“Some of My Favorite Quotes”
Beulah UMC (Talk for Women’s Group)
July 6, 2026
I love quotes for a couple of reasons. The first reason is because they are great for preachers to use in their sermons because they tend to make you think or laugh or see something from a different perspective or reveal something that resonates with the listener.
And the second reason I love quotes is because of the people who quoted them. I’m always jealous of people who said something so creative and meaningful that I wish I would have first come up with it.
Having said that, some of my favorite quotes have come from a person whose name is “Anonymous.” Nobody knows anything about this person except that he or she has some of the best quotes ever and that his or her name is “Anonymous.”
Here are some well known anonymous quotes that can’t be traced to whoever first said it.
Raise your hand if you have ever heard of any of these quotes:
“A picture is worth a thousand words.”
“Actions speak louder than words.”
“This too shall pass.”
And then there are famous quotes which people think are from the Bible but they’re not such as …
“God helps those who help themselves.” Not in the Bible. That one actually has roots in ancient Greece and Benjamin Franklin made it popular in his Poor Richard’s Almanac.
Another one is… “God forgives those who forgive themselves.” Again, not in the bible.
Here’s one we hear a lot… “God works in mysterious ways.” Not in the bible. Actually, it was the 19th century English Poet and Hymn Writer, William Cowper who included this in one of his hymns.
“Money is the root of all evil.” This is probably the most famous misquotes of the bible. The I Timothy verse is actually, “The love of money is the root of all money.” That changes its meaning!
“Charity begins at home.” Also, not in the Bible. The 2nd century Roman poet, Terence said it.
And how can I not mention a few Yogi Berra quotes?? Yogi was a Hall of Fame catcher for the Yankees. Now, these quotes are a little tricky because a lot of his actual quotes got embellished or even totally made up but were attributed to him.
When someone asked Yogi Berra if he really said all of these quotes, he responded in typical Yogi fashion, “I really didn’t say everything I said.”
So here are the quotes that we believe he really said just so I’m accurate here.
In referring to a certain restaurant, Yogi said, “Nobody goes there anymore. It’s too crowed.”
Another good one of his is, “Baseball is 90% mental and the other half is physical.”
This is a Yogi quote after he watched Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris hit back-to-back home-runs – He said, “It’s Déjà vu all over again.”
And just one more Yogi quote. “Always go to other people’s funerals, otherwise they won’t come to yours.”
So, here are some of my favorite quotes that I have collected over the years and have sprinkled in my sermons from time to time. When I read or hear a quote, I write them down right away so that I can use them someday.
But like coupons or gift certificates that get shoved to the back of a drawer, they don’t always get used unless I take the time to look them up to see if it would be a good opportunity to use them.
I actually put these quotes in my computer, and I categorize them by topic so it’s a little easier for me to find them.
So, here are some of my favorite quotes that I have heard and saved for use in sermons.
I love history and my undergraduate degree was in history so whenever I hear a good quote about the importance of knowing history, I’ll save them. Here are a couple of them:
Hilary Mantel, an English novelist said, “The past changes a little every time we tell it.”
And this one from the author, Robert W. Wheeler - “History writing is a process, never a finished project.”
Those two quotes are great to help us understand why we have four Gospels and not just one. Our four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John didn’t just fall from heaven one day. They were a work in progress and before they were written down to what we have now, they were told as stories, and they were told over and over again. It’s what we call the oral tradition of the Bible.
And as we know, the more we tell stories, the more the details can vary a little bit even though the main point of the story is still there each time.
For example, Matthew, Mark, and Luke are known as the synoptic gospels which basically means they are parallel gospels because they share many of the same stories but told in slightly different ways. The Gospel writer, John uses a lot of different stories that we don’t even find in those other three gospels.
I always tell people who might be concerned about this that it’s OK because each Gospel writer was telling the story from a slightly different perspective. They were also writing at different times and to different audiences. They are the same stories just told in different ways.
Which brings me back to those quotes I shared with you about history. “The past changes a little every time we tell it.” And the reason for this is that we are telling these stories at different times, to different audiences, with maybe more time to reflect on these stories, and to emphasize certain details over others.
I am so glad that we have four gospels and not just one because I believe the Holy Spirit wants us to have these different perspectives to help us appreciate these stories even more.
So, you actually got a little bible study there with these quotes about history and the bible. I’ll share a few more of my favorite quotes that I have used and sprinkled in sermons here and there.
This is from the psychiatrist, Carl Jung who has this insightful quote about loneliness and when I read it, it was like this light bulb turned on for me as I thought more and more about it.
Carl Jung said, “Loneliness does not come from having no people around you but in not being able to communicate the things that seem important to you.”
That quote is so important for all of us in how we relate to others because we are living in a time where loneliness has become an epidemic and it’s not just because of spending too much time on our computers and and phones. It’s really because people don’t want to take time to listen to their thoughts and perspectives and that leads to loneliness.
Jesus was so good at meeting people where they were, and he was so good at listening to them. He wanted to hear what their needs were, and he wanted to be in a relationship with the people he encountered. And I believe we are called to do the same as his disciples. To listen to people and to have a relationship with them.
Speaking of quotes by famous psychiatrist, I have probably used this quote by American psychologist, Scott Peck more often than any other quote. I’ve not only used this quote in sermons here and there but also during my pre-marital counseling time with couples.
And the great thing about this quote from Scott Peck is that it’s only a three-word sentence and it’s the first three words of his famous book, The Road Less Traveled.
Here’s the quote. “Life is difficult.” What a way to begin a book! “Life is difficult!” By the way, Jesus said something similar when he said in John 16:33, “In this world there will be trouble.”
Scott Peck goes on to explain in his book that once we accept this hard truth that life is difficult, we are than better able to overcome those difficulties that come our way. Instead of complaining about our problems which doesn’t solve anything, we can actually find helpful and wise ways to solve them. The book then goes on to talk about healthy disciplines that are important for us to overcome the problems that we face in life.
I think what makes that very simple quote so powerful and memorable is that it’s the first sentence of the book!
I have learned over the years that we can find great quotes from a variety of sources. Like this one from a Steven Tyler interview, the lead singer for the rock band, Aerosmith.
He said this quote after he had personally sent a helicopter full of needed supplies to Jamaica following the 2025 hurricane and a reporter asked him why he did it.
He said, “Kindness should travel faster than the story.” That’s such a great quote. “Kindness should travel faster than the story.”
I have so many more good quotes, but I need to wrap it up soon, so I’ll share these with you quickly.
I do not know who said this, but I love it. It’s about the difference between having knowledge vs. having wisdom. “Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is not a fruit, and wisdom is knowing not to put a tomato in a fruit salad.”
I never noticed this quote until a couple of years ago that is from one of “The Christmas Carol” movies. It’s at the end where Scrooge realizes he’s alive and he’s a changed man and he is so happy, and he sings these words to the maid who can’t believe what she’s seeing, “I don’t know anything…I never did know anything…but now I know that I don’t know…all on a Christmas morning.” It’s a great quote because it reminds us that sometimes we just need to surrender and quiet our minds in order to find that inner joy.
This next quote is from the Yellowstone TV series starring Kevin Costner. One of the characters in one of the episodes while taking in a breathtaking sunset said, “Perfection only lives in moments.” I love that quote. “Perfection only lives in moments.”
Which to me means that it’s important to savor those special moments in life.
So, these are some of my favorite quotes, but there is a quote that is at the very top of the list for me and the last one I want to share with you. It’s a quote that changed my life and I wouldn’t be here today without it.
I stumbled upon this quote during the end of my freshman year in college. It was at a time in my life when I lacked purpose and direction in my life and I was feeling really low.
It was during this time that I heard a preacher say that if you really want to change your life then think about this challenge from Jesus who said in Luke 9:23, “If anyone would become my disciple, let them deny themselves, and take up up their cross daily and follow me.”
And over the next several days, I couldn’t stop thinking about this quote. I had grown up in the church and knew that God loved me, but realized in that moment that Jesus wasn’t really first in my life.
Feeling like I had nothing to lose, I got down on my knees and told Jesus that I wanted him to be first in my life and that I would do whatever he would want me to do.
When I prayed that prayer, I felt this tremendous weight lifted off my shoulders. I felt an incredible sense of peace because Jesus was now in control of my life, not me.
And the first thing that Jesus wanted me to do was to not worry about the future, but to trust Him by studying hard and pulling my grades up which led me to make the Dean’s List. It was like Jesus was telling me, just keep your focus on me and I’ll take care of the rest.
That’s what I did for those next several months. And it was during my junior year of college, that I realized Jesus was calling me to become a pastor which I have been doing for the past 40 years now.
Looking back on my life, I will never forget that prayer when I was in college where I told Jesus that from now on, he was in charge of my life. And it was all because of his words, “If anyone would be my disciple, let them deny themselves, take up their cross and follow me.”
I’ll never forget the peace that I felt after I said that prayer so long ago. It’s a peace that I still feel to this day.
And whenever I forget to keep my focus on Jesus and what he wants which I do from time to time, all I have to do is remember Luke 9:23, the quote that changed my life.
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