How seldom we weigh our neighbor in the same balance with ourselves.
Thomas A KempisRead
Dispose thyself to patience rather than to comfort, and to the bearing of the cross rather than to gladness.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the importance of patience and enduring hardship over seeking comfort and happiness.
Thomas A Kempis suggests that one should prioritize patience and the ability to bear life's challenges rather than being overly focused on seeking comfort and joy. The message reinforces the idea that true strength and growth come from enduring difficult times and cultivating resilience.
In practice
During a motivational speech about overcoming challenges in life.
How seldom we weigh our neighbor in the same balance with ourselves.
He will easily be content and at peace, whose conscience is pure.
Trust not to your feelings for whatever they might be now, they will quickly be changed towards some other thing.
Jesus has many who love the kingdom of God, but few who bear a cross. He has many who desire His comfort, but few who desire His suffering. All want to rejoice with him, but few are willing to suffer for Him. He writes; there are many who admire his miracles, but there are few who follow in the humiliation of the cross.
Anyone who thinks hard work will never hurt you has never had to pay to have it done. Jesus now has many lovers of his Heavenly Kingdom, but few bearers of his cross.
He has great tranquillity of heart who cares neither for the praises nor the fault-finding of men. He will easily be content and pacified, whose conscience is pure. You are not holier if you are praised, nor the more worthless if you are found fault with. What you are, that you are; neither by word can you be made greater than what you are in the sight of God.
You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you'll discover will be wonderful. What you'll discover is yourself.
If we rail and kick against it and grow bitter, we won't change the inevitable; but we will change ourselves. I know. I have tried it. I once refused to accept an inevitable situation with which I was confronted. I played the fool and railed against it, and rebelled. I turned my nights into hells of insomnia. I brought upon myself everything I didn't want. Finally, after a year of self-torture, I had to accept what I knew from the outset I couldn't possible alter.
Grace is what matters. In anything. Especially life, especially growth, tragedy, pain, love, death. About people, that's what matters. That's a quality I admire very greatly. It keeps you from reaching for the gun too quickly; it keeps you from destroying things too foolishly; it sort of keeps you alive and keeps you open for more understanding.
I have no disciples, being myself an aspirant after discipleship and in search of a guru.
Stop all this weeping, swallow your pride/ You will not die, its not poison -Tombstone Blues
If you wou'd be reveng'd of your enemy, govern your self
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