August 15  Our Fortress

How can knowledge be a presence? Secular knowledge, which is intellectual, cannot; but the true knowledge of God is an actual experience - not a thing of the head, but of the heart - and this is indeed a Presence. As a general rule, people contact this Real Self only vaguely and occasionally. Then, if they pray regularly, the gleams of intuition gradually strengthen into a definite sense of the presence of God.

Around the Year with Emmet Fox (Excerpt)

August 16  Our Deliverance

"Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday."

The arrow that flieth by day and the destruction that wasteth at noon refer to any difficulty of which you are consciously aware. It is, to say, a daytime problem. The terror by night and the pestilence that walketh in darkness, on the contrary, imply something that, unknown to you, is working in your subconscious mind. Modern psychology has shown that most of our difficulties have their roots in the depth of the subconscious. These are indeed terrors of the mental night and pestilences of the darkness.

Around the Year with Emmet Fox (Excerpt)

August 18

We seek God's presence and "they who seek shall find." It is not a question of searching so much as an inner consciousness of the Divine spirit in your heart... Some things separate you from God - a false word, a fear-inspired failure, a harsh criticism, a stubborn resentment. These are the things that put a distance between your mind and God. A word of love, a selfless reconciliation, a kind act of helpfulness - these bring God closer.

24 Hours a Day

August 20

You should not dwell too much on past mistakes, faults and failures of the past. Be done with shame and remorse and contempt for yourself... Unless you respect yourself, others will not respect you. You ran a race, you stumbled and fell, you have risen again, and now you press on toward the goal of a better life. Do not stay to examine the spot where you fell, only feel sorry for the delay, the shortsightedness that prevented you from seeing the real goal sooner. 

24 Hours a Day