Huston Smith Quotes

Happiness is caused by things that happen around me, and circumstances will mar it; but joy flows right on through trouble; joy flows in the night as well as in the day; joy flows through persecution and opposition. It is an unceasing fountain bubbling up in the heart; a secret spring the world can't see and doesn't know anything about.

Joy cannot be pursued. It comes from within. It is a state of being. It does not depend on circumstances, but triumphs over circumstances. It produces a gentleness of spirit and a magnetic personality.

We're not in control but we do have a greater hope and we do have a source of joy that isn't based on our circumstances.

'joy' in Phillippians is a defiant 'Nevertheless!' that Paul sets like a full stop against the Philippians' anxiety.

Stand tall, smile bright, and let 'em wonder what secret's making you laugh.

Pray to God for gladness. Be glad as children, as the birds of heaven. And let not the sin of men confound you in your doings. Fear not that it will wear away your work and hinder its being accomplished. Do not say, 'Sin is mighty, wickedness is mighty, evil environment is mighty, and we are lonely and helpless, and evil environment is wearing us away and hindering our good work from being done.' Fly from that dejection, children!

Pray for the strength to walk the high road, which at times may be lonely but which will lead to peace and happiness and joy supernal.

Give Me Strength This is my prayer to thee, my lord---strike, strike at the root of penury in my heart. Give me the strength lightly to bear my joys and sorrows. Give me the strength to make my love fruitful in service. Give me the strength never to disown the poor or bend my knees before insolent might. Give me the strength to raise my mind high above daily trifles. And give me the strength to surrender my strength to thy will with love.

You could cry, get worried or angry like any other normal human being, as long as you remembered that, up above, your spirit was laughing out loud at all those thorny situations.

In 1970 I felt so lonely that I could not give; now I feel so joyful that giving seems easy. I hope that the day will come when the memory of my present joy will give me the strength to keep giving even when loneliness gnaws at my heart.

And as a Christian, I got something the world didn't give me, the world can't take away, so I find joy that can never be reduced to anything.

No danger can perturb my spirit's calm.

I’m not afraid of anything that might happen to me on this earth, because I know no matter what, nothing can take my spirit from me.

Let every hindrance to joy become the soil out of which joy blossoms.

I think positively, you can't harm me mentally, not physically, not spiritually, you'll never get rid of me.

I will gather myself around my faith, for light does the darkness most fear.

To be strong is to be happy!

The Master said, “What a worthy man was Yan Hui! Living in a narrow alley, subsisting upon meager bits of rice and water—other people could not have borne such hardship, and yet it never spoiled Hui’s joy. What a worthy man was Hui!” (Analects 6.11)

It's an inside job to learn about forgiving, it's an inside job to hang on to the joy of living.

God will give you strength when you think you can’t go on. He will give you joy when you should be discouraged. He can make a way when it looks impossible.

We have within ourselves Enough to fill the present day with joy, And overspread the future years with hope.

What most people perceive as energy is really strength of spirit. It comes from the joy of knowing God, loving Him, and being loved by Him.

Empowerment is the inner joy of knowing that external force isn't necessary to be at harmony with oneself.

When you are in deep meditation, you feel a great serenity, a joy that is unknown to you, a watchfulness that is a new guest. Soon this watchfulness will become the host. The day the watchfulness becomes the host, it remains twenty-four hours with you. And out of this watchfulness, whatever you do has a wisdom in it. Whatever you do shows a clarity, a purity, a spontaneity, a grace.

Suffering cheerfully endured, ceases to be suffering and is transmuted into an ineffable joy.