More wisdom from The Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis (compiled and edited by James N. Watkins):
O Lord, I am not worthy of your comfort nor any sense of your presence. You would have dealt justly with me if you had left me poor and deserted. For if I were able to pour forth tears like the sea, I would still not be worthy of your comfort.... What have I done, O Lord, that you should sprinkle any heavenly comfort on me? I remember no good that I have done, but I have been ever prone to sin and slow to repentance. It is true, and I cannot deny it.... But what do you require of guilty and miserable sinners? That they be sorry and humble themselves for their sin. Only in true sorrow and humiliation of heart do we hope for pardon, for our troubled conscience to be reconciled, for lost grace to be recovered...
Truth is...as long as I think God's too picky and I'm not all that bad, I am without hope. But the moment I realize my utter need, Yahweh, like the prodigal son's father, meets me more than halfway and showers me with love, affection, and restoration.
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