Your Own Grace
God is working on you in order that you may no longer be a child, tossed about by every wind, a prey to external influences. He has given you your own grace, your own nature (insofar as it is good), your own distinctive character. You are therefore required to be yourself and not anyone else. Live according to your own nature; inwardly without restriction; outwardly in so far as external conditions permit. I would compare you to a sailor; he has no doubt as to the port for which he is making and if he is obliged to tack, it is in order to make his port. It is not that he has changed his mind; on the contrary, he makes use of the changing winds in order that their very changeableness may bring him to his port.
From Letters of Direction: Thoughts on the Spiritual Life
by Abbe’ De Tourville
1939, Dacre Press
~ S.K. Orr
5 Comments
Bookslinger
Sorry, that above link was the whole chapter. The specific passage I refer to is here:
http://appleseeds.org/Newman_My-Mission.htm
It is slightly re-arranged from the source, but not altered otherwise.
admin
Thank you, Bookslinger.
Bookslinger
LDS blogger Dan Peterson quoted a section from here (Cardinal Newman):
http://www.newmanreader.org/works/meditations/meditations9.html#doctrine1
that harkens to your post. Kind of Arkle-like.
Francis Berger
This is a great passage. Very uplifting. Thanks for sharing it.
admin
I’m glad you found it helpful, Francis. Thank you, as always.