The Elder said: “My son, not everything that gives light burns. Fire warms the body, but light without fire warms the heart. The sun burns, yet the moon does not burn and still keeps watch over those who walk through the night. So it is with grace, which does not consume but reveals.
When God illumines the soul, He does not kindle in it a fire that scorches, but a gentleness that drives away the darkness without noise. And the darkness does not flee because it is burned, but because it no longer finds a place to remain. Thus is friendship in Christ: it needs no strength to conquer, but purity, for pure light does not fight the darkness — it simply makes it unnecessary.”
Apophthegm
The Elder said: “Friendship in Christ is like a spring hidden in the rock — unseen, yet it nourishes the one who seeks it.”
The brother, not fully understanding, asked:
“How can something unseen give life to the one who seeks it?”
Pustia Inimii 