- Sometimes I like to read these apothegms and chuckle to myself.
- Every saying is incomplete, so I write many sayings.
- Doubts may run deep, but at the bottom, knowledge can be found.
- The man who glories in doubt will cause many tears.
- Correct doubt is not inherently painful. Perhaps it is better called curiosity.
- There are few disputes that lack nuance.
- When freedom is an idol, community fades.
- It seems to me that eternality is an essential quality of meaningfulness.
- The one who does not love the principle of reciprocity is a mind with its face pressed to a cage, screaming into a vast field of dark mirrors.
- I only see the smallest fraction of a portion of that substance called Truth, and that far beyond imperfectly. Show me more.
- If one calls the other a blind fool, but the other respects the voice of the one among many, who then is the fool?
- It is difficult to know someone without knowing their story.
- It is easier to be happy when we are being useful.
- Zhuangzi said, “Happiness is the absence of striving for happiness.” He was on to something, but perhaps overstated himself.
- With Christ, the beauties of unbelievers are tragedies, and the uglinesses of believers are comedies.
- There is a time to critique the incompleteness of a wise saying. There is a time to appreciate the wisdom of an incomplete saying. Perhaps all times are both times.
- The road to sincerity is paved with grief.
- The virtuous man may experience rage, but at the end of the day he remembers peace.
- A culture built on rage is folly.
- When rage follows a person home, no one prospers.
- If a woman’s only purpose is to be a helper to her husband, then a single woman has no purpose.
- The man of understanding desires to excel at his trade.
- In my experience, reading Scripture is quite unlike anything. It is often the only thing that can bring peace to my heart, gently remove my pride, or lovingly encourage me.
- If everyone was like me, nothing would get done!
- It is difficult to discern who is being wise and who is being foolish at any particular moment. But one thing we can all be sure of: “I am foolish.”
- It is a great relief to trust another to do their job well.
- The difficulty of a text is not a sign of its insightfulness.
- The wise man does not speak on an issue unless he has a clear grasp of it.
- Perhaps the authors of Do Hard Things still had some naivety, but their words do hold much wisdom.
- It is almost universally unwise to attack the reputation of one with whom you disagree. It accomplishes little more than deepening division, and others will do it for you anyway.
Thoughts of a Novice 
One thought on “Apothegms and Observations XII”