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Time Quotes by Henri Nouwen

45 Time quotes by Henri Nouwen

All Time quotes Henri Nouwen’s page

Stories from birth to death link our small lives with the world, helping us discover meaning. Nouwen speaks of active waiting—being fully present in each moment and trusting that something is happening. He also reminds us that patience means tasting the here and now, not rushing ahead.

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Our life is...a time in which sadness and joy kiss each other at every moment.

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Every time I take a step in the direction of generosity, I know I am moving from fear to love.

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Everything changes radically from the moment you know yourself as being sent into this world.

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I trust in you, Lord, but keep helping me in my moments of distrust and doubt.

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Every time you reject yourself, you idealize others

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There are as many ways to pray as there are moments in life.

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Ministry means the ongoing attempt to put one's own search for God, with all the moments of pain and joy, despair and…

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When you recognize the festive and the still moments as moments of prayer, then you gradually realize that to pray is to…

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Solitude, community, and ministry are certainly not just for celibates! Celibates also have a hard time keeping up.

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It is very hard to stay in touch with our true identity because those who want our money, our time, and our…

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Patience asks us to live the moment to the fullest, to be completely present to the moment, to taste the here and…

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The real enemies of our life are the 'oughts' and the 'ifs.' They pull us backward into the unalterable past and forward…

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Discipline in the spiritual life is the concentrated effort to create the space and time where God can become our master and…

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...we all want to hear stories, from the moment we are born to the moment we die. Stories connect our little lives…

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We have probably wondered in our many lonesome moments if there is one corner in this competitive, demanding world where it is…

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The Christian leaders of the future have to be theologians, persons who know the heart of God and are trained - through…

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It is freeing to become aware that we do not have to be victims of our past and can learn new ways…

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Solitude is very different from a 'time-out' from our busy lives. Solitude is the very ground from which community grows. Whenever we…

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I have an increasing sense that the most important crisis of our time is spiritual and that we need places where people…

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Hope is willing to leave unanswered questions unanswered and unknown futures unknown. Hope makes you see God's guiding hand not only in…

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When everything is dark, when we are surrounded by despairing voices, when we do not see any exits, then we can find…

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In this crazy world, there's an enormous distinction between good times and bad, between sorrow and joy. But in the eyes of…

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Real grief is not healed by time... if time does anything, it deepens our grief. The longer we live, the more fully…

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One of the experiences of prayer is that it seems that nothing happens. But when you start with it and look back…

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“Every time we make the decision to love someone, we open ourselves to great suffering, because those we most love cause us…

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“To be grateful for the good things that happen in our lives is easy, but to be grateful for all of our lives the…

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There are areas I have to work on. I had some questions and some struggles, but it was an enormously important time…

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Waiting time is not wasting time. Waiting patiently in expectation is the foundation of the spiritual life.

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God is a God of the present. God is always in the moment, be that moment hard or easy, joyful and painful.

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One way to express the spiritual crisis of our time is to say that most of us have an address but cannot…

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If you want to know anything about community, you have to realize that the contemplative side is essential. Community without retreating and…

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Television is obviously an enormous intruder. Quite often people say they have no time, but in fact they waste a lot of…

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From the moment we claim the truth of being the beloved, we are faced with the call to become who we are.

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Active waiting means present fully to the moment, in the conviction that something is happening where you are and that you want…

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It is precisely in times of spiritual dryness that we must hold on to our spiritual discipline so that we can grow…

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If you believe you are the beloved of God, you need to spend time listening to his voice - period! You can't…

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Patience asks us to live the moment to the fullest, to be completely present to the moment, to taste the here and…

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Solitude begins with a time and place for God, and him alone. If we really believe not only that God exists but…

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Every time there are losses, there are choices to be made. You choose to live your losses as passages to anger, blame,…

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The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an…

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More by Henri Nouwen

We are not the healers, we are not the reconcilers, we are not the givers of life. We are sinful, broken, vulnerable people who…

The more we touch the intimate love of God which creates, sustains, and guides us, the more we recognize the multitude of fruits that…

Feelings of guilt dominate our work as peacemakers we cannot last long. But when we have opened each other's eyes to the great human…

...we all want to hear stories, from the moment we are born to the moment we die. Stories connect our little lives with the…

I have found it very important...to let go of my wishes and start hoping.

Simply being with someone is difficult because it asks of us that we share in the other's vulnerability, enter with him or her into…

Somewhere we know that without silence, words lose their meaning.

Jesus says, "Keep your heart on the kingdom first. Keep your heart on God's love. Keep focused on the fact that you are God's…

This sounds very simple and maybe even trite, but very few people know that they are loved without condition or limits.

“The more preoccupied we are with security the more visible the force of death becomes, whether in the form of a pistol beside our…

If you feel a great loneliness and a deep longing for human contact, you have to be extremely discerning...and ask yourself whether this situation…

I choose L'Arche; L'Arche chooses me. I would be dead if I weren't here. I need people to love me and care for me.

The truth, even though I cannot feel it right now, is that I am the chosen child of God, precious in God's eyes, called…

In a world so torn apart by rivalry, anger, and hatred, we have the privileged vocation to be living signs of a love that…

Where true inner freedom is, there is God. And where God is, there we want to be.