Here are some quotations used in the message of April 18 All Things New:
"Our life is a short time in expectation, a time in which sadness and joy kiss each other at every moment. There is a quality of sadness that pervades all the moments of our lives. It seems that there is no such thing as a clear-cut pure joy, but that even in the most happy moments of our existence we sense a tinge of sadness. In every satisfaction, there is an awareness of limitations. In every success, there is the fear of jealousy. Behind every smile, there is a tear. In every embrace, there is loneliness. In every friendship, distance. And in all forms of light, there is knowledge of surrounding darkness."
-- Henri Nouwen
"The goodbyes make the journey harder still."
-- Cat Stevens, O Very Young
"There was once a happiness belonging to the human race, and in our hearts now we only find the faintest traces that remain."
-- Blaise Pascal
"Some sort of promise seems to be woven into the tapestry of life. It comes to us through the golden moments, through beauty that takes our breath away, through precious memories and the hope that even a birthday or a vacation can awaken. That promise fits perfectly with the deepest longings of our hearts -- the longing for life to come together as we somehow know it was meant to. The whispers of this promise touch a wild hope within our hearts -- a hope we hardly dare to name. Does it ever come true?"
-- John Eldredge, All Things New
"I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life."
-- Jesus, Matthew 19