worship is the act of the abandoned heart adoring its God "
4 " Henri Nouwen once asked Mother Teresa for spiritual direction. Spend one hour each day in adoration of your Lord, she said, and never do anything you know is wrong. Follow this and you'll be fine. "
5 " So, let's come back to the simple question Jesus asks of us all: What do you want? Don't minimize it; don't try to make sure it sounds spiritual; don't worry about whether or not you can obtain it. Just stay with the question until you begin to get an answer. This is the way we keep current with our hearts. "
6 " Simone Weil was absolutely right- beauty and affliction are the only two things that can pierce our hearts. Because this is so true, we must have a measure of beauty in our lives proportionate to our affliction. No more. Much more. Is this not God's prescription for us? Just take a look around. "
7 " Something has gone wrong in us, very wrong indeed. So wrong that we have to be told that joy is found not in having another man’s wife, but in having our own. But the point is not the law; the point is the joy. "
8 " When it comes to the moral question, it is not simply whether we say yes or no to desire, but always what we do with desire. Christianity recognizes that we have desire gone mad within us. But it does not seek to rectify the problem by killing desire; rather, it seeks the healing of desire, just as it seeks the healing of every other part of our human being. "
9 " The greatest human tragedy is to give up the search. Nothing is of greater importance than the life of our deep heart. To lose heart is to lose everything. "
10 " spirit—we know there is something special, even sacramental about sex. It "
