"Part of my message is that God never said that we weren't going to have difficulties, but you know what, He said to stay full of joy and I'm going to help you overcome. So I think that is what resonates with people and helps draw so many people. Because it is not a message that you are barely going to make it, you're a victim. We are not victims, we are victors."

Previous Quote

A trouble with poetry is the presence of presumptuousness in poetry, the sense you get in a poem that the poet takes for granted an interest on the reader's part in the poet's autobiographical life, in the poet's memories, problems, difficulties and even minor perceptions. I try to presume that no one is interested in me. And I think experience bears that out. No one's interested in the experiences of a stranger - let's put it that way. And then you have difficulty combined with presumptuousness, which is the most dire trouble with poetry.

— Billy Collins