“In solitude, we come to know the Spirit who has already been given to us.  The pains and struggles we encounter in our solitude thus become the way to hope, because our hope is not based on something that will happen after our sufferings are over, but on the real presence of God’s healing Spirit in the midst of these sufferings.”

“The Word of God is not a word to apply in our daily lives at some later date; it is a word to heal us through, and in our listening here and now.”

“The Word of God is always sacramental.  In the book of Genesis we are told that God created the world, but in Hebrew the words for ‘speaking’ and ‘creating’ are the same word.  Literally translated it says, ‘God spoke light and light was’.  For God, speaking is creating.  when we say that God’s word is sacred, we mean that God’s word is full of God’s presence.  On the road to Emmaus, Jesus became present through his word, and it was that presence that transformed sadness to joy and mourning to dancing… The word that is read and spoken wants to lead us into God’s presence and transform our hearts and minds…”

Henri Nouwen, from “With Burning Hearts”, and “Making All Things New”