Charles Simeon Quotes

A duty is to be chosen from what is virtuous, and from what is useful, and also from the comparison of the two, one with the other; but nothing is recognized by Christians as virtuous or useful which is not helpful to the future life.

I have followed holiness, I have taught truth, and I have been most in the main things; not that I thought the things concerning our times little, but that I thought none could do anything to purpose in God's great and public matters, till they were right in their conditions.

There is also a perfection of degrees, by which a person performs all the commands of God, with the full exertion of all his powers, without the least defect. This is what the law of God requires, but what the saints cannot attain to in this life.

I am God's wheat, and I shall be ground by the teeth of beasts, that I may become the pure bread of Christ.

My heart's desire is that people will listen to the Lord and his leading and really dive into the fullness of what He's called them to do, whatever that looks like.

God's purpose is not to perfect me to make me a trophy in His showcase; He is getting me to the place where He can use me. Let Him do what He wants.

I am called to live in such a perfect relationship with God that my life produces a yearning for God in the lives of others, not admiration for myself. Thoughts about myself hinder my usefulness to God. God’s purpose is not to perfect me to make me a trophy in His showcase; He is getting me to the place where He can use me. Let Him do what He wants.

The good life begins with Christ and ends with me. I need to stop following me and stop trying to make life all about me.

God's goal is not to get what you want; it is to get you what you need.

O Lord, self-renunciation is not the work of one day, nor children's sport; yea, rather in this word is included all perfection.

To be a saint is to be a little out of one's mind, which is a very good thing to be a little out of from time to time. It is to live a life that is always giving itself away and yet is always full.

The joy of heaven will begin as soon as we attain the character of heaven, and do its duties.

For reasons known only to him, God has chosen to work through men and women who are willing to make sacrifices for the sake of the "thing" he has placed in their hearts to do. If God bas birthed a vision in you, it is only a matter of time until you will come upon the precipice of sacrifice.

God also allows suffering so that we might learn what it means to depend on Him, not on our own strength and resources.

Self, service, substance is the Divine order and nothing counts until we give ourselves.

The real question is whether we can learn anything from our experiences upon which we may grow and help others to grow in the likeness and image of God. We know that if we rebel against doing that which is reasonably possible for us, then we will be penalized. And we will be equally penalized if we presume in ourselves a perfection that simply is not there. Apparently, the course of relative humility and progress will have to lie somewhere between these extremes. In our slow progress away from rebellion, true perfection is doubtless several millennia away

Afflictions are... if we can so take them, our share in the Passion of Christ

It is only the life that is lost for Him that is found in Him.

Much later, when I understood what perfection was, I realized that to become a saint one must suffer a great deal, always seek what is best, and forget oneself. I understood that there were many kinds of of sanctity and that each soul was free to respond to the approaches of Our Lord and to do little or much for Him - in other words,to make a choice among the sacrifices He demands.

The highest perfection of human life consists in the mind of man being detached from care, for the sake of God.

God doesn't do notes, either. Did Jesus Christ say, "Can I be excused the Crucifixion?" No!

I never cared but for one thing, and that is, simply to know that I am right before my Father in Heaven. If I am this moment, this day doing the things God requires of my hands, and precisely where my Father in Heaven wants me to be, I care no more about tomorrow than though it would never come.

Our circumstances are the means God uses to exhibit just how wonderfully perfect and extraordinarily pure His Son is.

God wants to produce the character of Christ in our lives because he knows that the more we become like him, the more fulfilled we will be.

The call of God is not a reflection of my nature; my personal desires and temperament are of no consideration. As long as I dwell on my own qualities and traits and think about what I am suited for, I will never hear the call of God.