Tag Archives: Quote

Top Ten Favorite Book Quotes

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Welcome to the Ignorant Historian! If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

I love quotes. So much so, that I created a blog just to collect my favorite quotes (that I’ve not been updating lately, but still, all my older favorite quotes are there).

Here are my 10 of my favorite quotes from books. If only I could write this well!

1. “He wondered for a moment if it was Mars he was looking at; then, as his eyes took in the markings better, he recognised what they were–Northern Europe and a piece of North America. They were upside down with the North Pole at the bottom of the picture and this somehow shocked him. But it was Earth he was seeing–even, perhaps, England, though the picture shook a little and his eyes were quickly getting tired, and he could not be certain that he was not imagining it. It was all there in that little disk–London, Athens, Jerusalem, Shakespeare. There everyone had lived and everything had happened; and there, presumably, his pack was still lying in the porch of an empty house near Sterk. ‘Yes,’ he said dully to the sorn. ‘That is my world.’ It was the bleakest moment in all his travels.”

- Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis, p. 96

2. “Arraigned at my own bar, Memory having given her evidence of the hopes, wishes, sentiments I had been cherishing since last night–of the general state of mind in which I had indulged for nearly a fortnight past; Reason having come forward and told in her own quiet way a plain, unvarnished tale, showing how I had rejected the real, and rabidly devoured the ideal–I pronounced judgment to this effect:–That a greater fool than Jane Eyre had never breathed the breath of life: that a more fantastic idiot had never surfeited herself on sweet lies, and swallowed poison as if it were nectar.”

– Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, p. 169

3. “Whereever you are, you should always be contented, but especially at home, because there you must spend the most of your time.”

– Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, p. 294

4. “As a general rule, people, even the wicked, are much more naive and simple-hearted than we suppose. And we ourselves are, too.”

– The Brother Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky, p. 17

5. “As will be the case throughout your life, no matter how long or brief [the urge], the choice is, in the end, yours. Simply bear in mind that most every choice will have consequences, and in this instance those consequences would likely be quite grave.”

– Everything Matters! by Ron Currie, Jr., p. 4

6. “I remembered thinking how hard it was to contemplate death from a comfortable chair.”

- The Host by Stephenie Meyer, p. 127

7. “Large numbers of books always depressed her, as did people who liked to read large numbers of books.”

– Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell, p. 159

8. “…you must also own Religion in his rags, as well as when in his silver slippers; and stand by him, too, when bound in irons, as well as when he walketh the streets with applause.”

– Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan, p. 92

9. “And know this: people who seek only happiness never find it.”

– Blue in Snow by Orhan Pamuk, p. 350

10. “ ‘Ignorance is not a tragedy,’ said Anton, ‘merely an opportunity. But to know and refuse to know what you know, that is foolishness.’ ”

- Shadow Puppets by Orson Scott Card, p. 91

For more Top Ten lists, visit Broke and Bookish

How Thick Is Your Bible?

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Reading an article for a counseling class I’m taking at church, I ran across a sentence that really clicked for me.

In the article, David Powlison writes about two kinds of Christians. Those who think that the Bible is good for certain things (spiritual growth, theological learning, etc). To these people, the Bible is thin. Though it’s good and helpful, it’s only good and helpful within it’s realm of influence.

But there is another type of Christian (the type of Christian I strive to be), that thinks that the Bible is good for all things. While not all issues are explicitly addressed in the Bible, the truths of the Bible are big enough to apply to any situation that we’d face in the 21st Century. These people have crammed Bibles, as Powlison says.

For example, what good would it have been if Jesus expressly spoken against the use of pornography 1800 years before the invention of the camera? But his teaching against lust leave no room for doubt that He’s against the use of pornography.

Now that I’ve given that background information, here’s what Powlison says that turned on the light bulb over my head:

“When people with thin Bibles hear people with crammed Bibles talk about the sufficiency of Scripture for counseling, they hear, ‘Something thin and incomplete is sufficient for a very complex job.’ That sounds ridiculous. Biblical counseling sounds absurd, doctinaire, obscurantist, the rantings of a small-minded know-nothings who glory in their ignorance.”*

Of course. I like to understand the views of others’, but this one was one that puzzled me until this point. How can someone claim that the Bible is God’s Word and not think that it could have transformative power in our daily lives?

But, of course saying that it does sounds ridiculous, if you’ve always only understand the Bible to be good for theological and spiritual things.

So, how thick is your Bible? I want to understand more about this valuable resource God has given us in His Word.

*Quote is from “Do You See?” in The Journal of Biblical Counseling, Volume XI Number 3, Spring 1993

Photo by sukisuki

Quotable

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I had every intention of writing a “real” post today, but it’s just not happening.  You’ll have to hold your breath in anticipation.  (Except don’t–I don’t want you to die!)

Instead, I’ll direct you to a site that IS regularly updated.  For some time I’ve been flirting with creating a site exclusively to quotes.  I’ve diligently collected them for years now, but even putting them on this blog hasn’t helped me to find the one that I’m looking for months or years down the line.

So, Consider This Quote does exactly that.  It’s easier to search (since it’s just quotes), and bonus: I’ve added pictures for each quote!  If you have quotes you love, you can add them, too.

Ice Cream Really is a Way of Life

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These are just a few quotes that have caught my interest–for good or bad–the past few weeks.  Feel free to discuss them with me in the comments.

“…the economically rich often have ‘god-complexes,’ a subtle and unconscious sense of superiority in which they believe that they have achieved their wealth through their own efforts and that they have been anointed to decide what is best for low-income people, whom they view as inferior to themselves.” – When Helping Hurts by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert, p. 65

“You never know what a man is capable of, even old friends.”
Yeah, Jimmy was a good guy.  He has one turn of bad luck, and it changed all that.”
No, Belson made the choice to go down this road.  Luck has nothing to do with it.” – CSI:NY, “Out of the Sky”

“This boy and million like him want a meaningful life, not ping pong.” – Native Son by Richard Wright

“…she was a Baptist through and through, which meant she approached her faith like the woman on the Bounty paper towel commercials: quick, with no time for nonsense like spiritual leaks and spills.” – Hear No Evil by Matthew Paul Turner, p. 13

“…he feels that ice cream should be for special occasions, while I believe it’s a way of life.” – The Total Tragedy of a Girl Named Hamlet by Erin Dionne, p. 125

“As I listened to these people praying to be able to live another day, I thought about my ample salary, my life insurance policy, my health insurance poplicy, my two cars, my house, etc.  I realized that I don not really trust in God’s sovereignty on a daily basis, as I have sufficient buffers in palce to shield me from most economic shocks.” – When Helping Hurts by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert, p. 69

“So many of us Christians are all about being vulnerable, especially when we’re on stage, dressed up in a costume, and wearing makeup, putting on a performance we consider ‘a means to an end.’ ” - Hear No Evil by Matthew Paul Turner, p. 11

“Make it a practice to feel special to God.” – church sign

“The goal is not to make the materially poor all over the world into middle-to-upper class North Americans, a group characterize by high rates of divorce, sexual addiction, substance abuse, and mental illness.” – When Helping Hurts by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert, p. 78

“I think some women at [the church] feel sorry for me,” she said, “as if they think I’m only half the woman I could be because I don’t have a husband to act as my spiritual leader.” – Hear No Evil by Matthew Paul Turner, p. 17

“I’m absolutely positive,” he assured Gallien, “I won’t run into anything I can’t deal with on my own.” – Chris McCandless in Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer

“Roberta talked about God like a scientist talked about gravity or Darwin, with no room for mystery or wonder.” – Hear No Evil by Matthew Paul Turner, p. 76p

“But I am convinced that Christians in America can appreciate their country without worshipping it, be politically engaged without being politically consumed, and hold opinions about healthcare and the economy without insisting that God agrees. We can be civil because we know that people are infinitely more valuable than positions. We can be calm because we know that love will win in the end. We can laugh because we’re neither threatened nor dazzled by power.” – Rachel Held Evans, “Moderates: The Silent Majority?”

Readathon Hangover Quotes

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“What is wrong with you, Jeffrey?”
“Well, Shirley, since you have clearly failed to grasp the central insipid metaphor of those Twilight books you devour, let me explain it to you: men are monsters who crave young flesh.  The end.” – Community, “Anthropology 101″

“The revelation of God in his awesome glory is the only thing that exposes the utter emptiness of all the other glories we crave.” - Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands by Paul Tripp, p. 99

“First, North American Christians are simply not doing enough.  We are the richest people ever to walk the face of the earth.  Period.  Yet, most of us live as though there is nothing terribly wrong in the world.  We attend our kids’ soccer games, pursue our caareers, and take beach vacations while 40% of the world’s inhabitants struggle just to eat every day.” - When Helping Hurts by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikker, p. 28

“If we were honest, we would have to confess that the central prayer of our hearts is ‘my kingdom come.’ ” - Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands by Paul Tripp, p. 105

“I know now how you can take one step and you can’t stop yourself from taking another.  I know now what it means to want.  I know it can get you to a place where there’s no way out.  I know now there’s no such thing as just one.  But I didn’t know it then.” – What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell, p. 42

“Why insecure?  Yer a pretty girl, if you were legal I’d totally have asked for naked pictures by now.”  Despite the implications of what he’d said, the immediate thought that came to my mind was That’s got to be in the top five nicest things a guy has ever said to me. – Alexis by Alexis Singer, p. 32

In all of his life, these two murders were the most meaningful things that have ever happened to him.  He was living, truly and deeply, no matter what other’s might think, looking at him with their blind eyes.” – Native Son by Richard Wright

“My concern for the poor and for social justice made many evangelicals suspect that I was theologically liberal.  I never did understand those folks.  I never questioned that the Bbile was totally true.” – Dr. John Perkins quoted in When Helping Hurts by Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert, p. 11

“Because we are worshipers by nature we are always (1) giving proper worship to God, (2) serving something else, or (3) worshiping ourselves, demanding to be the center of our own universe.  Isn’t that what fantasy is about?  In a person’s disappointment with the real world, he creates worlds of his own where everyone does his bidding.  Who has ever fantasized about someone saying ‘no’?  Fantasy is an attempt to be God.” - Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands by Paul Tripp, p. 45

“The thing to do was to act like others acted, live like they lived, and while they were not looking, do what you wanted.  They would never know.” – Native Son by Richard Wright

“I’ve seen a lot of people on the news mocking the concept of Internet addiction or addiction to social network sites like Facebook or MySpace, but it isn’t so funny when it actuall happens.  And it does.  I’m living proof.” – Alexis by Alexis Singer, p. 12

“If the East Germans tore down the Wall today,” said oneo f the Federal Republic’s ranking diplomats to the GDR, “we would have to build another tomorrow.”
“We don’t want to depopulate East Germany; we want to see living conditions improve, so that they will stay home,” a top immmigration officer told me. – The Year that Changed the World by Michael Meyer, p. 118

Church Quotes

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“You could always count on Mrs. Mohler to keep the gossip flowing, using church words to make it okay.” – Daisy Chain by Mary DeMuth, p. 139

“Faith is a lack of contentment with what I am, but a sense of satisfaction with what God has given me of himself in Jesus.” - Mere Churchianity by Michael Spencer, p. 146

“For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.” – Galatians 6:1, NASU

about the Republican Party, but sadly, it describes a lot of churches, too: ”You have to look one way, think one way, and act one way.  Wear the uniform!  Embrace groupthink!  And for goodness’ sake, no strangers allowed!…The doors and windows aren’t just shut.  The curtains are drawn.” - Dirty Sexy Politics by Meghan McCain, p. 8

“There is little need for large churches stuffed with satisfied audiences.  There is a great need for a movement of disciples going into the overlooked places of the world to see and serve the kingdom of God.” - Mere Churchianity by Michael Spencer, p. 101

“They killed anyone who stood in their way.  They burned our house down and called it a mistake.  They weren’t in their own country so they didn’t have to answer to anyone.” - In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez, p. 57

“Jesus’ assignment to the apostles was not to get people to respond to an altar call but to make disciples of all nations.” - Mere Churchianity by Michael Spencer, p. 99

“But lately, in the Republican Party, anybody with a new idea is labeled ‘progressive,’ that dirty word, or just ignored.  I can’t think of a greater turn-off.  Why would a vibrant young person, full of energy and passion and lots of creativity, be interested in the Republican Party if new ideas and fresh starts aren’t welcome?” - Dirty Sexy Politics by Meghan McCain, p. 38

“In the last century, evangelical Christians parted ways with Christians in mainline churches, in part over suspicions about ‘the social gospel.’  Evangelicals came off sounding as if helping people was borderline unbiblical.” - Mere Christianity by Michael Spencer, p. 203

“The country people around the farm say that until the nail is hit, it doesn’t believe in the hammer.” – In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez, p. 20

“If a church isn’t supporting and growing disciples, isn’t crossing cultures with the gospel, and isn’t encouraging and producing Jesus-followers, I believe you’re entitled to look for a different form of community that is doing these things.” – Mere Churchianity by Michael Spencer, p. 212

All Non-Fiction Quotes

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“In rejecting a biblical view of people, the world eliminates any hope of answering the ‘what is wrong?’ question accurately.  And if it wrongly answers this question, how can it possibly provide a proper solution?” – Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands by Paul David Tripp, p. 9

“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.” – Mark Twain

“Caring for hurting people will always require more strength and grace than we possess.” – Susan Hunt in Women’s Ministry in the Church, p. 93

“Jesus remains, depsite two millinnia of rotten publicity from his followers, a universally attractive and compelling person.” – Mere Churchianity by Michael Spencer, p. 49

“The West has finally achieved the rights of man…but man’s sense of responsibility to God and society has grown dimmer and dimmer.” – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, quoted in Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be by Cornelius Plantinga, Jr., p. 173

“I am persuaded that the church today has many more consumers than committed participants.” – Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands by Paul David Tripp, p. XI-XII

“Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the Kingdom of God?  Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, not the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.  Such were some of you, but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.” – 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, NASU, emphasis added

“Every Christian should have his church enclosed within his heart, and be affected with its maladies, as if they were his own, — sympathize with its sorrows, and bewail its sins.” – John Calvin quoted in Women’s Ministry in the Church by J. Ligon Duncan and Susan Hunt, p. 45

“Christians have astoundingly clear vision when it comes to the vices, deceptions, and spiritual blindness of their neighbors.  But when it comes to Sunday morning and what gets talked about during the church coffee hour, it’s another story.” – Mere Churchianity by Michael Spencer, p. 34

“We cannot treat the Bible as a collection of therapeutic insights.  To do so distorts its message and will not lead to lasting change.” – Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands by Paul David Tripp, p. 9

“The church is a bride being prepared for the approach of her lover and husband.” – Spirit of the Reformation Study Bible quoted in Women’s Ministry in the Church by J. Ligon Duncan and Susan Hunt, p. 31

“But the truth is, all of the Christian life, and all ministry, is beyond the limits of our own personal power and abilities.  Ministry begins at the end of our own competences and abilities.” – J. Ligon Duncan in Women’s Ministry in the Church, p. 148

Quotes, Including Mockingjay Quotes, Spoiler-Free

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“…you won her over. Gave up everything for her. Maybe that’s the only way to convince her you love her.” – Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, p. 329

“Many churches speak about homosexuality in terms of sin and judgment but about divorce in terms of forgiveness and grace. When a same sex couple goes down to the courthouse to petition for a marriage certificate, the Christians show up with sandwich boards. Do they also show up when their congregants go to the same courthouse to petition for an “unbiblical divorce?” Likely not. And the hypocrisy on this issue has not escaped the next generation.” -“Why Our Generation Doesn’t Care About Prop 8″ by Jonathan Merritt

“I asked the children [from the suburbs] where the slums were. But they said there were no slums near where they lived, only far away, in the city.” – The Love Wife by Gish Jen, p. 44

“We’re fickle, stupid beings with poor memories and a great gift for self-destruction.” – Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, p. 379

“Annie, being a virgin in this day and age is something to be proud of…you’re like a unicorn.” – Shirley, Community, “The Politics of Human Sexuality”

“He is the God that understands that I just miss being loved by a lover….I am blessed in the truest sense of the word.  I am also a little lonely.” – Amy Beth Bullard, “The God Who Understands”

“Finally, he can see me for who I really am. Violent. Distrustful. Manipulative. Deadly. And I hate him for it.” – Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, p. 232

“A proud person tries to reinvent reality. He tries to redraw the borders of human behavior to suit himself, displacing God as the Lord and boundary keeper of life.” – Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be by Cornelius Plantinga, Jr., p. 125

“I noticed, too, it was the cruelest thing you could say about a person–that they were small.” – Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl

(advice given against early engagements) “…if a man is going through a woods, and sees a good young sapling, he may mark it and come back afterward and get it, if he can.” – Most Famous Man in America

” ‘Oh, no. It costs a lot more than your life. To murder innocent people?’ says Peeta. ‘It costs everything you are.’ ” – Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, p. 23

Short Stack

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“We order our worship services around our age groups, with music designed to remind each generation of whatever was playing at the youth rallies of their college days. Our congregations are made up of people who look, talk, and think just like we do. And it never occurs to us that this is the same kind of unity the world has to offer. Even in our churches, we seem to identify ourselves more according to the corporate brands we buy and the political parties we support than with each other.” – Adopted for Life by Russell Moore, p. 38

“Becoming a Christian might look more like falling in love than baking cookies.” – Searching for God Knows What by Donald Miller, p. 155

“Beauty often seduces us on the road to truth.” – Wilson
“And triteness kicks us in the nuts.” – House, House, “Occam’s Razor”

“…it makes me wonder if secretly we don’t wish God were a genie who could deliver a few wishes here and there.  And that makes me wonder if what we really want from the formula are the wishes, not God.  It makes me wonder if what we really want is control, not a relationship.” – Searching for God Knows What by Donald Miller, p. 12

“The quiet scares me ’cause it screams the truth” – “Sober” by Pink

“There’s something about patience that God deems necessary for our life in the age to come and so, whether through agriculture or discipleship or bodily development or eschatology or procreation, God makes us wait.” – Adopted for Life by Russell Moore, p. 142

“And I’ll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
for You are who You are
no matter where I am
and every tear I’ve cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm.” – “Praise You in This Storm” by Casting Crowns

“He had forgotten how American children slept. They stretched out long and wide, dreaming of sugar-plums while they waited for handouts from tooth fairies.” – Run by An Patchett, 100

“It seems like, if you really knew the God who understands the physics of our existence, you would operate a little more cautiously, a little more compassionately, a little less like you are the center of the universe.” – Searching for God Knows What by Donald Miller, p. 38

“…the masses of the people could not be held back from Nazism, so powerful was its appeal, and this same priest, who would not leave his people, went with them to Nazism, too.” – They Thought They Were Free by Milton Mayer, p. 219

We Can Rule the World!

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“With the right lever you can move a planet.” – Dune by Frank Herbert (paraphrasing Archimedes)

“What my friends believed [against the Jews]–and believe–is an accumulation of legend, legend which comes to them no more guiltily than the cherry tree story comes to us.” – They Thought They Were Free: The Germans, 1933-1945 by Milton Mayer, p. 142

“And we’re content with the world we know, just adjusted a little for our identities as Christians. That’s precisely why so many of us are so atrophied in our prayers, why our prayers rarely reach the level of ‘groanings too deep for words’.” – Adopted for Life by Russell Moore, p. 55

“I have learned the hard way that ‘well-educated’ doesn’t always mean ‘smart.’ ” – Another Place at the Table by Kathy Harrison, p. 8

“You can be a real jerk sometimes, you know that?”
“Yeah, and you’re the good guy.”
“At least I try.”
“As long as you’re trying to be good, you can do whatever you want.”
“And as long as you’re not trying, you can say whatever you want.”
“So between us, we can do anything. We can rule the world!” – Conversation between Wilson and House, House, “Fidelity”

“It is one thing when the culture doesn’t ‘get’ adoption and so speaks of buying a cat as ‘adopting’ a pet. But when those who follow Christ think the same way, we betray that we miss something crucial about our own salvation.” – Adopted for Life by Russell Moore, p. 19

“We’ll continue to enforce all the laws…especially the immigration laws.” – Joe Arpio, Maricopa County Sherriff

“But I didn’t want to see it, because I would then have had to think about the consequences of seeing it, what followed from seeing it, what I must do to be decent.” – Herr Hildebrandt in They Thought They Were Free: The Germans, 1933-1945 by Milton Mayer, p. 201

“We adopted her when she was 3.  She was the perfect child–healthy, bright and beautiful.  But when Karen turned 4, we began to notice some neurological problems….we have learned that perfect is all about perception.” – Another Place at the Table by Kathy Harrison, p. 8

“…the same lie, at bottom, that dominated the Hitler Youth, the lie that children can educate themselves.  Children who grow up without religion cannot decide about religion for themselves; that’s a fallacy, that people can choose intelligently between what they know and what they don’t know.” – They Thought They Were Free: The Germans, 1933-1945 by Milton Mayer, p. 214