We are told to let our light shine, and if it does, we won't need to tell anybody it does. Lighthouses don't fire cannons to call attention to their shining- they just shine.
Dwight L. MoodyRead
Happiness is caused by things that happen around me, and circumstances will mar it; but joy flows right on through trouble; joy flows in the night as well as in the day; joy flows through persecution and opposition. It is an unceasing fountain bubbling up in the heart; a secret spring the world can't see and doesn't know anything about.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Happiness is influenced by external circumstances, while joy is a deeper, internal state that persists even through difficulties.
In this quote, Dwight L. Moody distinguishes between happiness, which is often tied to external factors and can be disrupted by life's challenges, and joy, which represents a profound inner contentment that remains unaffected by adversity. Joy is depicted as an unstoppable force within, independent of external conditions, highlighting its importance in enduring tough times.
Themes
HappinessJoyTroubleCircumstancesPersecution
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about resilience, one might quote this to emphasize the power of joy in overcoming challenges.
More from Dwight L. Moody
All quotes →There is the joy of one's own salvation. I thought, when I first tasted that, it was the most delicious joy I had ever known, and that I could never get beyond it. But I found, afterward, there was something more joyful that, namely, the joy of the salvation of others.
Dwight L. MoodyRead
'Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God' (Rom. 10:17). That is whence faith comes. It is not for me to sit down and wait for faith to come stealing over me with a strong sensation, but is for me to take God at His Word.
Dwight L. MoodyRead
There is no greater honour than to be the instrument in God's hands of leading one person out of the kingdom of Satan into the glorious light of Heaven.
Dwight L. MoodyRead
Many a professing Christian is a stumbling-block because his worship is divided. On Sunday he worships God; on weekdays God has little or no place in his thoughts.
Dwight L. MoodyRead
Let us expect that God is going to use us. Let us have courage and go forward, looking to God to do great things.
Dwight L. MoodyRead
Similar quotes
Material objects give rise to physical happiness, while spiritual development gives rise to mental happiness. Since we experience both physical and mental happiness, we need both material and spiritual development. This is why, for our own good and that of society we need to balance material progress with inner development.
Dalai LamaRead
People prone to joyful anticipation, skilled at obtaining pleasure from looking forward and imagining future happy events, are especially likely to be optimistic and to experience intense emotions.
Sonja LyubomirskyRead
Happiness lies in virtuous activity, and perfect happiness lies in the best activity, which is contemplative
AristotleRead
Each of us, when our day's work is done, must seek our ideal, whether it be love or pinochle or lobster à la Newburg, or the sweet silence of the musty bookshelves.
O. HenryRead
The great end of all human industry is the attainment of happiness. For this were arts invented, sciences cultivated, laws ordained, and societies modeled, by the most profound wisdom of patriots and legislators. Even the lonely savage, who lies exposed to the inclemency of the elements and the fury of wild beasts, forgets not, for a moment, this grand object of his being.
David HumeRead
Work and live to serve others, to leave the world a little better than you found it and garner for yourself as much peace of mind as you can. This is happiness.
David SarnoffRead