60 Rick Warren Quotes for Living a Better Life

If you are struggling in your faith or feeling far from God, these Rick Warren quotes can help.

Share which quotes connected with your heart the most in the comments below.

Rick Warren is a well-known pastor and leader of the Saddleback Church.

It is a megachurch located in California.

Both Rick Warren and his church have been the start for major initiatives and programs for other churches and religious believers. 

Warren is the author of the book The Purpose Driven Life, which made him a best-selling author.

His church is also the church that started the Celebrate Recovery program and the P.E.A.C.E. initiative.

His life has been dedicated to helping others and leading in the ministry.  

Below is our collection of inspirational, wise, and uplifting Rick Warren quotes and sayings, collected from a variety of sources over the years.

Don’t forget to also check out these religious quotes to bring you inner peace.

If you love this quote collection, read out our most popular quote article about short inspirational quotes for daily motivation. 

If you need more inspirational quotes, check out our motivational quotes category page.

Religious Rick Warren quotes

1. “If God only used perfect people, nothing would get done. God will use anybody if you’re available.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: There is no such thing as a perfect person, so give yourself a little grace. Luckily, you don’t have to be perfect to make a difference in your life or lives of people around you.

You will also enjoy our article on God’s plan quotes.

2. “Who are you going to live for – yourself or God?” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: What does it mean to live for God? It means that you seek God within His word, and look for guidance from the Holy Spirit. You also live as close to God’s teachings as you can.

3. “Faithful servants never retire. You can retire from your career, but you will never retire from serving God.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Living a life of faith with service to God is a life-long endeavor. It is part of your character and your core beliefs. It feeds your soul, and permeates all aspects of your life.

You will also enjoy our article on Christian quotes.

4. “Because God is love, the most important lesson he wants you to learn on earth is how to love.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Jesus speaks a lot about love in the bible. It is an integral part of the message. How can you love your neighbor, and those you don’t agree with? Being kind and giving is another way to show love to those around you.

5. “For instance, God teaches us to love by putting some unlovely people around us. It takes no character to love people who are lovely and loving to you.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Loving people who love you love you is rather easy. However, showing love, kindness, and grace to those who don’t even like you is a much harder task. Can you think of someone you typically don’t get along with in your circle? Do something kind for them!

6. “Every time you defeat a temptation, you become more like Jesus!” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: According to the bible, you must turn to God in repentance and faith in order to overcome temptations. Doing this makes you more familiar with God’s word and spirit. Jesus relied on the word of God to avoid temptation, and we can do the same!

You will also enjoy our article on God is good quotes.

7. “God has a purpose behind every problem. He uses circumstances to develop our character. In fact, he depends more on circumstances to make us like Jesus than he depends on our reading the Bible.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Have you ever wondered if things happen for a reason? Christian’s believe that things happen because of God’s will or grand plan. Every trial or tribulation we go through does impact us in some way. Hopefully, your faith can help you through the storm!

8. “God never does anything accidentally, and he never makes mistakes.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: This further solidifies the idea that everything happens on purpose. Even in the face of tragic and awful things, people of faith trust in God. The idea is that our human perspective and perception can not understand the reason sometimes. This is not always immediately comforting, but check out these bible quotes for more faith based words of solace.

9. “Four of the Ten Commandments deal with our relationship to God while the other six deal with our relationships with people. But all ten are about relationships.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Relationships are central to humanity. They all matter ,whether that relationship is with God, family, friends, or romantic partners. Help your relationships develop and grow by reading this article packed with relationship tips.

10. “After learning to love God (worship), learning to love others is the second purpose of your life.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: How can you love others? Well, treating others how you would like to be treated is a great place to start. You can also offer people grace, kindness, and forgiveness. Essentially, the keys to a healthy relationship mirror the way God loves us.

11. “During the next 90 days, people are going to be more open to the Gospel than in years. It is God’s responsibility to make people receptive; it is our responsibility to sow the seed.” – Rick Warren

12. “You never know God is all you need until God is all you have.”

13. “Because God is with you all the time, no place is any closer to God than the place where you are right now.” – Rick Warren

Inspirational Rick Warren quotes

14. “Don’t waste your pain; use it to help others.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: You never know who your story will inspire. It might encourage them to follow their dreams and do amazing things, or it might give them the strength they need to fight another day. Rick Warren lists four ways that you can use your pain to help others in this video.

15. “The easiest way to discover the purpose of an invention is to ask the creator of it. The same is true for discovering your life’s purpose: Ask God.” – Rick Warren

16. “There is nothing quite as potent as a focused life, one lived on purpose.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Living a focused life means that you know the direction you want your life to go and having a plan to get there. Living life on purpose requires dedication, focus, and work. Get clear on the vision for your life and understand your ‘why.’ Become intentional with your daily schedule.

17. “Your greatest ministry will most likely come out of your greatest hurt.” – Rick Warren

18. “The more you pray, the less you’ll panic. The more you worship, the less you worry. You’ll feel more patient and less pressured.” – Rick Warren

19. “The best use of life is love. The best expression of love is time. The best time to love is now.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: There are many forms of love. Eros, Philia, Storge, and Agape are a few that most of us think about when we think of love. Eros is the passionate and erotic side of love. Philia describes the love between friends and equals. Storge refers to the love that parents have for their children. Finally, Agape is the love we have for one another as fellow humans. The best time to love is now and each of these types of love will benefit from your time.

20. “You weren’t put on earth to be remembered. You were put here to prepare for eternity.” – Rick Warren

21. “Those who follow the crowd usually get lost in it.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Are you doing the same thing that everyone else is doing? When everyone is doing the same thing, no one is noticeable. Don’t be afraid to be unique and come up with original ideas. The world needs more people to be themselves and express their individuality. Don’t get lost in the crowd just following along.

22. “Why is this happening to me? Why am I having such a difficult time? One answer is that life is supposed to be difficult! It’s what enables us to grow. Remember, earth is not heaven!” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: One of the best ways to reframe your mindset and live a happier life is to forget the question, “Why is this happening to me?” Try reframing it into, “What can this teach me?” Every struggle and hardship we encounter has the ability to teach us something. It is in those moments that we grow.

If you’re enjoying these quotes, make sure to read our collection of heaven quotes to inspire kindness.

23. “Other people are going to find healing in your wounds. Your greatest life messages and your most effective ministry will come out of your deepest hurts.” – Rick Warren

24. “Humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less. Humility is thinking more of others.” – Rick Warren

25. “We are a product of our past but we don’t have to be prisoners of it.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Your past shapes who you are and sets you on a path. However, you ultimately choose the direction you will go. You can become a prisoner to your past by staying angry, questioning why these things happened to you, and letting your past control your behavior. You could choose forgiveness, ask yourself what you learned, and use your past to help others.

26. “If you’re alive, there’s a purpose for your life.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Some days and periods of our lives are so hard that being alive doesn’t feel like the blessing it really is. However, every day that you wake up is a chance to live your purpose, change direction, or help someone else. Expressing gratitude for the fact that you are alive is one of the best ways to change your perspective about life.

27. “God gave us the gift of life in Heaven. Many people are given this gift, but they never open it. They never do anything with it.” – Rick Warren

28. “We are products of our past, but we don’t have to be prisoners of it.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Scientifically, the things you have experienced in your past create neuropathways in your brain. These neuropathways influence your behavior, but you can relearn new behaviors. Self-reflection, self-awareness, and meditation can all help you behave differently. In this way, your past has helped shape you, but you do not have to be a prisoner to your past. Your efforts, thoughts, words, and behaviors are all in your control.

29. “God intentionally allows you to go through painful experiences to equip you for ministry to others.” – Rick Warren

You might also like these CT Fletcher quotes to unleash your inner beast.

Rick Warren quotes on success

30. “The truth is, almost everything we do is done poorly when we first start doing it – that’s how we learn.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Your first attempt at painting something might be better than someone else’s 50th painting because of your innate talent. On the same vein, your 50th painting might be terrible compared to someone else’s first attempt. However, your 50th painting will be better than your first painting! This is why we should only compare ourselves to our past efforts. Effort and learning will help us improve on things. Do your best and keep practicing!

31. “It’s not what you do, but how much love you put into it that matters.” – Rick Warren

32. “Your character is shaped by your choices. What choices will you make today that will positively affect the rest of your life?” – Rick Warren

33. “You’ll find success in life when you stop trying to include God in your plans and instead ask God to include you in His.” – Rick Warren

34. “Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.” – Rick Warren

35. “Being successful and fulfilling your life’s purpose are not at all the same thing; You can reach all your personal goals, become a raving success in the world’s standard and still miss your purpose in this life.” – Rick Warren

Everyday Application: Everyone has a different definition of what success is. For some it is finding and fulfilling their life’s work, while for others+

36. “If you want your life to have an impact, focus it! Stop dabbling. Stop trying to do it all. Do less. Prune away even good activities and do only that which matters most. Never confuse activity with productivity. You can be busy without a purpose, but what’s the point?” – Rick Warren

37. “God is for your success in life; He created you for a purpose and he wants you to succeed. It is God, your Creator, who will measure your success in life, and no one else.” – Rick Warren

38. “I don’t know the keys to success, but one key to failure is to try to please everyone.” – Rick Warren

Rick Warren quotes about life

39. “Life is a gift…Life is a test….Life is a temporary assignment….” – Rick Warren

40. “Life minus love equals zero.” – Rick Warren

41. “You were made by God and for God, and until you understand that, life will never make sense.” – Rick Warren

42. “You are not ready to live unless you know what you are willing to die for.” – Rick Warren

43. “When life doesn’t make sense, we can still have peace.’’ – Rick Warren

44. “My ultimate goal is for you to live the life you’re intended to live.” – Rick Warren

45. “I can’t imagine God not allowing my dog into Heaven.” – Rick Warren

46. “I never get involved with policy. Never.” – Rick Warren

47. “Forgiveness must be immediate, whether or not a person asks for it. Trust must be rebuilt over time. Trust requires a track record.” – Rick Warren

48. “We’re not completely happy here because we’re not supposed to be! Earth is not our final home; we were created for something much better.” – Rick Warren

49. “The way you think determines the way you feel, and the way you feel determines the way you act.” – Rick Warren

More Rick Warren quotes

50. “Frankness is not a license to say anything you want, wherever and whenever you want. It is not rudeness.” – Rick Warren

51. “God sometimes removes a person from your life for your protection. Don’t run after them.” – Rick Warren

52. “Experience is not what happens to you. It is what you do with what happens to you. Don’t waste your pain; use it to help others.” – Rick Warren

53. “You cannot fulfil God’s purposes for your life while focusing on your own plans.” – Rick Warren

54. “If you have felt hopeless, hold on! Wonderful changes are going to happen in your life as you begin to live it on purpose.” – Rick Warren

55. “A pretentious, showy life is an empty life; a plain and simple life is a full life.” – Rick Warren

56. “Your value is not determined by your valuables, and God says the most valuable things in life are not things!” – Rick Warren

57. “Without God, life has no purpose, and without purpose, life has no meaning. Without meaning, life has no significance or hope.” – Rick Warren

58. “Surrender . . .sacrificing my life or suffering in order to change what needs to be changed.” – Rick Warren

59. “God is more interested in your character than your comfort. God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy.” – Rick Warren

60. “The closer you live to God, the smaller everything else appears.” – Rick Warren

What did you learn from these Rick Warren quotes?

It’s easy to think that people with inspirational quotes must have lived easy lives.

But Rick Warren has had his share of sorrow in his life.

His youngest son struggled with mental health challenges which eventually led to him committing suicide. 

Even those that spend their lives working to provide hope and comfort to others are not always able to protect themselves and those close to them from going through difficult times.

However, even with the big loss in his life, he had his faith to draw on and keep him going.

And his words of encouragement and inspiration can mean even more knowing that he has faced hardships himself. 

What’s your biggest takeaway from these Rick Warren quotes and sayings?

Do you have any other inspirational quotes to add?

Let us know in the comment section below.