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There are many Christians who are virtuous men, and who do great things, but their virtues and good works are utterly useless in the matter of eternal life, because they seek themselves in them, and not solely the honor and glory of God.

To pick up a pin for love can convert a soul. It is Jesus alone who can give such value to our actions. Let us then love Him with all our heart.

Abide in peace, banish cares, take no account of all that happens, and you will serve God according to his good pleasure and rest in him.

They dislike praising others and love to be praised themselves; sometimes they seek out such praise. Herein they are like the foolish virgins, who, when their lamps could not be lit, sought oil from others.

Christ's love knows no bounds, is never ending, does not draw back before ugliness and filth. He came for sinners and not for the just, and if the love of Christ lives in us we ought to do as He did and set ourselves to seek the lost sheep.

If the soul then does as much as it can on its own part, namely if it succeeds in being empty and dispossessed of all things, it is impossible that God should fail to do His part by communicating Himself to it, at least in secret silence: more impossible even than the absurd hypothesis that the ray of the sun should fail to shine in a serene sky.

It frequently needs only a word or a smile to impart fresh life to a despondent soul. Yet it is not merely in the hope of bringing consolation that I wish to be kind; if it were, I should soon be discouraged, for often well-intentioned words are totally misunderstood. Consequently, in order that I may lose neither time nor labor, I try to act solely to please Our Lord.

Love suffers neither delay nor repose, being always eager to suffer for the Beloved.

Now let us talk about the detachment we ought to have, for detachment, if it is practiced with perfection, includes everything. I say it includes everything because if we embrace the Creator and care not at all for the whole of creation, His Majesty will infuse the virtues. Doing little by little what we can, we will have hardly anything else to fight against; it is the Lord who in our defense takes up the battle against the demons and against the world.

Love does not consist in great sweetness of devotion, but in a fervent determination to strive to please God in all things, in avoiding, as far as possible, all that would offend Him, and in praying for the increase of the glory and honor of His Son and for the growth of the Catholic Church. These are the signs of love; do not imagine that it consists in never thinking of anything but God, and that if your thoughts wander a little all is lost.

We who run in the way of love shouldn't be thinking of sufferings that can take place in the future: it's a lack of confidence, it's like meddling in the work of creation.

Mental prayer in my opinion is nothing else than an intimate sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with Him who we know loves us. The important thing is not to think much but to love much and so do that which best stirs you to love. Love is not great delight but desire to please God in everything.