An annual motto that has made an impact: “Faithful to Christ”. What sounded as though it could be explained in a few minutes has been richly developed by the Chief Apostle and the District Apostles over the past months. Here are the best quotes.
Let us follow the example of Jesus. Let us remain constant in love. Let us serve Christ in good as well as in bad times. And let us keep our promises. Then we will experience what it says in the Bible text: “My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me.” (Jean-Luc Schneider)
Sometimes we have to go through unpleasant situations and even downright terrible situations. If in such situations we remind ourselves of all the big things God has done, it is good and helpful. (Wolfgang Nadolny)
For me it is clear: faithfulness to Christ is only possible because Christ is faithful! (Bernd Koberstein)
We show our faithfulness to Christ by serving Him as His witnesses. (Mark Woll)
Are we still able to show our love to Jesus when we have none of the basic needs in life? (John L. Kriel)
Distance is to love what wind is to fire. It extinguishes the small and kindles the great. (Michael Deppner)
“Faithful” here means “constant”: not only for a while, but until our end, as we promise in the confirmation vow. (Michael Ehrich)
We know where we are going, but are we ready to walk the path? Every day anew we have to decide whether we want to walk the path or not. (Enrique Eduardo Minio)
We realise that Jesus does not measure success by numbers, as we are sometimes prone to do. Instead, let us focus our efforts on our personal transformation and help others around us as they also transform. (Leonard R. Kolb)
In all this, the Apostle did not lose focus. That also is part of keeping faith. (Joseph Opemba Ekhuya)
Faith is a virtue that is associated with our will. (Rüdiger Krause)
I have a lot to do, and I want to strive to keep the promises I have made. (Rainer Storck)
We are encouraged to be faithful to Christ for our own benefit. (Andrew H. Andersen)
Being faithful requires us to be honest with our neighbour and, what is often forgotten, faithfulness also entails being honest with ourselves. (Urs Hebeisen)
If our trust in God is based on our experience of divine love, a solid faith, and deep insight then it cannot be destroyed. (Jürg Zbinden)
Our experiences with God and the fellowship with our brothers and sisters strengthen our faith and enable us to be faithful to Him. (Edy Isnugroho)
Jesus is not there in order to make our natural lives easier, but our complete trust in Him will help us to overcome disappointment and concentrate on the goal of our faith. (Tshitshi Tshisekedi)
We were called through the mystery of election. And now God expects us to respond to Him in a manner analogous to that of the prophet. How does this occur? Through our faithfulness to God. (Raúl Montes de Oca)
We can sometimes show these characteristics because we feel this is the expected standard or even because we are fearful of the negative consequences, but true faithfulness is driven by love. (Peter Schulte)
Photo: Oliver Rütten