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Tuesday, July 6, 2010

God Is Awake

Back when I was a junior in high school, I had the privilege of taking advanced English from the most incredible teacher.  He was one of those people who just exuded passion and love for their chosen career.  And it overflowed into the classroom.  He challenged us, pushed us to think further, to read deeper and to write freer.  I began to truly love the written word while in his classroom.  He also happened to be the older brother of Bill Pullman, who was at the height of his 'While You Were Sleeping' fame, and so that made going to class all sorts of cool too.

At one point during the year, Mr. Pullman requested that we begin to make a quote book.  He encouraged us to write down quotes that spoke to us, or quotes that challenged us to think beyond our little worlds we had created for ourselves.  I took the task very seriously.  I carried around a 3x5 notebook and wrote down any and everything that caught my attention.  Phrases from books, statements from newscasters... I can only imagine how large my little notebook might have been if the internet was around in all it's infinite knowledge.  I put question marks next to the ones I wanted to ponder further, and put big X's through the ones that I felt were completely off the mark.

There was only one quote, however, that earned a large circle around it.  After 6 months of collecting the thoughts of other people, there was one that stood out to me.  One that encapsulated in just a brief phrase so much of what I believed to be true about life.  It is engrained in my memory to this day.

“Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones; and when you have laboriously accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace. God is awake.” ~Victor Hugo

 I love this quote because it faces the reality that life is not always perfect.  Trials come.  Some big and some small.  Some days do feel more like labor than life.  And we have permission to feel that way and acknowledge it.  But at the end of it all, God is there.  He is awake.  He knows it all, and He holds it in His hands.  Such powerful words of peace.

Is there a phrase or quote you've come across in your life that speaks to you?  I'd love to hear.

12 comments:

  1. I love that quote, it's really speaking to me this morning.

    Some quotes that come to mind are "Let Go, Let God",

    "Re-examine all that you have been told- dismiss that which insults your soul" - Walt Whitman

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  2. "Tomorrow is always fresh with no mistakes in it" -- Anne of Green Gables

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  3. Thanks for the fantastic quote. When life is rough I often find myself waking up to the hymn "How Firm a Foundation" (do you sing that at your church?) "Fear not I am with thee, oh be ye not dismayed. For I am thy God and will still give thee aid..."

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  4. I agree, beautiful quote! I love so many quotes that it is hard to choose but, the one that comes to mind is by John Shedd, "A ship is safe in the harbor, but that is not why ships are built." This quote kinda nudged me to try not to get comfortable in a Christian bubble but, to reach out, live, love and be a light every where we can. That is what God designed us for, not to play it safe:).

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  5. One of my favorites is simple and well known, but it definitely helps to put things into perspective, whether they are going well, or going not-so-well.

    "This too, shall pass."

    It reminds me to soak up the good times, and to not worry so much during the bad times. Nothing lasts forever.


    Great blog...I'm following you back! :)

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  6. I'm being partly funny but I LOVE the quote:
    'Hell is other people.'

    Another quote that I rely on more often than not:
    'We are not humans having a spiritual experience, we are spirits having a human experience.'

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  7. I love this entry. The quote "Go to Sleep, God is awake" is very comforting. It reminds me of the psalm that says "I will lay me down in peace and sleep, for you alone o Lord make me dwell in safety.

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  8. My Fav qoute- Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow where they lead.

    I just can't remember who it was...*sigh* need to write that done one day!

    I gave your site two awards on my blog :) http://mburbage.blogspot.com/
    They will be under awards!
    ~Melanie

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  9. Thanks so much for the awards!

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  10. I'll have to think on this one.

    I like yours.

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  11. I agree - this is also one of my favorite quotes for when things get rough. I know I can rely on God to take care of things when I can't - asleep or not. He's always working.

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Let me know what you think!

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