Silence is one of the deepest Disciplines of the Spirit, simply because it puts the stopper on all self-justificat ion Richard J. Foster More Quotes by Richard J. Foster More Quotes From Richard J. Foster Loneliness is inner emptiness. Solitude is inner fulfillment. Richard J. Foster emptiness solitude loneliness Simplicity is the only thing that sufficiently reorients our lives so that possessions can be genuinely enjoyed without destroying us. Richard J. Foster destroying simplicity possession Stop trying to impress people with your clothes and impress them with your life. Richard J. Foster clothes trying people The needed change within us is God's work, not ours. The demand is for an inside job, and only God can work from the inside. We cannot attain or earn this righteousness of the kingdom of God: it is a grace that is given. Richard J. Foster demand grace jobs If worship does not change us it has not been worship. Richard J. Foster worship christian doe Prayer frees us to be controlled by God. To pray is to change. There is no greater liberating force in the Christian life than prayer. To enter the gaze of the Holy is never to be the same. To bathe in the Light in quiet wonder and glad surrender is to be slowly, permanently transformed. There is a richer inward orientation, a deep hunger for communion. We feel as if we are being taken over by a new control Center, and so we are. Richard J. Foster taken prayer christian Jesus Christ and all the writers of the New Testament call us to break free of mammon lust and live in joyous trust...They point us toward a way of living in which everything we have we receive as a gift, and everything we have is cared for by God, and everything we have is available to others when it is right and good. This reality frames the heart of Christian simplicity. It is the means of liberation and power to do what is right and to overcome the forces of fear and avarice. Richard J. Foster christian heart jesus Worship begins in holy expectancy, it ends in holy obedience. Richard J. Foster obedience holy worship Overconsumption is a "cancer eating away at our spiritual vitals." It cuts the heart right out of our compassion. It distances us from the great masses of broken bleeding humanity. It converts us into materialists. We become less able to ask moral questions. For example, just because we have the economic muscle to buy up vast amounts of the world's oil, does that give us the right to do so? When the poor farmer of India is unable to buy a gallon of gasoline to run his simple water pump because the world's demand has priced him out of the market, who is to blame? Richard J. Foster distance spiritual running Love, not anger, brought Jesus to the cross. Golgotha came as a result of God's great desire to forgive, not his reluctance. Jesus knew that by his vicarious suffering he could actually absorb all the evil of humanity and so heal it, forgive it, redeem it. Richard J. Foster humanity evil jesus Just as worship begins in holy expectancy, it ends in holy obedience. If worship does not propel us into greater obedience, it has not been worship. Richard J. Foster holy worship doe Thinking is the hardest work we can do, and among the most important Richard J. Foster hardest important thinking When we determine to dwell on the good and excellent things in life, we will be so full of those things that they will tend to swallow our problems. Richard J. Foster things-in-life excellent problem Let's discipline ourselves so that our words are few and full. Richard J. Foster our-words discipline Of all spiritual disciplines prayer is the most central because it ushers us into perpetual communion with the Father. Richard J. Foster prayer spiritual father Forms and rituals do not produce worship, nor does the disuse of forms and rituals. We can use all the right techniques and methods, we can have the best possible liturgy, but we have not worshiped the Lord until Spirit touches spirit. Richard J. Foster technique use doe Worship is our response to the overtures of love from the heart of the Father. Richard J. Foster christian god love Each activity of daily life in which we stretch ourselves on behalf of others is a prayer in action. Richard J. Foster daily-life prayer action Absolute freedom is absolute nonsense! We gain freedom in anything through commitment, discipline, and fixed habit. Richard J. Foster gains discipline commitment Worship is our response to the overtures of love from the heart of the Father. Its central reality is found 'in spirit and truth.' It is kindled within us only when the Spirit of God touches our human spirit. Richard J. Foster heart father reality
