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One thing is clear to me, that no indulgence of passion destroys the spiritual nature so much as respectable selfishness.

George MacDonald

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George MacDonald
Age: 80 †
Born: 1824
Born: December 10
Died: 1905
Died: September 18
Author
Cleric
Journalist
Minister
Novelist
Philosopher
Poet
Theologian
Writer
Passion
Clear
Spiritual
Nature
Thing
Indulgence
Much
Destroys
Respectable
Selfishness

More quotes by George MacDonald

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The Lord never came to deliver men from the consequences of their sins while yet those sins remained...Yet men, loving their sins and feeling nothing of their dread hatefulness, have, consistent with their low condition, constantly taken this word concerning the Lord to mean that he came to save them from the punishment of their sins.
George MacDonald
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God Himself - His thoughts, His will, His love, His judgments are men's home. To think His thoughts, to choose His will, to judge His judgments, and thus to know that He is in us, with us, is to be at home.
George MacDonald
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Her face was fair and pretty, with eyes like two bits of night sky, each with a star dissolved in the blue.
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Oh the folly of any mind that would explain God before obeying Him! That would map out the character of God instead of crying, Lord, what wouldst thou have me to do?
George MacDonald
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The doing of things from duty is but a stage on the road to the kingdom of truth and love.
George MacDonald
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When we are out of sympathy with the young, then I think our work in this world is over
George MacDonald
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I rose as from the death that wipes out the sadness of life, and then dies itself in the new morrow.
George MacDonald
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But when we are following the light, even its extinction is a guide.
George MacDonald
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What a man is lies as certainly upon his countenance as in his heart, though none of his acquaintances may be able to read it. The very intercourse with him may have rendered it more difficult.
George MacDonald
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When I can no more stir my soul to move, and life is but the ashes of a fire when I can but remember that my heart once used to live and love, long and aspire- O, be thou then the first, the one thou art be thou the calling, before all answering love, and in me wake hope, fear, boundless desire.
George MacDonald
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And in thy own sermon, thou That the sparrow falls dost allow, It shall not cause me any alarm For neither so comes the bird to harm, Seeing our Father, thou hast said, Is by the sparrow's dying bed Therefore it is a blessed place, And the sparrow in high grace.
George MacDonald
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All that is made seems planless to the darkened mind, because there are more plans than it looked for...There seems no plan because it is all plan: there seems no centre because it is all centre.
George MacDonald
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Where there is no choice, we do well to make no difficulty.
George MacDonald
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People must not choose their neighbors they must take the neighbors that God sends them. The neighbor is just the person who is next to you at the moment, the person with whom any business has brought you into contact.
George MacDonald
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Division has done more to hide Christ from the view of men than all the infidelity that has ever been spoken.
George MacDonald
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The whole trouble is that we won't let God help us.
George MacDonald
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Were I asked, what is a fairytale? I should reply, Read Undine: that is a fairytale.
George MacDonald
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A fairytale is not an allegory. There may be allegory in it, but it is not an allegory.
George MacDonald
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No one is likely to remember what is entirely uninteresting to him.
George MacDonald
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Alas! this time is never the time for self-denial, it is always the next time. Abstinence is so much more pleasant to contemplate upon the other side of indulgence.
George MacDonald