31 Dec | p.m

The candle of thine heart is lighted by the hand of My power, quench it not with the contrary winds of self and passion.

- Baha'u'llah, The Persian Hidden Words

31 Dec | a.m

Incline your hearts, O people of God, unto the counsels of your true, your incomparable Friend. The Word of God may be likened unto a sapling, whose roots have been implanted in the hearts of men. It is incumbent upon you to foster its growth through the living waters of wisdom, of sanctified and holy words, so that its root may become firmly fixed and its branches may spread out as high as the heavens and beyond.

- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 97

The earth alone is but a senseless clod - touched by the sun it becomes life and energy. So the Holy Spirit touches the heart of man and awakens him to eternal life.

- Compilations, Baha'i Scriptures, p. 451

25 Dec | p.m

This is an Announcement whereat the hearts of the Prophets and Messengers have rejoiced...The hands of the Messengers were, in their desire to meet Me, upraised towards God, the Mighty, the Glorified.... Some lamented in their separation from Me, others endured hardships in My path, and still others laid down their lives for the sake of My Beauty, could ye but know it. Say: I, verily, have not sought to extol Mine Own Self, but rather God Himself were ye to judge fairly.

-Baha'u'llah, The Proclamation of Baha'u'llah, p. 29

25 Dec | a.m

They conspire each day to put Me to death, and seek at every hour to banish Me from this land, even as they banished Me from another land. Yet this Servant standeth ready before them, awaiting whatsoever the Almighty hath ordained and decreed for Us. Nor do I fear any soul, encompassed as We may be by such trials and tribulations as are inflicted by the wicked and the malicious and surrounded at this hour by a myriad woes and sorrows. "Noah's flood is but the measure of the tears I have shed, and Abraham's fire an ebullition of My soul. Jacob's grief is but a reflection of My sorrows, and Job's afflictions a fraction of My calamity."

- Baha'u'llah, Gems of Divine Mysteries, p. 66

24 Dec | p.m

All that hath befallen Us in the past hath advanced the interests of Our Revelation and blazoned its fame; and all that may befall Us in the future will have a like result. Cling ye, with your inmost hearts, to the Cause of God, a Cause that hath been sent down by Him Who is the Ordainer, the All-Wise.

- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 270

Behold how in this Dispensation the worthless and foolish have fondly imagined that by such instruments as massacre, plunder and banishment they can extinguish the Lamp which the Hand of Divine power hath lit…. How utterly unaware they seem to be of the truth that such adversity is the oil that feedeth the flame of this Lamp! Such is God's transforming power.

- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 72

24 Dec | a.m

My imprisonment doeth Me no harm, neither the tribulations I suffer, nor the things that have befallen Me at the hands of My oppressors. That which harmeth Me is the conduct of those who, though they bear My name, yet commit that which maketh My heart and My pen to lament. They that spread disorder in the land, and lay hands on the property of others, and enter a house without leave of its owner, We, verily, are clear of them, unless they repent and return unto God, the Ever-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.

- Baha'u'llah, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 23

All the Divine Manifestations sent by God into the world would have gone through their terrible hardships and sufferings for the single hope of spreading Truth, unity and concord among men.

- ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Paris Talks, p. 121

18 Dec | p.m

…but when I shall come in my glory ye shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye from mortality to immortality; and then shall ye be blessed in the kingdom of my Father.

- LDS (Mormon), The Book of Mormon

Oh, would that the world could believe Me! Were all the things that lie enshrined within the heart of Bahá, and which the Lord, His God, the Lord of all names, hath taught Him, to be unveiled to mankind, every man on earth would be dumbfounded.

- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 176

18 Dec | a.m

O people of the earth! By the righteousness of the One true God, I am the Maid of Heaven begotten by the Spirit of Bahá, abiding within the Mansion hewn out of a mass of ruby, tender and vibrant; and in this mighty Paradise naught have I ever witnessed save that which proclaimeth the Remembrance of God by extolling the virtues of this Arabian Youth.

- The Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Báb, p. 54

In the year sixty [1260 A.H.] He Who heralded the light of Divine Guidance … arose to announce a fresh revelation of the Divine Spirit, and was followed, twenty years later, by Him through Whose coming the world was made the recipient of this promised glory, this wondrous favor. Behold how the generality of mankind hath been endued with the capacity to hearken unto God's most exalted Word - the Word upon which must depend the gathering together and spiritual resurrection of all men....

- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 96

17 Dec | p.m

In that day also he (the Promised One) shall come even to thee from Assyria, and from the fortified cities, and from the fortress even to the river , and from sea to sea , and from mountain to mountain . Notwithstanding the land shall be desolate because of them that dwell therein, for the fruit of their doings. Feed thy people with thy rod, the flock of thine heritage, which dwell solitarily in the wood, in the midst of Carmel: let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of old. According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I shew unto him marvelous things.

- Micah 7:12

O thou who art reputed for thy learning! Bid men to do that which is praiseworthy, and be not of such as tarry. Observe thou with a keen eye. The Sun of Truth shineth resplendently, at the bidding of the Lord of the kingdom of utterance, and the King of the heaven of knowledge, above the horizon of the prison-city of ‘Akká. Repudiation hath not veiled it, and ten thousand hosts arrayed against it were powerless to withhold it from shining. Thou canst excuse thyself no longer. Either thou must recognize it, or - God forbid - arise and deny all the Prophets!

- Baha'u'llah, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 119

13 Dec | p.m

O thou that bringest good tidings to Zion, get thee up into the high mountain! O thou that tellest good tidings to Jerusalem! Lift up thy voice with strength; be not afraid. Say unto the cities of Judah: Behold your God! Behold, the Lord God will come with power and His Arm shall rule for Him!

- Isaiah xl, 9-10, quoted by Baha'u'llah in Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 144

Verily the Lord will rear from Zion and utter His voice from Jerusalem; and the habitation of the shepherds shall mourn and the top of Carmel shall withdraw.

- Amos i,2, quoted by Baha'u'llah in Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 144

The time foreordained unto the peoples and kindreds of the earth is now come. The promises of God, as recorded in the holy Scriptures, have all been fulfilled. Out of Zion hath gone forth the Law of God, and Jerusalem, and the hills and land thereof, are filled with the glory of His Revelation.

- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 12

Verse of the Day – 11 Dec

Let not thy tongue pay lip service in praise of God while thy heart be not attuned to the exalted Summit of Glory, and the Focal Point of communion. - The Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Báb, p. 93 ...It is not sufficient to pray diligently for guidance, but this prayer must be followed by meditation as to the best methods of action and then action itself. Even if the action should not immediately produce results, or perhaps not be entirely correct, that does not make so much difference, because prayers can only be answered through action and if someone's action is wrong, God can use that method of showing the pathway which is right. - From a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer, August 22, 1957

Verse of the Day – 11 Dec

Should the inebriation of the wine of My verses seize thee, and thou determinest to present thyself before the throne of thy Lord, the Creator of earth and heaven, make My love thy vesture and thy shield remembrance of Me, and thy provision reliance upon God, the Revealer of all power
- Baha'u'llah, The Proclamation of Baha'u'llah, p. 85

You have asked whether our prayers go beyond Bahá'u'lláh: It all depends whether we pray to Him directly and through Him to God. We may do both and also can pray directly to God, but our prayers would certainly be more effective and illuminating if they are addressed to Him through His Manifestation, Bahá'u'lláh.
- From a letter written on behalf of the Guardian to an individual believer, October 14, 1937

If you find you need to visualize someone when you pray, think of the Master. Through Him you can address Bahá'u'lláh. Gradually try to think of the qualities of the Manifestation, and in that way a mental form will fade out, for after all the body is not the thing, His Spirit is there and is the essential, everlasting element.
- From a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer, January 31, 1959

Verse of the Day – 10 Dec

Say, O My people! Show honour to your parents and pay homage to them. This will cause blessings to descend upon you from the clouds of the bounty of your Lord, the Exalted, the Great.
- Bahá’u’lláh, The Compilation of Compilations vol. I, p. 386

It is seemly that the servant should, after each prayer, supplicate God to bestow mercy and forgiveness upon his parents. Thereupon God's call will be raised: 'Thousand upon thousand of what thou hast asked for thy parents shall be thy recompense!' Blessed is he who remembereth his parents when communing with God. There is, verily, no God but Him, the Mighty, the Well-Beloved.
- The Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Báb, p. 94

Verse of the Day – 10 Dec

Recite ye the verses of God every morn and eventide. Whoso faileth to recite them hath not been faithful to the Covenant of God and His Testament, and whoso turneth away from these holy verses in this Day is of those who throughout eternity have turned away from God. Fear ye God, O My servants, one and all.
- Baha'u'llah, The Kitáb-i-Aqdas, p. 73

Supplicate to God, pray to Him and invoke Him at midnight and at dawn. Be humble and submissive to God and chant the verses of thanksgiving at morn and eve, for that He guided thee unto the Manifest Light and showed to thee the straight Path and destined to thee the station of nearness in His wonderful Kingdom.
- Abdu’l-Bahá, Baha'i World Faith - Abdu’l-Bahá Section, p. 359

Verse of the Day – 30 Nov

Take heed lest anything deter  thee from extolling  the  greatness  of  this Day - the Day whereon the Finger of majesty and power hath opened the seal of the Wine of Reunion, and called all who are in the heavens and all who are on the earth. Preferrest thou to tarry when the breeze announcing the Day of God hath already breathed over thee…?

- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 27

Verse of the Day – 30 Nov

 

O My friend, listen with heart and soul to the songs of the spirit, and treasure them as thine own eyes. For the heavenly wisdoms, like the clouds of spring, will not rain down on the earth of men's hearts forever; and though the grace of the All-Bounteous One is never stilled and never ceasing, yet to each time and era a portion is allotted and a bounty set apart, this in a given measure. "And no one thing is there, but with Us are its storehouses; and We send it not down but in settled measure."

- Baha'u'llah, The Seven Valleys, p. 37