Quotes from Brother Lawrence

Simply present yourself to God as if you were a poor man knocking on the door of a rich man, and fix your attention on His presence.

God regards not the greatness of the work, but the love with which the work is done.

Let him think of Him as often as he can, especially in the greatest dangers. A little lifting up of the heart suffices. A little remembrance of GOD, one act of inward worship, though upon a march, and a sword in hand, are prayers, which, however short, are nevertheless very acceptable to GOD; and far from lessening a soldier's courage in occasions of danger, they best serve to fortify it.

we ought to give ourselves up to GOD, with regard both to things temporal and spiritual, and seek our satisfaction only in the fulfilling of His will, whether he lead us by suffering or by consolation, for all would lie equal to a soul truly resigned.

This doesnt mean we must ignore the duties of the world forever; that would be impossible. Let prudence be our guide. However, I do believe that it is a common mistake of Spirit-filled people not to leave the cares of the world periodically to praise God in their spirits and to rest in the peace of His divine presence for a few moments.

many do not advance in the Christian progress because they stick in penances, and particular exercises, while they neglect the love of GOD, which is the end.

Brother Lawrence called the practice of the presence of God the easiest and shortest way to attain Christian perfection and to be protected from sin.

Yet grant, if it please You, that after having received them, I may return them just as You gave them to me; for You well know that it is not Your gifts that I seek and desire, but Yourself, and I can be content with nothing less.

Here is the answer to the letter I received from our dear sister in the Lord; please give it to her. She seems so full of good will, but she wants to go faster than grace allows. It is not possible to become spiritually mature all at once.

He had noticed a tree stripped of its leaves. He realized that in a little while the leaves would return, and the flowers and fruit would appear.

the whole substance of religion was faith, hope and charity;

That our sanctification did not depend upon changing our works, but in doing that for GOD's sake, which we commonly do for our own.

the trust we put in GOD, honors Him much, and draws down great graces.

wandered. Such has been my common

He believed it was a serious mistake to think of our prayer time as being different from any other. Our actions should unite us with God when we are involved in our daily activities, just as our prayer unites us with Him in our quiet time.

The most excellent method he had found of going to God was to do our normal activities without any view of pleasing men, and (as far as we are able) purely for the love of God.

The sorest afflictions never appear intolerable, except when we see them in the wrong light. When we see them as dispensed by the hand of GOD, when we know that it is our loving FATHER who abases and distresses us, our sufferings will lose their bitterness, and become even matter of consolation.

Though he was indeed a humble man, he never sought the glory of humility, but only its reality. He wanted no one but God to witness what he did, just as the only reward he expected was God Himself.

The whole substance of the Christian life is simply faith, hope, and love. By practicing these we become united to the will of God. Everything else is immaterial and is simply a means of arriving at our end—to be swallowed up in our unity to the will of God through faith and love.

He said it was impossible that God would deceive. He also said that God would not allow a soul, which is perfectly surrendered to Him and committed to endure everything for His sake, to suffer long.

What consumes your mind controls your life.

In the beginning of the spiritual life, we ought to be faithful in doing our duty and denying ourselves. After that, unspeakable pleasures followed. In difficulties we only need to turn to Jesus Christ and beg His grace, and then everything became easy.

That we ought to make a great difference between the acts of the understanding and those of the will: that the first were comparatively of little value, and the others, all. That our only business was to love and delight ourselves in GOD.

That in order to form a habit of conversing with GOD continually, and referring all we do to Him, we must at first apply to Him with some diligence: but that after a little care we should find His love inwardly excite us to it without any difficulty.