“Nothing is real without deriving its reality from God. This was the great discovery of St. Francis when he suddenly saw the whole world in God’s hands and wondered why God didn’t drop it. St. Augustine, St. Teresa of Avila, St. John Vianney, and all the saints are saints precisely because for them the order of being was turned around and they saw, felt, and -above all- knew with their heart that outside God nothing is, nothing breathes, nothing moves, and nothing lives.
This makes me aware that the basis of all ministry rests not in the moral life but in the mystical life. The issue is not to live as well as we can, but to let our life be one that finds its source in the Divine life.”
~Shawchuck, Norman. A Guide to Prayer for All Who Seek God. Nashville, Tenn.: Upper Room, 2003. p76 quoting from ¡Gracias! by Henri J.M. Nouwen.