Saint Francis de Sales

Make sickness itself a prayer.

— Saint Francis de Sales

Fear is a greater evil than evil itself.

— Saint Francis de Sales

Humor is the foundation of reconciliation.

— Saint Francis de Sales

Those who love to be feared fear to be loved.

— Saint Francis de Sales

One rarely does well what one rarely does.

— Saint Francis de Sales

Be who you are and do that well.

— Saint Francis de Sales

In everything, love simplicity.

— Saint Francis de Sales

He who complains, sins.

— Saint Francis de Sales

The Lord delights in every little step you take.

— Saint Francis de Sales

Though perseverance does not come from our power, yet it comes within our power.

— Saint Francis de Sales

Humility makes our lives acceptable to God, meekness makes us acceptable to men.

— Saint Francis de Sales

Is it not a great temptation to be so valiant in imagination and so cowardly in execution?

— Saint Francis de Sales

Where there is peace and meditation, there is neither anxiety nor doubt.

— Saint Francis de Sales

Doing little things with a strong desire to please God makes them really great.

— Saint Francis de Sales

What we need is a cup of understanding, a barrel of love, and an ocean of patience.

— Saint Francis de Sales

We must visit Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament a hundred thousand times a day.

— Saint Francis de Sales

By turning your eyes on God in meditation, your whole soul will be filled with God. Begin all your prayers in the…

— Saint Francis de Sales

He who can preserve gentleness amid pains, and peace amid worry multitude of affairs, is almost perfect.

— Saint Francis de Sales

It matters little how one begins, provided that he be resolved to go on well, and to end well.

— Saint Francis de Sales

It is better to remain silent than to speak the truth ill-humoredly, and spoil an excellent dish by covering it with bad…

— Saint Francis de Sales

To lose ourselves in God is simply to give up our own will to Him. When a soul can truly say Lord…

— Saint Francis de Sales

When you encounter difficulties and contradictions, do not try to break them, but bend them with gentleness and time.

— Saint Francis de Sales

A good discourse is that from which nothing can be retrenched without cutting into the quick.

— Saint Francis de Sales

Work hard every day at increasing your purity of heart, which consists in appraising things and weighing them in the balance of…

— Saint Francis de Sales

We do not very often come across opportunities for exercising strength, magnanimity, or magnificence; but gentleness, temperance, modesty, and humility, are graces…

— Saint Francis de Sales

Go to your confessor; open your heart to him; display to him all the recesses of your soul; take the advice that…

— Saint Francis de Sales

Obedience is a virtue of so excellent a nature, that Our Lord was pleased to mark its observance upon the whole course…

— Saint Francis de Sales

Never be hurried in anything. Do all things calmly and in a spirit of repose. Do not lose your inward peace even…

— Saint Francis de Sales

Through devotion, your family cares become more peaceful, mutual love between husband and wife becomes more sincere, the service we owe to…

— Saint Francis de Sales

Do not be ashamed of being poor, or of asking alms. Receive what is given you with humility, and accept a refusal…

— Saint Francis de Sales

In so far as divine love beautifies our souls. And makes us pleasing to His divine Majesty, it is called grace; in…

— Saint Francis de Sales

True virtue has no limits, but goes on and on, and especially holy charity, which is the virtue of virtues, and which…

— Saint Francis de Sales

Without a doubt, one of the things which keeps us from attaining perfection is our tongue. When one has reached the point…

— Saint Francis de Sales

The elephant, not only the largest but the most intelligent of animals, provides us with an excellent example. It is faithful and…

— Saint Francis de Sales

Lately I was near the beehives and some of the bees flew onto my face. I wanted to raise my hand, and…

— Saint Francis de Sales

The enemy often tries to make us attempt and start many projects so that we will be overwhelmed with too many tasks,…

— Saint Francis de Sales

And when children begin to use their reason, fathers and mothers should take great pains to fill their hearts with the fear…

— Saint Francis de Sales

Be neat, Philothea; let nothing be negligent about you. It is a kind of contempt of those with whom we converse, to…

— Saint Francis de Sales

All true and living devotion presupposes the love of God and indeed it is neither more nor less than a very real…

— Saint Francis de Sales

If you have to do with one who is unquestionably a slanderer, do not excuse him by calling him frank and free-spoken;…

— Saint Francis de Sales