1. Through divine grace we are at the beginning of a new year. God alone knows whether we shall reach the end of it, so we should spend it in reparation for the past and in preparing for the future with good resolutions. Good works go hand in hand with good intentions.

2. Let us say to ourselves with the full conviction of telling the truth, "My soul, begin today to do the good works which to this day you have not done." Let us be moved by the presence of God. Let us often say to ourselves, "God sees me, and as He looks at me He also judges me." Let us act in such a way that He sees only good in us.

3. Make hay while the sun shines. Do not put off till tomorrow what you can do today. It's easy enough to be wise after the event, besides, who can assure us that we will be alive tomorrow? Let us listen to the voice of our conscience, to the voice of the royal prophet: "Today, if you hear the voice of the Lord, do not turn a deaf ear." Let us arise and make use of the fleeting moment which alone is ours. Let us not put off from one moment to another because the latter is not yet ours.

4. Oh how precious time is! Blessed are those who know how to make good use of it, because, on the day of judgment, all will have to render a strict account of it to the supreme Judge. Oh, if only all could understand how precious time is, undoubtedly everyone would do his best to spend it in a praiseworthy manner!

5. "Let us begin today, my brothers, to do good, because up to now, we have done nothing." These words, which the Seraphic Father, St. Francis, in his humility applied to himself, should be made ours, at the beginning of this new year. We truly have done nothing to date, or perhaps, very little; the years have followed one another and from beginning to end, we have never asked ourselves how we have spent them, whether there was something to be rectified, to be added or obliterated from our conduct. We have lived thoughtlessly, as if the Eternal Judge were not going to call us to Himself one day and ask us to account for our deeds and for the way we have spent our time.
And yet, we must give an exact account of every moment, of every grace, of every holy inspiration, of every opportunity to do good. The slightest transgression of God's holy laws, will be taken into consideration!

6. Love does not tolerate delay and immediately upon arrival, the Magi did everything within their power to make Him known; He who had conquered their hearts through the influence of grace, wounding them with the kind of charity which must overflow, because it cannot be contained in the small structure of the heart and must therefore be communicated.

7. We must always strictly observe these two virtues: kindness with our neighbours and holy humility with God.

8. In all that you do always be humble, guarding jealously the purity of your heart and the purity of your body; these are the two wings which will raise us to God and make us almost divine.

9. Once I showed the Padre a very pretty branch of hawthorn in bloom, and pointing out to him the beautiful white flowers, I exclaimed: "How beautiful!" "Yes," said the Padre, "but the fruits are more beautiful than the flowers." In this way he made me understand that good works are more beautiful than good intentions.

10. Don't let the many snares of this infernal beast frighten you. Jesus, who is always with you, and who will fight with and for you, will never permit you to be tricked and overcome.

11. Do not halt in seeking the truth, in discovering God. Be docile to the influence of grace, following its inspiration and attraction. Do not be ashamed of Christ and His doctrine.

12. When the soul grieves and is afraid of offending God, it does not offend Him and is very far from committing sin.

13. Temptation is a sure sign the soul is very pleasing to the Lord.

14. Never fall back on yourself alone, but place all your trust in God.

15. I feel a great desire to abandon myself with greater trust, to the divine mercy, and to place my hope in God alone.

16. Terrible is the justice of God. But let us not forget also that his mercy is infinite.

17. Let us try to serve the Lord with all our heart and will. He will always give us more than we deserve.

18. Give praise to God alone and not to man; honour the Creator and not the creature. During your life, learn to endure bitterness, in order to participate in the sufferings of Christ.

19. Only a general knows how and when to use one of his soldiers. Wait, your turn will come.

20. Detach yourself from the world. Listen to me. One person drowns on the high seas, another chokes on a glass of water. What difference is there between these two; are they not both dead?

21. Always remember that God sees everything!

22. In the spiritual life, the faster we run, the less tired we feel; actually, peace, the prelude to eternal happiness, will come to us and will make us happy and strong, in proportion to how we allow Jesus to live in us, mortifying ourselves.

23. Let us never oppose the designs of divine providence, which, alternating joys with tears in the life of the individual and of nations, leads them to the achievement of our last end. Let us look beyond the appearances of the hand of man to discover the hidden hand of God.

24. If we want a harvest, planting is not so important as sowing the seeds in a good field. When these become plants, great care must be taken that the tender little plants are not suffocated by weeds.

25. Learn to better recognize and adore the divine will in all the events of life.

26. One must always go forward and never back in the spiritual life. When a boat stops, instead of going forward the wind blows it back.

27. Remember that at first a mother teaches her child how to walk by supporting him, but later he has to walk by himself. You, therefore, must think things out for yourself.

28. "As long as you are afraid, you will not sin." "Maybe, Father, but I suffer a great deal." "Certainly, one suffers, but one must have confidence; there is the fear of God and the fear of Judas. Too much fear makes us act without love, and too much confidence causes us not to consider and fear the danger that we must overcome. One should help the other, and go together like two sisters. Always, when we become aware of being afraid, of having too much fear, we should remember to become confident. If we are excessively confident, we should become instead a little fearful. Love tends to the object loved, however, in its approach, it is blind, it does not see. But holy fear enlightens it."

29. We don't reach salvation without crossing the stormy sea continually threatened with disaster. Calvary is the hill of the saints, but from there we pass on to another mountain which is called Tabor.

30. I have no desire except to die or to love God; either death or love, since life without this love is worse than death and for me it would be more unbearable than it is at present.

31. I must not let the first month of the year pass without sending your soul greetings from mine, and to assure you more and more of the affection my heart nurtures for yours, never ceasing to desire for it, all sorts of blessings and spiritual happiness. But I warmly recommend that poor heart of yours, to you. Take care to render it daily, more and more pleasing to our most sweet Saviour, and see to it that the present year is more fertile in good works than the last, as, with the same speed with which the years pass by and eternity becomes closer, we must redouble our courage and raise our spirit to God, serving Him with greater diligence in everything that our vocation and Christian profession require of us.