List of points

The Lord needs strong and courageous souls who refuse to come to terms with mediocrity and enter all kinds of environments with a sure step.

A calm and balanced character, an inflexible will, deep faith and an ardent piety: these are the indispensable characteristics of a son of God.

The Lord can raise children of Abraham from the very stones… But we must make sure that the stone is not crumbly, for though hard rock may be shapeless, it is easier to hew good stone for building from it.

An apostle must not remain at the level of the mediocre. God calls him to be fully human in his actions, and at the same time to reflect the freshness of eternal things. —That is why the apostle has to be a soul who has undergone a long, patient and heroic process of formation.

You say that you are discovering new things in yourself every day… I answer: you are now beginning to know yourself.

When you really love… you find new ways of loving even more.

It would be a very sad thing if anyone looking at the way Catholics in society behave, concluded that they were sheepish and easily imposed upon.

Never forget that our Master was — indeed is! — perfectus Homo — perfect Man.

If the Lord has given you some natural quality or skill, you should not just enjoy it yourself or show off about it; you should use it charitably in the service of your neighbour.

—And what better occasion than now will you find to serve, since you live with so many souls who share the same ideal as yourself?

Under the pressure and impact of a materialistic, pleasure-loving, faithless world, how can we demand and justify the freedom of not thinking as they do, and of not acting as they do?

—A son of God has no need to ask for that freedom, because Christ won it for us once and for all. But he does need to defend it and practise it whatever the circumstance he finds himself in. Only thus will they understand that our freedom is not bound up in our surroundings.

Your relatives, colleagues and friends are beginning to notice the change, and realise that it is not a temporary phase, but that you are no longer the same.

—Don’t worry, carry on! Vivit vero in me Christus — it is now Christ that lives in me — that’s what is happening.

You should respect those who are capable of saying No to you. And you should also ask them to give you reasons for their refusal, so that you can learn… or put them right.

Once you were pessimistic, hesitant and apathetic. Now you are completely transformed: you feel courageous, optimistic and self-confident, because you have made up your mind, at last, to rely on God alone.

What a sorry state someone is in when he has marvellous human virtues but a total lack of supernatural outlook, because he will apply those virtues quite easily to his own selfish ends. —Meditate on this.

You fulfil a demanding plan of life: you rise early, you pray, you frequent the sacraments, you work or study a lot, you are sober and mortified… but you are aware that something is missing!

Consider this in your conversation with God: since holiness, or the struggle to achieve it, is the fullness of charity, you must look again at your love of God and your love of others for his sake. Then you may discover, hidden in your soul, great defects that you have not even been fighting against: your not being a good son, a good brother, a good companion, a good friend, a good colleague. And that, since you love “your holiness” in a disordered manner, you are envious.

You “sacrifice” yourself in many small personal details, and so you are attached to yourself, to your own person. Deep down you do not live for God or for others, but only for yourself.

To advance in interior life and apostolate, you do not need devotion that you can feel, but a definite and generous disposition of the will to respond to what God asks of you.

Without the Lord you will not be able to take one sure step forward. —This conviction that you need his help will lead you to be more united to him, with a strong, enduring confidence, accompanied by joy and peace, even though the road might become hard and steep.

Look at the great difference between the natural and the supernatural way of acting. The first begins well, but later ends up slackening. The latter begins equally well… and later struggles to become even better.

It is not at all bad to behave well for upright human reasons. —But… what a difference it makes when the supernatural ones rule!

When he saw the happiness with which that hard work was being done, that friend asked: “Is it through enthusiasm that you get all these tasks done?” —And they answered him happily and calmly: “Through enthusiasm…? That would be the day! Per Dominum Nostrum Iesum Christum! — through Our Lord Jesus Christ, who is constantly awaiting us.”

The world is waiting for us to wake up those who are asleep, to encourage the timid, to guide those who have lost their way; in other words, for us to enrol them in the ranks of Christ, so that such a lot of energy is not lost.

Perhaps you too might find it helpful to make use of this reminder of supernatural things which shows all the sensitivity of willing love. It was what a soul very much given to God used to repeat when he was faced by the various demands made on him. “It is high time to make up your mind in earnest to do something worthwhile.”

What sort of Christian perfection do you expect to achieve, if you are only following your whims and doing “what you like”? All your defects, unless you fight against them, will naturally produce bad works as their constant fruit. And your will, untempered by a persevering fight, will be of no use to you when a difficult occasion arises.

The appearance is that of strength and resilience. —But how much softness and lack of willpower there is within!

—You must hold to your determination not to let your virtues become fancy dress but clothes which define your character.

“I know some men and women who don’t even have the strength to ask for help”, you tell me with sorrow and disappointment. —Don’t leave them in the lurch. Your desire to save yourself and them can be the starting point for their conversion. Furthermore, if you think about it carefully you will realise that someone also had to lend you a hand.

Soft people who complain about a thousand silly trivialities are the ones who do not know how to sacrifice themselves for Jesus… in those daily trifles — let alone sacrifice themselves for others.

What a shame if your behaviour — which is so hard and demanding with other people! — should show the same softness in your daily life!