Purity of heart is not, first and foremost, a matter of avoiding all sorts of bad things. Rather, it is
the desire for one supreme good above all else. It is to want one thing — to focus our whole life
on that one thing.
What is that one thing?
It is to know God, love Him, and serve Him with all of our mind, heart, soul, and strength.
— The Philokalia
In the movie City Slickers, Curly tells Billy Crystal’s character that a man needs to know his
“one thing” in life.
How many things am I chasing?
Money
Purpose
Acceptance
Significance
Love
Position
Possessions
Relationships
I’m chasing multiple things individually, yet if I were to chase after God alone, all the other
things would take care of themselves.
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your
body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?”
— Matthew 6:25
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as
well.”
— Matthew 6:33
If I were to choose any one of the things listed above as my “one thing,” I wouldn’t gain the
others — I would actually lose them.
The world calls us to balance our lives. God calls us to tip the scales completely to one side —
toward Him.
My way is exhausting. God’s way is peaceful.
Satan is comfortable with us seeking God as long as He is just one of many things on our list. In
that case, God only receives a random fraction of our time and attention.
What Satan does not want is for God to be above all things and at the center of our lives.
When you are pure in heart, you place your focus on what God wants for you. You desire to be
godly — a person of integrity. Your deepest desire is for God, not for the approval of people.
Thus, purity of heart means loving all people while living with a single supreme purpose and
direction. It means not being double-minded or unstable.
— The Philokalia
