Simplicity: Thomas a Kempis on Inward Simplicity

Thomas a Kempis (d. 1471) wrote in "The Imitation of Christ": "The more a man is united within himself, and interiorly simple, the more and higher things does he understand without labor; because he receives the light of understanding from above." Simplicity, for Thomas, was primarily an interior quality -- a single-minded focus on God that eliminates the divided heart.

"Purity and simplicity are the two wings by which a man is lifted above all earthly things. Simplicity is in the intention, purity in the affection. Simplicity reaches after God, purity apprehends and tastes Him." Thomas taught that external simplification without internal simplification produces only a new form of pride.

Practical application: Spend ten minutes in the morning asking: "What is the one thing God is asking of me today?" Not five things, not ten -- one thing. Carry that single focus through the day. Thomas teaches that simplicity of intention -- doing one thing at a time, for one reason, directed toward one Lord -- is more valuable than any amount of busy activity.