“The Spirit never lies dormant and idle within the soul: He always makes His presence known by the fruit He causes to be borne in heart, character, and life” (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 18).

“Sanctification, then, is the invariable result of that vital union with Christ which true faith gives to a Christian. . . . The union with Christ which produces no effect on heart and life is a mere formal union, which is worthless before God. The faith which has not a sanctifying influence on the character is no better than the faith of devils. It is a “dead faith, because it is alone.” It is not the gift of God. It is not the faith of God’s elect. In short, where there is no sanctification of life, there is no real faith in Christ” (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 17).

“Sanctification is that inward spiritual work which the Lord Jesus Christ works in a man by the Holy Ghost, when He calls him to be a true believer. He not only washes him from his sins in His own blood, but He also separates him from his natural love of sin and the world, puts a new principle in his heart, and makes him practically godly in life. The instrument by which the Spirit effects this work is generally the Word of God, though He sometimes uses afflictions and providential visitations “with-out the Word.” (1 Peter 3:1) The subject of this work of Christ by His Spirit is called in Scripture a “sanctified” man.” (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 17).

“Once taught to live the life of faith in Jesus, and abiding in Him, we shall bear more fruit, shall find ourselves more strong for duty, more patient in trial, more watchful over our poor weak hearts, and more like our Master in all our little daily ways. Just in proportion as we realize how much Christ has done for us, shall we labour to do much for Christ” (J.C. Ryle, Holiness, 14).

“Prayer precedes power” (Dwight L. Moody from sermon “The Prayers of the Bible”).

“Our research shows that these types of nonhuman changes failed [i.e. team restructuring, tweaking a performance management system, etc.] more often than they succeed. That’s because the real problem never was in the process, system, or structure–it was in employee behavior. The key to real change lies not in implementing a new process, but in getting people to hold one another accountable to the process. And that requires Crucial Conversations skills” (Patterson, Grenny, McMillan & Switlzer, Crucial Conversations, 13).

“The Apostle James tells us that the prophet Elijah was a man ‘subject to like passions as we are.’ I am thankful that those men and women who were so mighty in prayer were just like us” (Dwight L. Moody from sermon “The Prayers of the Bible”).

As image-bearer of God, man possesses the possibility both to create something beautiful, and to delight in it.
     — Abraham Kuyper, Lectures on Calvinism

“People who routinely hold crucial conversations and hole them well are able to express controversial and even risky opinions in a way that gets heard. Their bosses, peers, and direct reports listen without becoming defensive or angry” (Patterson, Grenny, McMillan & Switlzer, Crucial Conversations, 10).

“Literature is a form of knowledge, but it is also an art form–the creation of technique and beauty for the sake of entertainment and aesthetic delight” (Leland Ryken, Thinking Christianly About Literature from The Christian Imagination, 25).