Dyck Quotes

It was politics and religion, in van Dyck’s private view, that made men dangerous. Trade made them wise.

If we had a vision of God like Isaiah did, I don’t think we’d be asking him for good parking spots.

I find it interesting that the Gospels record not one instance of Jesus or the disciples praying for physical safety.

And Dirk van Dyck the Dutchman realized that he never had been, and never would be, as proud of any child as he was of his elegant little Indian daughter at that moment.

Addicts are not an isolated subset of the population. We all have the potential for addiction.

Yes, God is dangerous. He’s not a house cat; he’s a lion. You’re free to deny his existence or pretend that he’s harmless. Go ahead and pet him if you’d like; just don’t expect to get your arm back.

We can’t truly appreciate God’s grace until we glimpse his greatness. We won’t be lifted by his love until we’re humbled by his holiness. Oswald Chambers wrote, “The Bible reveals not first the love of God but the intense, blazing holiness of God.

Self-control is like a muscle. The more you work it, the stronger it gets.

Regardless of how much self-control you have naturally, it turns out there’s an awful lot you can do to improve it.

if you want to grow your willpower, start doing hard things. Read a challenging book. Go for a run. Learn a foreign language.

The first job of self-control is resisting the temptation to put yourself first.

Wallowing in my guilt merely makes me sin more. Confession gives me a fresh start and I don’t want to mess it up.

Without a healthy attachment to God, we’re more likely to fall prey to destructive thinking and behaviors.

What could you do if the pain of the past no longer effected you?

Ultimately, mastering yourself is only accomplished by being mastered by God.

If you’re trying to build new habits in your life, introduce them one at a time.

The power of habit can be leveraged to build all kinds of healthy practices into our life, like regular prayer, Bible reading, and acts of service.

simply understanding how habits work makes them easier to control.

using your willpower makes it stronger over time.

Willpower is limited. It runs out, leaving you vulnerable to sin.

A nail is driven out by another nail. Habit is overcome by habit,” wrote the sixteenth-century theologian Desiderius Erasmus.

Dopamine directs your focus toward the desired object and urges you to pursue it.

as my friend Skye Jethani says, “Boredom is a prerequisite to spiritual growth.

We need to see this God of Israel both in his wrath and his infinite mercy. We need to learn a holiness that rejects all compromise with evil and a generosity that seeks and saves the lost. We need to learn to know God as he is.8

Does the kind of thinking that permits assisted suicide provide a moral basis for protecting the preciousness of human life or does it fail to provide a moral structure that will predictably protect individual and communal life? What

Moody was not unaware of the advantage his inscrutable grace afforded him. Like most excessively beautiful persons, he had studied his own reflection minutely and, in a way, knew himself from the outside best; he was always in some chamber of his mind perceiving himself from the exterior. He had passed a great many hours in the alcove of his private dressing room, where the mirror tripled his image into profile, half-profile, and square: Van Dyck's Charles, though a good deal more striking. It was a private practice, and one he would likely have denied--for how roundly self-examination is condemned, by the moral prophets of our age! As if the self had no relation to the self, and one only looked in mirrors to have one's arrogance confirmed; as if the act of self-regarding was not as subtle, fraught, and ever-changing as any bond between twin souls. In his fascination Moody sought less to praise his own beauty than to master it. Certainly whenever he caught his own reflection, in a window box, or in a pane of glass after nightfall, he felt a thrill of satisfaction--but as an engineer might feel, chancing upon a mechanism of his own devising and finding it splendid, flashing, properly oiled and performing exactly as he had predicted it should.

I have since been asked, ‘Which Bible verse helped and strengthened you in those circumstances?’ My answer is, ‘No Bible verse was of any help.’ Bible verses alone are not meant to help. We knew Psalm 23. But when you pass through suffering you realize that it was never meant by God that Psalm 23 should strengthen you. It is the Lord who can strengthen you, not the psalm that speaks of Him doing so. It is not enough to have the psalm. You must have the One about whom the psalm speaks.

Most artists, even some of the greatest (including the historians) have up to the present belonged to the serving classes (whether they serve people of high position or princes or women or "the masses"), not to speak of their dependence upon the Church and upon moral law. Thus Rubens portrayed the nobility of his age; but only according to their vague conception of taste, not according to his own measure of beauty — on the whole, therefore, against his own taste. Van Dyck was nobler in this respect: who in all those whom he painted added a certain amount of what he himself most highly valued: he did not descend from himself, but rather lifted up others to himself when he "rendered." The slavish humility of the artist to his public (as Sebastian Bach has testified in undying and outrageous words in the dedication of his High Mass) is perhaps more difficult to perceive in music; but it is all the more deeply engrained. A hearing would be refused me if I endeavoured to impart my views on this subject. Chopin possesses distinction, like Van Dyck. The disposition of Beethoven is that of a proud peasant; of Haydn, that of a proud servant. Mendelssohn, too, possesses distinction — like Goethe, in the most natural way in the world.

Whenever you lose control, someone else always finds it.” These were the words of my high school English teacher Mr. Sologar on our first day of class. They didn’t have anything to do with literature or grammar, but I guess he wanted to kick off the class with a life lesson. It was a good one. If we acted up at home, he explained, control of our lives would swiftly transfer to our parents in the form of lost privileges or being grounded. The same was true at school. If we abused our freedom in the classroom or in the hallways—and we did!—we’d find ourselves in the principal’s office or confined to detention. If we got really crazy and decided to break the law, the legal system would step in to curtail our freedom. “No, control is never truly lost,” he repeated in his thick Indian accent. “If you fail to control yourself, others will control you.

Elsewhere Wright wrote, “Self control is like a muscle. It weakens immediately after use, but it strengthens with frequent use.

How can we strengthen our willpower? Just like we strengthen our muscles—with resistance.

When exercised, willpower grows.

So we can grow our willpower, and we need to conserve it. We also need to replenish it.

Prayer is another proven way to replenish willpower. It prevents willpower from being depleted in the first place.

In light of what both Scripture and science teach us about the topic, praying may benefit us as much as the people for whom we pray.

The Bible uses the term “double-minded” (James 1:8). Now scientists are using it too. “Some neuroscientists go so far as to say that we have one brain but two minds,” writes psychologist Kelly McGonigal.1

Peter wasn’t a super saint. He was an ordinary person with a spotty track record of faithfulness. But as he walked with Jesus, he eventually became the person Jesus knew he could be. He grew. As we walk with Jesus, we will grow too.

Everything Satan dangles in front of Jesus is something Jesus is going to get eventually anyway. This doesn’t mean Satan’s temptations were easy to resist. Not at all. Their appeal lay in the promise that they could be obtained painlessly. Satan offers Jesus exaltation without the cross, vindication without faith. And it’s immediate.

IF MY RESEARCH HAS TAUGHT ME anything, it’s this: start small. Don’t do too much right away and don’t start too many things at once. The reason? It takes a lot of willpower to forge new habits, and your willpower is limited.

Gradual beginnings might not be as exciting, but they are more effective.

In my research about habits, I learned about the importance of “cues,” physical signals that trigger a behavior.

Researchers identify some habits as “keystone habits,” meaning that in addition to creating a healthy routine, they influence all areas of your life, encouraging other virtuous behaviors.

Yet year after year, I continue to struggle with the same stupid, stubborn sins. I’m caught in my own civil war between the good I want to do and the sinful impulses holding me back.

A foundation for the soul. I found the paradox striking. A foundation is solid, immovable. A soul, by definition, is the opposite—airy and immaterial. Yet there they were, mashed together in one lovely phrase written millennia ago.

Books are written by people who have either mastered a topic or by those who desperately need to. I fall into the latter camp.

Self-control is a spiritual topic—and a psychological one. All truth is God’s truth, and I’m scouting for wisdom wherever I can find it.

Keller explains: “The ultimate disordered love, however—and the ultimate source of our discontent—is failure to love the first thing first, the failure to love God supremely.

ultimately the best way to avoid sin, the most powerful means of self-control, comes by listening to a “sweeter song.” For Christians, this means tuning in to God’s ultimate purpose for us. It means listening to His voice and obeying His commands.

Mauriac found that guilt, discipline, even a fulfilling marriage couldn’t hold up against the tidal wave of lust. He needed a new affection. Only the sweeter song of intimacy with God was enough for him to resist the siren song of lust.

You will find no asterisks beside the biblical exhortations to exercise self-control. What you will find is a truckload of commands to resist evil, flee lust, avoid temptation, abstain from sin, control your tongue, guard your heart, and, most graphically, kill the flesh.

they are edicts from a loving God designed to bring liberty. The Bible portrays self-control not as restrictive but rather as the path to freedom. It enables us to do what’s right—and ultimately what’s best for us.

If you could bottle self-control, it would be one of the most valuable substances on earth.

growth is painful.

What self-control requires, ultimately, isn’t control but surrender.

Self-control, then, is about listening and obeying. It’s not self-determined. It means submitting every decision we make to God. It’s about surrendering. When we do this consistently, it’s called self-control.

In a beautiful twist of biblical irony, submission leads to victory. Surrender produces freedom.

I feel like I need to identify the areas in my life where I need to grow. How can I identify those areas of weakness?

Try as we might, we don’t always see ourselves clearly. An outsider perspective does wonders for alerting us to our faults.

He who has a “why” to live for can bear almost any “how.” —FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE

God seems to make a point of using nobodies to accomplish His purposes.

In this upside-down kingdom, what role does self-control play? Ultimately, what is it for?

biblical self-control can’t be divorced from biblical purposes. And we know what those purposes are.

Call it the divinely inspired purpose statement. If you really want to bottom-line things, if you truly desire to know what’s most important, here’s what you need to do: Love God. Love others.

Ultimately, though, Augustine concluded that sin wasn’t merely about individual acts. It was about the heart. He believed that what you love is the most important thing about who you are.

Lavishing our highest love on something other than God leaves us empty, dissatisfied. We have a “God-shaped vacuum” in our hearts. Only when we grant God our highest love do we find the contentment we crave. As Augustine wrote, “You have made us for yourself, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.

Biblical self-control is about keeping our loves in the right order.

It’s no coincidence that the fruit of the Spirit Paul lists (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control) has a communal dimension.

self-control isn’t about you. It’s about surrendering to God’s purposes for you. And it’s not about getting success or money or power. In the end, it’s about love.

Purpose is like a steering wheel and an engine. It guides and propels us.

To Paul, the idea that we should keep sinning because of grace was silly, absurd, the equivalent of Bill Gates knocking off a 7-Eleven. Instead, forgiveness lays the groundwork for transformation.

Unfortunately, we don’t always take advantage of this blank slate. Or at least I don’t. When I mess up, I’m reluctant to confess my sins and ask God for forgiveness. Not only that, but I start avoiding my Bible and stop praying. In order words, I start avoiding God (as if I could).

There’s another, even more profound way that grace enables self-control. It provides the deep trust in God’s goodness that’s essential to live a righteous life. Without grace, you’re always left wondering where you stand with God. You’re never sure if God loves you, whether God is for you. You might think such uncertainty would spur you to greater action. (After all, you’re never quite sure if you’ve done enough.) Yet it doesn’t. It fuels resignation and defeat. It engenders distrust in God and drains your ability to please Him.

There’s one task that takes a lot of willpower for me: writing. It’s hard! Some people say they love writing. But if I’m honest, I love having written.

It included eight works by Rembrandt, four by Veronese, a dozen by Rubens, seven by Van Dyck,

boxes containing paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens, Caravaggio, Franz Hals, and Van Dycks.

fifteen works by Van Dyck, and thirteen works by Rubens.

which contained nine Rembrandts, two Rubenses, and four Van Dycks,

When I fail to confess my sins, I’m more likely to sin again What’s one more sin, I think. I’m already messing up. Researchers have a name for this phenomenon too. They call it the “What-The-Hell Effect.” Basically, it means that after messing up, we tend to mess up even more.

in 1892 the fever for Vermeers had just begun to spike. Soon every millionaire worth knowing had thrown his checkbook into the ring. In 1900, Collis P. Huntington, the railroad tycoon, bequeathed Vermeer’s Woman Playing a Lute to the Met. In 1901, it was Henry Frick’s turn to buy, though the steel magnate kept his Vermeer for himself. This was Girl Interrupted at Her Music, which can be seen at the Frick today. In 1907, J. P. Morgan got in on the game. Morgan collected art and other valuables on the grandest scale—Rembrandt, Hals, Van Dyck, among countless others—and at such a pace that sometimes he himself lost track.

The moment we think we have God figured out is the instant of our greatest confusion.

When we neglect a part of God’s nature, we shouldn’t be surprised when that same attribute goes missing in our lives.

Here’s the beautiful irony: making God strange actually enables us to know him more. Once we have marveled at his magnitude and mystery, we are able to achieve the deep intimacy that grows out of a true appreciation for who God is. Instead of treating him as an equal, we approach him with reverent awe. Only when we’ve been awestruck by his majesty can we be overwhelmed by his love.

Laugh at yourself. Of course, laughing at someone else works too, but somehow lacks the deep cathartic experience of being the centre of attention.

I suffered a serious brain injury when I was a child. I blame my twisted sense of humor and everything in this book on that injury.

Please understand the natural order of things isn’t wrong. It just isn’t all there is.

The goal of education is to obtain the training that is needed to do a chosen career.

Getting a degree is like climbing a mountain. It takes a lot of training and a lot of hard work. At times, you reach obstacles and are not sure if you can continue. However, eventually you reach the top and the view is fantastic. That is when you realize that all of the hard work was worth it.

Students deserve to take courses that are well prepared and that get them involved in their studies so that they can more clearly understand the required material. They should never have to figure out things on their own. They must be shown which concepts are important and how to apply them.

For the question as to when killing and being killed are to be practiced and condoned is an abiding question for communities as a whole, as well as for their individual members. The

The central argument of this book is that there is a solid moral and practical basis for the laws against assisted suicide that now exist in the United States and elsewhere. Furthermore,

At stake then in the debate over assisted suicide is nothing less than a shift away from a moral structure that is at once the expression of our shared humanity and also the source of the responsibilities and rights necessary to sustain individual and communal life. Or

It is frighteningly naive to assume that when our guide to medical practice is "doing what the patient wants," we will escape the imposition of the physician's values on the clinical encounter. Personal values can he sequestered in the question not asked, or the gentle challenge not posed, when both should have been.12

As Francis Chan wrote, “The fact that a holy, eternal, all-knowing, all-powerful, merciful, fair, and just God loves you is nothing short of astonishing.

First, with regard to managing relationships within an oikos, both parables point to exemplary managers as independent moral agents, enacting values that challenge conventional oikos relationships. The parable of the shrewd manager affirms the manager who acts as a countercultural moral agent by unilaterally redistributing his master’s wealth, and the parable of the ten pounds affirms the manager who counters his master’s wishes by refusing to exploitatively use money to make more money.

In short, this is a parable about acquisitive economics, and thus of particular interest from a twenty-first-century understanding of management that is steeped in the ideas of profit-maximization and financial value-creation. Perhaps it is not surprising, then, that many modern commentators are quick to conclude that the parable seems to provide support for profit-maximization:

1.  The master in the parable represents Jesus.7 2.  The managers who increase the financial assets entrusted to them by their master are commended by Jesus. 3.  The manager who refuses to use his money to make money acted irresponsibly. Put differently, in most common twenty-first-century interpretations, the first two managers are heroes, while the third is vilified.8

Commentators note that elements of this parable are strikingly similar to the history of the ruling family in that region as described by the historian Josephus (writing in the first century). After Herod the Great died in 4 BCE his then 19-year-old son Archelaus (brother to Herod Antipas, ruler of Galilee) went to Rome to confirm his kingship of Judea (as specified in his father’s will). Archelaus was followed by a delegation of 50 people protesting his appointment. He received the kingship, and went on to kill about 3,000 Pharisees who opposed his rule.11 Taken together, it seems unlikely that first-century listeners would assume that the nobleman in the parable represents Jesus.

Moreover, the usual rates of return at that time were 4–12 percent, and anything greater was considered to be oppressive.

With regard to earning interest from a bank, recall in that time there were no “banks” as there are today. The reference literally means to place the money “on a (moneylenders’) table” (compare Matt. 21:12; Mark 11:15; Luke 19:45; John 2:15). Recall also that charging interest was permissible only when Jews lent to non-Jews (e.g., Deut. 23:19–21) (Fitzmyer, 1985: 1237). At a more fundamental level, earning interest also seems to go against the Creation story, where God desires work to be inherently meaningful and for people to work as God worked. Does the desire to use money to make money reflect an attempt to avoid working by the sweat of our brow (Gen. 3:19)? In this light, perhaps it is no coincidence that the third manager had wrapped his pound inside in a soudarion (literally, “a cloth for perspiration”), which refers to a sweat cloth used for face or neck for protection from the sun (Fitzmyer, 1985: 1236; Marshall, 1978: 706). By using “money to make money” the managers in the parable were likely increasing the amount of literal and metaphorical sweat on the brows of the relatively poor.

Two thousand years ago management was seen as having three basic dimensions: (1) managing relationships within organizations (oikonomia); (2) managing money (chrematistics); and (3) managing relationships between organizations (benefaction/patron-client relationships).