Insights From Thomas A’ Kempis

Thomas a’ Kempis is part of a renewal movement (The Brothers Of The Common Life) in the Catholic tradition before the Reformation.

From God: Alone you cannot do it; alone, I will not. I.e. we must work together to see you transformed.

Thomas loved to teach, wrote teaching materials for young monks, and just loved to be in prayer.

The Imitation Of Christ is his major work, written to meditate on the imitation of Jesus for Christians.

Probably the most important work in christendom other than the bible.

Would you rather define humility, or actually have it?

Quotes

“Love is a great thing, yea, a great and thorough good; by itself it makes every thing that is heavy, light; and it bears evenly all that is uneven. For it carries a burden which is no burden, and makes every thing that is better, sweet and tasteful. The noble love of jesus impels a man to do great things, and stirs him up too be always longing for what is more perfect.”

“Love flies, runs, leaps for joy… love therefore does great things.”

“When comfort is withdrawn, don’t despair….”

“I have never known anyone, religious or devout, who did not experience the withdrawal of grace.”

Consolation: God gives you his rich experiences so you will be strong, but leaves so you will not be proud. You’d be triumphalistic; you’d be a boor. He knows that you need to hunger for him.

We are surprised that we hurt.

Many Christians have thin souls, and are bewildered that they don’t have the strength to move forward. We need Fat Souls. “Those who trust in the Lord shall be made fat.” (Prov. 24:28, KJV)

Augustine: “Narrow is the mansion of my soul; enlarge thou it…”

Fat Souls

Why do our souls remain thin?

Apparently it’s more important that God knows us than that we know God (Gal. 4:9). We must allow the Lord to know us.

We resist grace when we implement various forms of hiding from love.

Jeremiah 7:31 — apparently human beings can create evil that God has never thought about. Also, God seems to stay back from, in some real way, from the place He is not invited.

How We Stay Thin Souls (Gerald May)

* Rationalization
* Hiding
* Delaying Tactics
* I can’t handle it
* I can handle it
* Breakdown
* Collusion (secret agreements)

Bonhoeffer suggest that the greatest evidence that we live in isolation is the fact that we can’t look deeply into anyone’s eyes for very long.

Trusting that God is with us, improving the condition of our souls as we keep abiding in Him, even if we are not yet who we want to be.

“If you’re willing to serenely bear the trail of being displeasing to yourself, then you will be for Jesus a pleasant place of shelter.” Therese de Liseux

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Sheltering Mercy and Endless Grace help us rediscover the rich treasures of the Psalms—through free-verse prayer renderings of their poems and hymns—as a guide to personal devotion and meditation. Sheltering Mercy helps the reader pray Psalms 1-75; Endless Grace leads in prayer through Psalms 76-150.

The church has always used the Psalms as part of its prayer life, and they have inspired countless other prayers. Each book contains 75 prayers drawn from the Book of Psalms, providing lyrical sketches of what authors Ryan Smith and Dan Wilt have seen, heard, and felt while sojourning there. Each prayer is a response to the Psalms written in harmony with Scripture. These prayers help us quiet our hearts before God and welcome us into a safe place amid the storms of life.

These artful, poetic, and classic devotional books are a perfect gift, and feature compelling stunning illustrations and hardcover binding, offering a fresh way to reflect on and pray the Psalms. Co-written with Ryan Whitaker Smith, Brazos Publishing.

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