A Quote by Henri Nouwen

Ministers are tempted to join the ranks of those who consider it their primary task to keep other people busy … But our task is the opposite of distraction … how to keep them from being so busy that they can no longer hear the voice of God who speaks in silence.

Henri Nouwen

Quote Topics

Being Busy Consider Distraction God Hear How Join Keep Longer Ministers Opposite Other Our People Primary Ranks Silence Speaks Task Tempted Them Those Voice Voice Of God

Quote Author

Henri Nouwen
Dutch - Priest
January 24, 1932 - September 21, 1996

Keep me preoccupied Keep me busy, busy, busy So I won't have to think I don't want to think Because it only brings me pain I just keep running away from My problems Keep me busy Give me a million things to do So I can keep running away from myself.

Henry Rollins

The tongue is a small member, but it does big things. A religious who does not keep silence will never attain holiness; that is, she will never become a saint. Let her not delude herself - unless it is the Spirit of God who is speaking through her, for then she must not keep silent. But, in order to hear the voice of God, one has to have silence in one's soul and to keep silence; not a gloomy silence but an interior silence; that is to say, recollection in God.

Mary Faustina Kowalska

It is an incredibly difficult task to lead people from self-centered consumerism to being servant-hearted Christians. It is not a task for fainthearted ministers or those who don't like to get their religious robes wrinkled. But it is what the Great Commission is all about

Rick Warren

Being busy and being productive are not necessarily the same. Many people keep busy to avoid taking action on things they're afraid to pursue.

Lauren Mackler

Even if there were two of me, I still couldn't do all that has to be done. No matter what, though, I keep up my running. Running every day is a kind of lifeline for me, so I'm not going to lay off or quit just because I'm busy. If I used being busy as an excuse not to run, I'd never run again. I have only a few reasons to keep on running, and a truckload of them to quit. All I can do is keep those few reasons nicely polished.

Haruki Murakami

We're busy being busy. Distraction is a dangerously deceptive saboteur of our goals, because we are not present to how much time we lose. We're distracted by things like being in meetings or on conference calls, or we get on Facebook related to business and the updates of friends captivate our attention and an hour goes by before we wake up.

Rory Vaden

If you ever hope to get ahead as an entrepreneur, the answer is not becoming an effective juggler, but in understanding and designing the systems to keep your team, not you, busy, busy, busy.

Michael Gerber

I keep saying this - and I keep putting it off because I get busy - but I keep saying one year I'm gonna tape our Thanksgiving dinner or, like, our Christmas dinner and maybe put it on my website just for people to see how funny it really is, how much fun it really, really is.

Tony Rock

It's important to keep up momentum, when I'm home alone I get stagnant, I go crazy and have to see my therapist. Being on the road keeps me busy. I'm okay when I'm busy.

Gerard Way

We hurt people by being too busy. Too busy to notice their needs. Too busy to drop that note of comfort or encouragement or assurance of love. Too busy to listen when someone needs to talk. Too busy to care.

Billy Graham

The task of the intellectual is not one of blending into the opaque consciousness of the tumultuous mob around him, his voice drowned in a cacophony of misdirected protests. His task is to remind them of who they are and what they ought to be. Our values are not to be taken from conduct of our adversaries but from the great heritage of our people.

Sanusi Lamido Sanusi

To proportion the eagerness of contest to its importance seems too hard a task for human wisdom. The pride of wit has kept ages busy in the discussion of useless questions, and the pride of power has destroyed armies, to gain or to keep unprofitable possessions.