Therese Of Lisieux Quotes & Sayings

Love is nourished only by sacrifices, and the more a soul refuses natural satisfactions, the stronger and more disinterested becomes her tenderness. — Therese Of Lisieux

Why should we defend ourselves when we are misunderstood and misjudged? Let us leave that aside. Let us not say anything. It is so sweet to let others judge us in any way they like. O blessed silence, which gives so much peace to the soul! — Therese Of Lisieux

Everything is a grace, everything is the direct effect of our Father's love - difficulties, contradictions, humiliations, all the soul's miseries, her burdens, her needs - everything, because through them, she learns humility, realizes her weakness. Everything is a grace because everything is God's gift. Whatever be the character of life or its unexpected events - to the heart that loves, all is well. — Therese Of Lisieux

I want to give myself totally to Him ... I want to live no longer but for Him. — Therese Of Lisieux

When Charity is deeply rooted in the soul it shows itself exteriorly: there is so gracious a way of refusing what we cannot give, that the refusal pleases as much as the gift. — Therese Of Lisieux

You must open a little, or rather raise on high your corolla so that the Bread of Angels may come as divine dew to strengthen you, and to give you all that is wanting to you. — Therese Of Lisieux

Jesus, help me to simplify my life by learning what you want me to be and becoming that person. — Therese Of Lisieux

(On entering Carmel) I came to save souls and especially to pray for priests. — Therese Of Lisieux

In that first 'fusion' with Jesus (holy communion), it was my Heavenly Mother again who accompanied me to the altar for it was she herself who placed her Jesus into my soul. — Therese Of Lisieux

He longs to give us a magnificent reward. He knows that suffering is the only means of preparing us to know Him as He knows Himself, and to become ourselves divine. — Therese Of Lisieux

You heard me, only Friend whom I love. To ravish my heart, you became man. You shed your blood, what a supreme mystery! ... And you still live for me on the Altar. If I cannot see the brilliance of your Face Or hear your sweet voice, O my God, I can live by your grace, I can rest on your Sacred Heart! — Therese Of Lisieux

If you are willing to bear serenely the trial of being displeasing to yourself, then you will be for Jesus a pleasant place of shelter. — Therese Of Lisieux

Each small task of everyday life is part of the total harmony of the universe. — Therese Of Lisieux

She is more Mother than Queen. — Therese Of Lisieux

At the time of Holy Communion I sometimes picture my soul under the figure of a little child of three or four years, who at play has got its hair tossed and its clothes soiled. These misfortunes have befallen me in battling with souls. But very soon the Blessed Virgin hastens to my aid: quickly, she takes off my dirty little pinafore, smoothes my hair and adorns it with a pretty ribbon or simply with a little flower ... and this suffices to render me pleasing and enables me to sit at the Banquet of Angels without blushing. — Therese Of Lisieux

I will spend my heaven doing good on earth. — Therese Of Lisieux

He does not call those who are worthy, but those whom He wills. — Therese Of Lisieux

It is my weakness that gives me all my strength. — Therese Of Lisieux

Whose hands are God's hands, but our hands? — Therese Of Lisieux

Since the age of three I have refused God nothing. — Therese Of Lisieux

My soul experienced a peace so sweet, so deep, it would be impossible to express it. — Therese Of Lisieux

Silence does good to the soul. — Therese Of Lisieux

I understood that the Church had a Heart, and that this Heart was burning with love. — Therese Of Lisieux

The storm thunders at my heart; I find it difficult to believe in the existence of anything except the clouds which limit my horizon. — Therese Of Lisieux

Prayer for me is an updward leap of the heart — Therese Of Lisieux

Nothing's done well when it's done out of self-interest. — Therese Of Lisieux

When we yield to discouragement it is usually because we give too much thought to the past and to the future. — Therese Of Lisieux

For one pain endured with joy, we shall love the good God more forever. — Therese Of Lisieux

I had wondered for a long time why God had preferences and why all souls did not receive an equal amount of grace [ ... ] Jesus saw fit to enlighten me about this mystery. He set the book of nature before me and I saw that all the flowers He has created are lovely. The splendor of the rose and whiteness of the lily do not rob the little violet of its scent nor the daisy of its simple charm. I realized that if every tiny flower wanted to be a rose, spring would lose its loveliness and there would be no wild flowers to make the meadows gay. — Therese Of Lisieux

Remember that nothing is small in the eyes of God. Do all that you do with love. — Therese Of Lisieux

Let us rise above the things that pass away. Up above, the air is so pure. Jesus can hide Himself but we will find Him there. — Therese Of Lisieux

(Her last words) Oh! I love Him! My God, I love You! — Therese Of Lisieux

I am simply content to find myself always imperfect, and in this I find my joy. Good deeds count as nothing, if done without love. — Therese Of Lisieux

He is not far off; He is there, very close. He is looking at us, and He is begging this sorrow, this agony from us. He needs it for souls and for our soul ... Alas, it does pain Him to give us sorrows to drink, but He knows this is the only means of preparing us to know Him as He knows Himself and to become God's ourselves. — Therese Of Lisieux

I felt it better to speak to God than about Him. — Therese Of Lisieux

It is love alone that counts. — Therese Of Lisieux

How I loved the feasts! ... I especially loved the processions in honor of the Blessed Sacrament. What a joy it was for me to throw flowers beneath the feet of God! ... I was never so happy as when I saw my roses touch the sacred Monstrance ... — Therese Of Lisieux

You cannot be half a saint; you must be a whole saint or no saint at all. — Therese Of Lisieux

I am not afraid of a fight; I have to do my duty, come what may. — Therese Of Lisieux

Sufferings gladly borne for others convert more people than sermons. — Therese Of Lisieux

I also understood that God's love shows itself just as well in the simplest soul which puts up no resistance to His grace as it does in the loftiest soul. — Therese Of Lisieux

Nobody is a good judge in his own cause! — Therese Of Lisieux

I would prefer a thousand times to receive reproofs than to give them to others ... — Therese Of Lisieux

O Jesus! on this day, you have fulfilled all my desires. From now on, near the Eucharist, I shall be able To sacrifice myself in silence, to wait for Heaven in peace. Keeping myself open to the rays of the Divine Host, In this furnace of love, I shall be consumed, And like a seraphim, Lord, I shall love You. — Therese Of Lisieux

What offends Him and what wounds His Heart is the lack of confidence ... Your heart is made to love Jesus, to love Him passionately ... We have only the short moments of our life to love Jesus! — Therese Of Lisieux

The great majority of men use their own short-sighted ideas as a yardstick for measuring the divine omnipotence. — Therese Of Lisieux

Do not fear to tell Jesus that you love Him even without feeling it. That is the way to force Jesus to help you, to carry you like a little child too feeble to walk. — Therese Of Lisieux

The good God would not inspire unattainable desires. — Therese Of Lisieux

God would not make me wish for something impossible and so, in spite of my littleness, I can aim at being a saint. It is impossible for me to grow bigger, so I put up with myself as I am, with all my countless faults. But I will look for some means of going to heaven by a little way which is very short and very straight, a little way that is quite new[ ... ] It is your arms,
Jesus, which are the lift to carry me to heaven, And so there is no need for me to grow up. In fact, just the opposite: I must stay little and become less and less. — Therese Of Lisieux

For me, prayer is an upward leap of the heart, an untroubled glance towards heaven, a cry of gratitude and love which I utter from the depths of sorrow as well as from the heights of joy. — Therese Of Lisieux

No harm can come to me since, in whatever happens, I see only the tender hand of Jesus. — Therese Of Lisieux

Suffering is the very best gift He has to give us. He gives it only to His chosen friends. — Therese Of Lisieux

In trial or difficulty I have recourse to Mother Mary, whose glance alone is enough to dissipate every fear. — Therese Of Lisieux

I prefer to be accused unjustly, for then I have nothing to reproach myself with, and joyfully offer this to the good Lord. Then I humble myself at the thought that I am indeed capable of doing the thing of which I have been accused. — Therese Of Lisieux

Look at Him while He is looking at you. — Therese Of Lisieux

The science of loving, yes, that's the only kind of science I want I'd barter away everything I possess to win it. — Therese Of Lisieux

Heaven for me is hidden in a little Host Where Jesus, my Spouse, is veiled for love. I go to that Divine Furnace to draw out life, And there my Sweet Saviour listens to me night and day. — Therese Of Lisieux

When we are expecting only suffering, the least joy surprises us: Suffering itself becomes the greatest of joys when we seek it as a precious treasure. — Therese Of Lisieux

(Whispered to a novice while standing in front of the convent library) Oh! I would have been sorry to have read all those books ... If I had read them, I would have broken my head, and I would have wasted precious time that I could have employed very simply in loving God. — Therese Of Lisieux

He [Jesus] has no need of our works but only of our love. — Therese Of Lisieux

Discouragement itself is a form of pride. — Therese Of Lisieux

Frequently, only silence can express my prayer. — Therese Of Lisieux

A heart given to God loses none of its natural tenderness; on the contrary, the more pure and divine it becomes, the more such tenderness increases. — Therese Of Lisieux

Our Lord needs from us neither great deeds nor profound thoughts. Neither intelligence nor talents. He cherishes simplicity. — Therese Of Lisieux

We who run in the way of Love must never torment ourselves about anything. If I did not suffer minute by minute, it would be impossible for me to be patient; but I see only the present moment, I forget the past, and take good care not to anticipate the future. If we grow disheartened, if sometimes we despair, it is because we have been dwelling on the past or the future. — Therese Of Lisieux

Time is but a shadow, a dream; already God sees us in glory and takes joy in our eternal beatitude. How this thought helps my soul! I understand then why He lets us suffer. — Therese Of Lisieux

Let us not be justices of the peace, but angels of peace. — Therese Of Lisieux

Even now I know it: yes, all my hopes will be fulfilled ... yes ... the Lord will work wonders for me which will surpass infinitely my immeasurable desires. — Therese Of Lisieux

The morrow of this day will be eternity; then Jesus will return you a hundred fold the lovely, rightful joys that you are sacrificing for him. — Therese Of Lisieux

He has created the poor savage with no guide but natural law, and it is to their hearts that He deigns to stoop. They are His wild flowers whose homeliness delights Him. — Therese Of Lisieux

Above the clouds the sky is always blue. — Therese Of Lisieux

It is not to remain in a golden ciborium that He comes down each day from Heaven, but to find another Heaven, the Heaven of our soul in which He takes delight. — Therese Of Lisieux

At last there dawned the most beautiful day of all the days of my life. How perfectly I remember even the smallest details of those sacred hours! The joyful awakening, the reverent and tender embraces of my mistresses and older companions, the room filled with white frocks, like so many snowflakes, where each child was dressed in turn. — Therese Of Lisieux

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. — Therese Of Lisieux

Jesus does not demand great actions from us, but simply surrender and gratitude. — Therese Of Lisieux

Love consumes us only in the measure of our self-surrender. — Therese Of Lisieux

Let us go forward in peace, our eyes upon heaven, the only one goal of our labors. — Therese Of Lisieux

For me to love you, Jesus, as you love me, I would have to borrow your own love and then only would I be at rest. — Therese Of Lisieux

What a joy to remember that she is our Mother! Since she loves us and knows our weakness, what have we to fear? — Therese Of Lisieux

For me, prayer means launching out of the heart towards God; it means lifting up one's eyes, quite simply, to heaven, a cry of grateful love, from the crest of joy or the trough of despair; it's a vast, supernatural force which opens out my heart, and binds me close to Jesus. — Therese Of Lisieux

Jesus makes the bitterest mouthful taste sweet. — Therese Of Lisieux

The country in which I live is not my native country, that lies elsewhere, and it must always be the center of my longings. — Therese Of Lisieux

As the sun shines both on the cedar and the smallest flower, so the Divine sun illumines each soul. — Therese Of Lisieux

Love is a universe of its own, comprising all time and space. — Therese Of Lisieux

It is only love which makes us acceptable to God. — Therese Of Lisieux

Let us love, since our heart is made for nothing else. — Therese Of Lisieux

God would turn the world around to find suffering in order to give it to a soul upon whom He has set His Divine gaze with ineffable love. — Therese Of Lisieux

Receive Communion often, very often ... there you have the sole remedy, if you want to be cured. Jesus has not put this attraction in your heart for nothing ... — Therese Of Lisieux

It has a supernatural grandeur which expands the soul and unites it with God. I say an Our Father or a Hail Mary when I feel so spiritually barren that I cannot summon up a single worth while thought. These two prayers fill me with rapture and feed and satisfy my soul. — Therese Of Lisieux

I feel in me the vocation of the Priest. I have the vocation of the Apostle. Martyrdom was the dream of my youth, and this dream has grown with me. Considering the mystical body of the Church, I desired to see myself in them all. — Therese Of Lisieux

Perfection consists in doing His will, in being that which He wants us to be. — Therese Of Lisieux

I'm suffering very much, but am I suffering very well? That's the point! — Therese Of Lisieux

Love needs to be proved by action. — Therese Of Lisieux

In spite of this trial, which takes all enjoyment from me, I can never the less, cry out, 'Lord, you fill me with joy in all that you do. For is there a joy greater than to suffer for love?' — Therese Of Lisieux

How can the good God Who loves us so much, be happy when we suffer? Never does our suffering make Him happy; but it is necessary for us, and so He sends it to us while, as it were, turning away His Face ... I assure you that it costs Him dearly to fill us with bitterness. — Therese Of Lisieux

True charity consists in putting up with all one's neighbors fault's; never being surprised by his weakness, and being inspired by the least of his virtues. — Therese Of Lisieux

Life passes. Eternity comes to meet us with great strides. Soon we shall be living with the very life of Jesus. Having drunk deep at the source of all bitterness, we shall be deified in the very source of all joys, of all delights. — Therese Of Lisieux

The more one advances, the more one sees the goal is still far off. And now I am simply resigned to see myself always imperfect and in this I find my joy. — Therese Of Lisieux

Remember that in ascending to the Father You could not leave us orphans; And in making yourself a prisoner on earth You knew to veil all your divine rays. But the shadow of your veil is luminous and pure. Living Bread of faith, Celestial Food, O mystery of love! My daily Bread, Jesus, is You! ... Jesus, it is you who, despite the blasphemies Of the enemies of the Sacrament of love, It is you who want to show how much you love me, Since you make your dwelling in my heart. O Bread of the exiled! Holy and Divine Host, It is no longer I who live, but I live on your life — Therese Of Lisieux

Trials help us detach ourselves from the earth; they make us look higher than this world. — Therese Of Lisieux