Thomas a kempis quotes

We must imitate Christ's life and his ways if we are to be truly enlightened and set free from the darkness of our own hearts. Let it be the most important thing we do, then, to reflect on the life of Jesus Christ.

Jesus has many who love the kingdom of God, but few who bear a cross. He has many who desire His comfort, but few who desire His suffering. All want to rejoice with him, but few are willing to suffer for Him. He writes; there are many who admire his miracles, but there are few who follow in the humiliation of the cross.

When anger enters the mind, wisdom departs.

If thou may not continually gather thyself together, do it sometime at least once a day, morning or evening.

He who loves with purity considers not the gift of the lover, but the love of the giver.

Activate yourself to duty by remembering your position, who you are, and what you have obliged yourself to be.

Always keep a good distance between yourself and lying, quarreling, detracting, insulting and gossip. The person who can do that will some day learn to enjoy the silence.

Grace is the mastery of truth, the teacher of discipline, the light of the heart, the comforter of affliction, the banisher of sorrow, the nurse of devotion.

Love is a mighty power, a great and complete good. Love alone lightens every burden, and makes rough places smooth. It bears every hardship as though it were nothing, and renders all bitterness sweet and acceptable.

If you would endeavor, like men of courage, to stand in the battle, surely we would feel the favorable assistance of God from heaven. For he who give the us occasion to fight, to the end we may get the victory, is ready to succor those that fight manfully, and do trust in his grace.

No one is so good that he is immune from temptation. We will never be entirely free from it. . . . There is no order so holy, no place so secret where there will be no temptation.

Constantly choose rather to want less, than to have more.

Know all and you will pardon all.

Wait for the Lord. Behave yourself manfully, and be of good courage. Do not be faithless, but stay in your place and do not turn back.

Be Yourself -The man who is neither bent upon pleasing his fellows nor afraid of offending them will enjoy great peace.

Every man naturally desires knowledge; but what good is knowledge without fear of God? Indeed a humble rustic who serves God is better than a proud intellectual who neglects his soul to study the course of the stars.

Learn to humble yourself, you are but earth and clay.

Christ willed to suffer and be despised and do you dare complain of the same? Christ had adversaries and backbiters; and do you wish to have all men your friends and benefactors? When shall your patience attain her crown if no adversity befalls you? If you are willing to suffer naught that is against you, how will you be the friend of Christ?

At the day of judgment we shall not be asked what we have read but what we have done.

For man plans, but God arranges.

He is truly great who hath a great charity.

Love makes everything that is heavy light.

He has great tranquillity of heart who cares neither for the praises nor the fault-finding of men. He will easily be content and pacified, whose conscience is pure. You are not holier if you are praised, nor the more worthless if you are found fault with. What you are, that you are; neither by word can you be made greater than what you are in the sight of God.

Always be ready; always live in such a way that death can never find you unprepared.

Praise adds nothing to your holiness, nor does blame take anything from it. You are what you are, and you cannot be said to be better than you are in God's sight.

In the Cross is salvation; in the Cross is life; in the Cross is protection against our enemies; in the Cross is infusion of heavenly sweetness; in the Cross is strength of mind; in the Cross is joy of spirit; in the Cross is excellence of virtue; in the Cross is perfection of holiness. There is no salvation of soul, nor hope of eternal life, save in the Cross.

If you can talk and it's convenient to talk, try to say things that edify.

My God, Sweetness beyond words, make bitter all the carnal comfort that draws me from love of the eternal and lures me to its evil self by the sight of some delightful good in the present. Let it not overcome me, my God. Let not flesh and blood conquer me. Let not the world and its brief glory deceive me, nor the devil trip me by his craftiness. Give me courage to resist, patience to endure, and constancy to persevere. Give me the soothing unction of Your spirit rather than all the consolations of the world, and in place of carnal love, infuse into me the love of Your name.

If you carry your cross joyfully, it will carry you.

Love flies, runs, leaps for joy; it is free and unrestrained. Love gives all for all, resting in One who is highest above all things, from whom every good flows and proceeds. Love does not regard the gifts, but turns to the Giver of all good gifts. Love knows no limits, but ardently transcends all bounds. Love feels no burden, takes no account of toil, attempts things beyond its strength; love sees nothing as impossible, for it feels able to achieve all things. Love therefore does great things; it is strange and effective; while he who lacks love faints and fails.

When comfort is withdrawn, do not be cast down, but humbly and patiently await the visitation of God. He is able and powerful to give you more grace and more spiritual comfort than you first had.

We would willingly have others perfect, and yet we amend not our own faults. We would have others severely corrected and will not be corrected ourselves. The large liberty of others displeases us, and yet we will not have our own desires denied us. We will have others kept under by strict laws, but in no sort will ourselves be restrained. And thus it appears how seldom we weigh our neighbor in the same balance with ourselves.

If you want to learn something that will really help you, learn to see yourself as God sees you and not as you see yourself in the distorted mirror of your own self-importance.

Remember always your end, and that lost time does not return.

Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.

Let all your thoughts be with the Most High, and direct your humble prayers unceasingly to Christ. If you cannot contemplate high and heavenly things, take refuge in the Passion of Christ, and love to dwell within His Sacred Wounds. For if you devoutly seek the Wounds of Jesus and the precious marks of His Passion, you will find great strength in all troubles.

Who is so wise as to have a perfect knowledge of all things? Therefore trust not too much to thine own opinion, but be ready also to hear the opinion of others. Thought thine own opinion be good, yet if for the love of God thou foregoest it, and followest that of another, thou shalt the more profit thereby.

Out of sight, out of mind. The absent are always in the wrong.

If you wish to live in peace and harmony with others, you must learn to discipline yourself in many ways.

It is much safer to be subject than it is to command. Many live in obedience more from necessity than from love. Such become discontented and dejected on the slightest pretext; they will never gain peace of mind unless they subject themselves wholeheartedly for the love of God.

All men desire peace, but very few desire those things that make for peace.

It is better to have but little knowledge with humility and understanding, than great learning which might make you proud. For a person's merits are not to be estimated by having many visions, or by knowledge of the bible, or by being placed in a higher position; but by being grounded in true humility, and by seeking always, purely, and entirely, the honor of God.

Let temporal things serve thy use, but the eternal be the object of thy desire.

Be thankful for the smallest blessing and you will deserve to receive greater. Value the least gifts no less than the greatest, and simple graces as especial favors. If you remember the dignity of the Giver, no gift will seem small or mean.

Ah, Lord God, thou holy lover of my soul, when thou comest into my heart, all that is within me shall rejoice.

Nothing is sweeter than love, nothing more courageous, nothing higher, nothing wider, nothing more pleasant, nothing fuller nor better in heaven and earth; because love is born of God, and cannot rest but in God, above all created things.

Trust not to your feelings for whatever they might be now, they will quickly be changed towards some other thing.

Anyone who is not totally dead to himself will soon find that he is tempted and overcome by piddling and frivolous things. Whoever is weak in spirit, given to the flesh and inclined to sensual things can, but only with great difficulty, drag himself away from his earthly desires. Therefore he is often gloomy and sad when he is trying to pull himself away from them, and easily gives way to anger should someone attempt to oppose him.

Love alone makes heavy burdens light and bears in equal balance things pleasing and displeasing. Love bears a heavy burden and does not feel it, and love makes bitter things tasteful and sweet.

Simplicity is the intention, purity in the affection; simplicity turns to God, purity unites with and enjoys him.

O Lord, Thou knowest that which is best for us; let this or that be done, as Thou shalt please. Give what Thou wilt, how much Thou wilt, and when Thou wilt. Deal with me as thou thinkest best. Place me where Thou wilt, and deal with me in all things just as Thou wilt. Behold, I am Thy servant, prepared for all things: I desire not to live unto myself, but unto Thee; and oh, that I could do it worthily and perfectly!

He will be with you also, all the way, that faithful God. Every morning when you awaken to the old and tolerable pain, at every mile of the hot uphill dusty road of tiring duty, on to the judgment seat, the same Christ there as ever, still loving you, still sufficient for you, even then. And then, on through all eternity.

Some people are tempted most strongly at the beginning of their spiritual life, others near the end. Some are troubled all their lives. Still others receive only light temptation. Such things are decided by God, and we can trust his wisdom.

Habit is overcome by habit.

Jesus has many lovers of His kingdom of heaven, but he has few bearers of His Cross. Many desire His consolation, but few desire His tribulation. He finds many comrades in eating and drinking, but He finds few hands who will be with Him in His abstinence and fastingBut those who love Jesus purely for Himself, and not for their own profit or convenience, bless Him as heartily in temptation and tribulation and in all other adversities as they do in time of consolation. And if He never sent them consolation, they would still bless and praise Him.

The measure of every man’s virtue is best revealed in time of adversity - adversity that does not weaken a man but rather shows what he is.

What difference does it make to you what someone else becomes, or says, or does? You do not need to answer for others, only for yourself.

I have sought for happiness everywhere, but I have found it nowhere except in a little corner with a little book.

We should have much more peace if we would not busy ourselves with the sayings and doings of others.

Many deceive themselves, imagining they'll find happiness in change.

Do not try to find a place free from temptations and troubles. Rather, seek a peace that endures even when you are beset by various temptations and tried by much adversity.

Love is a great thing, yea, a great and thorough good. By itself it makes what is heavy light; and bears evenly all that is uneven.

If thou canst not make thyself such an one as thou wouldst, how canst thou expect to have another in all things to thy liking?

Carefully avoid in yourself those things which distrub you in others.

He that seeks here any other thing but simply God and the salvation of his soul, will find nothing but trouble and sorrow.

Love wakes much and sleeps little and, in sleeping, does not sleep. It faints is not weary; it is restricted in its liberty and is great freedom. It sees reasons to fear and does not fear, but, like an ember or a spark of fire, flames always upward, by the fervor of its love, toward God, and through the special help of grace is delivered from all perils and dangers

Love feels no burden, thinks nothing of trouble, attempts what is above its strength, pleads no excuse of impossibility; for it thinks all things lawful for itself, and all things possible.

In the morning fix thy good purpose; and at night examine thyself what thou hast done, how thou hast behaved thyself in word, deed, and thought.

Renounce all things, and thou shalt find all things; give up thy lust, and thou shalt find rest.

Patience is necessary in this life because so much of life is fraught with adversity. No matter how hard we try, our lives will never be without strife and grief. Thus, we should not strive for a peace that is without temptation, or for a life that never feels adversity. Peace is not found by escaping temptations, but by being tried by them. We will have discovered peace when we have been tried and come through the trial of temptation.

A sure way of retaining the grace of heaven is to disregard outward appearances, and diligently to cultivate such things as foster amendment of life and fervour of soul, rather than to cultivate those qualities that seem most popular.

If God were our one and only desire we would not be so easily upset when our opinions do not find outside acceptance.

Carry the cross patiently, and with perfect submission; and in the end it shall carry you.

Love is a great thing, a good above all others, which alone maketh every burden light.

Do not let your peace depend on what people say of you... True peace and joy is to be found in [Jesus] alone.

Simplicity and purity are the two wings by which a man is lifted above all earthly things. Simplicity is in the intention - purity in the affection. Simplicity tends to God, - purity apprehends and tastes Him.

Whoever finds Jesus, finds a rich treasure, and a good above every good. He who loses Jesus loses much indeed, and more than the whole world. Poorest of all is he who lives without Jesus, and richest of all is he who stands in favor with Jesus.

A book has but one voice, but it does not instruct everyone alike.

What else does anxiety about the future bring you but sorrow upon sorrow?

Confidence is the illusion born of accidental success.

If your heart were sincere and upright, every creature would be unto you a looking-glass of life and a book of holy doctrine.

Do not interfere when your opinion is not sought.

Be assured that if you knew all, you would pardon all.

Don't think so much about who is for or against you, rather give all your care, that God be with you in everything you do.

Temptations discover what you are.

He is truly great that is great in charity. He is truly great that is little in himself, and maketh no account of any height of honor. And he is truly learned that doeth the will of God, and forsaketh his own will.

We usually know what we can do, but temptation shows us who we are.

Man considers the actions, but God weighs the intentions.

Simplicity reaches out after God; purity discovers and enjoys Him.

Be thankful for the smallest blessing, and you will be worthy to receive greater.

There is no man in this world without some manner of tribulation or anguish, though he be king or pope.

If you cast away one cross, you will certainly find another, and perhaps a heavier.

Occasions do not make a man either strong or weak but they show what he is.

If you desire to know or learn anything to your advantage, then take delight in being unknown and unregarded. A true understanding and humble estimate of oneself is the highest and most valuable of all lessons.

Study, therefore, to withdraw the love of your soul from all things that are visible, and turn it to things that are invisible.

To say that I am made in the image of God is to say that love is the reason for my existence, for God is love.

God often gives in one brief moment that which He has for a long time denied.

Two wings lift a person up from earthly concerns: Simplicity in intention, and Purity in feeling.

Blessed is the pilgrim, who in every place, and at all times of this his banishment in the body, calling upon the holy name of Jesus, calleth to mind his native heavenly land, where his blessed Master, the King of saints and angels, waiteth to receive him. Blessed is the pilgrim who seeketh not an abiding place unto himself in this world; but longeth to be dissolved, and be with Christ in heaven.

Oh how swiftly the glory of the world passes away! If only the lives of these men had been as admirable as their learning, their study and reading would have been to good purpose! But how many in this world care little for the service of God, and perish in their vain learning. Because they choose to be great rather than humble, they perish in their own conceit.

All earthly joy begins pleasantly, but at the end it gnaws and kills.

Judge yourself and beware of passing judgement on others. In judging others we expend our energy to no purpose; we are often mistaken and easily sin. But if we judge ourselves our labour is always to our profit.

The Lord has many lovers of His crown but few lovers of His Cross.

Endeavor to be patient in bearing with the defects and infirmities of others, of what sort 'soever they be; for that thyself also has many failings which must be borned with by others.

Purity and simplicity are the two wings with which man soars above the earth and all temporary nature.

It is vanity to desire a long life and to take no heed of a good life.

If you cannot mould yourself entirely as you would wish, how can you expect other people to be entirely to your liking?

The more humble and obedient to God a man is, the more wise and at peace he will be in all that he does.

The enemy is more easily overcome if he be not suffered to enter the door of our hearts, but be resisted without the gate at his first knock.

Do not let your peace depend on the hearts of men; whatever they say about you, good or bad, you are not because of it another man, for as you are, you are.

First keep peace with yourself, then you can also bring peace to others.

I can take credit for only two things: pride and sin.

A disciple once complained, "You tell us stories, but you never reveal their meaning to us." The master replied, "How would you like it if someone offered you fruit and then chewed it up for you before giving it to you?" If your heart is straight with God, then every creature will be to you a mirror of life and a book of holy doctrine.

It is futile to wish for a long life, and then to give so little care to living well.

There is no creature so small and abject, that it representeth not the goodness of God.

Restrain an inordinate desire for knowledge, in which is found much anxiety and deception. Learned men always wish to appear so, and desire recognition of their wisdom. But there are many matters, knowledge of which brings little or no advantage to the soul.

Man sees your actions, but God your motives.

The devil does not tempt unbelievers and sinners who are already his own.

Love feels no burden, regards not labors, strives toward more than it attains, argues not of impossibility, since it believes that it may and can do all things.

If you bear the cross gladly, it will bear you.

If thou art willing to suffer no adversity, how wilt thou be the friend of Christ?

Remain tranquil and prepare to bear still greater trials. All is not lost even though you be troubled oftener or tempted more grievously. You are a man, not God. You are flesh, not an angel. How can you possibly expect to remain always in the same state of virtue when the angels in heaven and the first man in paradise failed to do so? I am He who rescues the afflicted and brings to My divinity those who know their own weakness.

If we live in peace ourselves, we in turn may bring peace to others. A peaceable man does more good than a learned one.

For a small reward, a man will hurry away on a long journey; while for eternal life, many will hardly take a single step.

O Lord, you know what is best for me. Let this or that be done, as you please. Give what you will, how much you will, and when you will.