Christmas is the promise that the God who came in history and comes daily in mystery will one day come in glory. God is saying in Jesus that in the end everything will be all right. Nothing can harm you permanently, no suffering is irrevocable, no loss is lasting, no defeat is more than transitory, no disappointment is conclusive. Jesus did not deny the reality of suffering, discouragement, disappointment, frustration, and death; he simply stated that the Kingdom of God would conquer all of these horrors, that the Father's love is so prodigal that no evil could possibly resist it. -- From Reflections for Ragamuffins by Brennan Manning

God's apparent lack of restraint when it comes to creating things is but a symptom of a deeper "problem": God lacks restraint when it comes to loving, too. In fact, God is most unrestrained when it comes to loving. Put another way, God cannot love except abundantly. -- From Abundant Treasures by Melannie Svoboda

Heaven is full of answers to prayers to which no one ever bothered to ask. -- Billy Graham

Work as if you were to live 100 years; pray as if you were to die tomorrow. -- Benjamin Franklin