--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It seems to me, as time goes on, that the…" description: "\"It seems to me, as time goes on, that the only thing that is worth seeking for is to know and to be known by Christ -- a privilege open alone to the ch..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b4/charles-brent-31861_childlike_it-seems-to-me-as-time-goes-on-that-the_2495846.jpg" --- # It seems to me, as time goes on, that the only thing that… ![“It seems to me, as time goes on, that the only thing that is worth seeking for is to know and to be known by Christ -- a privilege open alone to the childlike, who, with receptivity, guilelessness, and humility, move Godward.” quote by Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b4/charles-brent-31861_childlike_it-seems-to-me-as-time-goes-on-that-the_2495846.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b4/charles-brent-31861_childlike_it-seems-to-me-as-time-goes-on-that-the_2495846.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b4/charles-brent-31861_childlike_it-seems-to-me-as-time-goes-on-that-the_2495846.jpg) > “It seems to me, as time goes on, that the only thing that is worth seeking for is to know and to be known by Christ -- a privilege open alone to the childlike, who, with receptivity, guilelessness, and humility, move Godward.” [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The core idea is that true spiritual fulfillment comes from knowing Christ and being known by Him, a path open only to childlike humility and openness. **In simple terms:** Knowing Christ requires childlike humility. Key Takeaway Seek humility to know Christ. Themes faith humility spirituality Mood contemplative hopeful Type spiritual ethical When to use this quote - prayer - community service - personal reflection - teaching ministry Key Concepts theology personal transformation Questions to Reflect On - What does childlike humility look like today? - Can humility coexist with confidence? A Different Perspective Humility may be misunderstood as weakness in modern culture. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Childlike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/childlike/) [Christ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christ/) [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [Humility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humility/) [Privilege](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/privilege/) [Receptivity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/receptivity/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“I think of the privilege it is to be able to speak life over these hurting people and believe in new life for them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-davis-majors/i-think-of-the-privilege-it-is-to-be-able-to-speak-life-over-these/) [Katie Davis Majors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-davis-majors/) > [“The attitude of those who live from the triumph of Christ is different than those who live under the influence of their past. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/the-attitude-of-those-who-live-from-the-triumph-of-christ-is/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [It is a great thing to be a child of God, and joint-heir with Jesus Christ. If this is your privilege, you will know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-g-white/it-is-a-great-thing-to-be-a-child-of-god-and-joint-heir-with-jesus/) [Ellen G. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-g-white/) > [The truth about who we really are, beyond all appearances, is knowledge worth seeking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/the-truth-about-who-we-really-are-beyond-all-appearances-is-knowledge/) [Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/) > [I admit that my visions can never mean to other men as much as they do to me. I do not regret this. All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleister-crowley/i-admit-that-my-visions-can-never-mean-to-other-men-as-much-as-they/) [Aleister Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleister-crowley/) > [No civilization other than that which is Christian, is worth seeking or possessing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/no-civilization-other-than-that-which-is-christian-is-worth-seeking/) [Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/) > [The world is bigger than you know, and scarier than you might imagine. The only currency worth anything is being true to yourself, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-landy/the-world-is-bigger-than-you-know-and-scarier-than-you-might-imagine/) [Derek Landy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-landy/) > [Enlightenment is really worth seeking. It is the only thing that gives you permanent happiness. When you experience the ecstasy of enlightenment, everything is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightenment-is-really-worth-seeking-it-is-the-only-thing-that-gives/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [... even when we find not what we seek, we find something as well worth seeking as what we missed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-boyle/even-when-we-find-not-what-we-seek-we-find-something-as-well-worth/) [Robert Boyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-boyle/) > [The future of poetry is immense, because in poetry, where it is worthy of its high destinies, our race, as time goes on, will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-arnold/the-future-of-poetry-is-immense-because-in-poetry-where-it-is-worthy/) [Matthew Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-arnold/) > [The fundamental things apply As time goes by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-hupfeld/the-fundamental-things-apply-as-time-goes-by/) Herman Hupfeld > [We all fall in love with the idea of a person, and then as time goes on we either accommodate ourselves to the real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liza-johnson/we-all-fall-in-love-with-the-idea-of-a-person-and-then-as-time-goes/) [Liza Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liza-johnson/) > [I'd like to think that I'm getting slightly more mature as time goes on, but I don't know if my fiancee would necessarily agree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-o-dowd/i-d-like-to-think-that-i-m-getting-slightly-more-mature-as-time-goes/) [Chris O'Dowd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-o-dowd/) > [I think as time goes on that generation of rappers who's making it now is gonna face the same thing that my generation was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rza/i-think-as-time-goes-on-that-generation-of-rappers-who-s-making-it/) [RZA](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rza/) > [Time goes on, even when yer not looking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/time-goes-on-even-when-yer-not-looking/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) ## More by Charles Brent > [There is no chasm in society that cannot be firmly and permanently bridged by intercession; there is no feud or dislike that cannot be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/there-is-no-chasm-in-society-that-cannot-be-firmly-and-permanently/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [It makes a great difference in our feeling towards others if their needs and their joys are on our lips in prayer; as also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/it-makes-a-great-difference-in-our-feeling-towards-others-if-their/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [Peace comes when there is no cloud between us and God. Peace is the consequence of forgiveness, God's removal of that which obscures His…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/peace-comes-when-there-is-no-cloud-between-us-and-god-peace-is-the/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [Repeatedly place your pet opinions and prejudices before God. He will surprise you by showing you that the best of them need refining and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/repeatedly-place-your-pet-opinions-and-prejudices-before-god-he-will/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [There is no thirst of the soul so consuming as the desire for pardon. The sense of its bestowal is the starting-point of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/there-is-no-thirst-of-the-soul-so-consuming-as-the-desire-for-pardon/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [The World will go limping until Christ's prayer that all may be one is answered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/the-world-will-go-limping-until-christ-s-prayer-that-all-may-be-one/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [Pray hardest when it is hardest to pray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/pray-hardest-when-it-is-hardest-to-pray/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [The unity of Christendom is not a luxury, but a necessity. The world will go limping until Christ's prayer that all may be one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/the-unity-of-christendom-is-not-a-luxury-but-a-necessity-the-world/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [Pray with your intelligence. Bring things to God that you have thought out and think them out again with Him. That is the secret…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/pray-with-your-intelligence-bring-things-to-god-that-you-have-thought/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [The happy sequence culminating in fellowship with God is penitence, pardon, and peace - the first we offer, the second we accept, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/the-happy-sequence-culminating-in-fellowship-with-god-is-penitence/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [Concluding a short series on sin: It is appalling to think of a power so strong that it can annihilate with the irresistible force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/concluding-a-short-series-on-sin-it-is-appalling-to-think-of-a-power/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [A low standard of prayer means a low standard of character and a low standard of service. Those alone labor effectively among men who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/a-low-standard-of-prayer-means-a-low-standard-of-character-and-a-low/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [God has special confidences for each soul. Indeed, it would seem as though the deepest truths came only in moments of profound devotional silence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/god-has-special-confidences-for-each-soul-indeed-it-would-seem-as/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [A man must not stop listening any more than praying when he rises from his knees. No one questions the need of times of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/a-man-must-not-stop-listening-any-more-than-praying-when-he-rises/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) > [Just as in prayer it is not we who momentarily catch His attention, but He ours, so when we fail to hear His voice,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/just-as-in-prayer-it-is-not-we-who-momentarily-catch-his-attention/) [Charles Brent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) [Explore all 16 Charles Brent quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/) ## More Childlike quotes > [You've had a whole lot of experience, but everything is also radically new at each moment, and you have to bring a kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-houston/you-ve-had-a-whole-lot-of-experience-but-everything-is-also-radically/) [Jean Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-houston/) > [I’m cold,' Snowden said softly, 'I’m cold.' 'You’re going to be all right, kid,' Yossarian reassured him with a grin. 'You’re going to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-heller/i-m-cold-snowden-said-softly-i-m-cold-you-re-going-to-be-all-right/) [Joseph Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-heller/) > [My mother spoke of Christ to my father, by her feminine and childlike virtues, and, after having borne his violence without a murmur or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/my-mother-spoke-of-christ-to-my-father-by-her-feminine-and-childlike/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Beautiful was this world, looking at it thus, without searching, thus simply, thus childlike.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/beautiful-was-this-world-looking-at-it-thus-without-searching-thus/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-pharcellus-church/yes-virginia-there-is-a-santa-claus-he-exists-as-certainly-as-love/) [Francis Pharcellus Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-pharcellus-church/) > [“Ô, Wanderess, Wanderess When did you feel your most euphoric kiss? Was I the source of your greatest bliss?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-payne/wanderess-wanderess-when-did-you-feel-your-most-euphoric-kiss-was-i/) [Roman Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-payne/) > [Enter the writing process with a childlike sense of wonder and discovery. Let it surprise you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-ghigna/enter-the-writing-process-with-a-childlike-sense-of-wonder-and/) [Charles Ghigna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-ghigna/) > [A simple, childlike faith in a Divine Friend solves all the problems that come to us by land or sea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/a-simple-childlike-faith-in-a-divine-friend-solves-all-the-problems/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [The naive is what is or appears to be natural, individual, or classical to the point of irony or to the point of continuous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/the-naive-is-what-is-or-appears-to-be-natural-individual-or-classical/) [Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-wilhelm-friedrich-schlegel/) > [I like crazy, childlike, candy bar-filled cakes with gooey caramel, chocolate-covered nuts, marshmallows, and the like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-ben-israel/i-like-crazy-childlike-candy-bar-filled-cakes-with-gooey-caramel/) [Ron Ben-Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-ben-israel/) > [“God sense little children to speak and act for him. In their simplicity and naivety they say and do things that we adults never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-steer/god-sense-little-children-to-speak-and-act-for-him-in-their/) Phil Steer > [It's fun playing two roles. The roles provide a wonderful range of emotions. Stuart is childlike and sensitive. Adam is ruthless, outrageous. He's flamboyant.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-canary/it-s-fun-playing-two-roles-the-roles-provide-a-wonderful-range-of/) [David Canary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-canary/) > [I think it is important to learn to distinguish between being childlike and being childish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-it-is-important-to-learn-to-distinguish-between-being/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The storm lashes us, out of the confusion of grey and yellow the hail of splinters whips forth the childlike cries of the wounded,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/the-storm-lashes-us-out-of-the-confusion-of-grey-and-yellow-the-hail/) [Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/) > [Things involved with a computer fill me with a childlike terror. Now, if it were a nice ogre or some such I'd be more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-giles/things-involved-with-a-computer-fill-me-with-a-childlike-terror-now/) [Rupert Giles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-giles/) [Browse all 267 Childlike quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/childlike/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It seems to me, as time goes on, that the only thing that is worth seeking for is to know and to be known by Christ -- a privilege open alone to the childlike, who, with receptivity, guilelessness, and humility, move Godward.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Charles Brent" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/it-seems-to-me-as-time-goes-on-that-the-only-thing-that-is-worth/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Childlike" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/it-seems-to-me-as-time-goes-on-that-the-only-thing-that-is-worth/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b4/charles-brent-31861_childlike_it-seems-to-me-as-time-goes-on-that-the_2495846.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b4/charles-brent-31861_childlike_it-seems-to-me-as-time-goes-on-that-the_2495846.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b4/charles-brent-31861_childlike_it-seems-to-me-as-time-goes-on-that-the_2495846.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It seems to me, as time goes on, that the only thing that is worth seeking for is to know and to be known by…” — Charles Brent", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Charles Brent", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brent/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It seems to me, as time...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/it-seems-to-me-as-time-goes-on-that-the-only-thing-that-is-worth/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brent/it-seems-to-me-as-time-goes-on-that-the-only-thing-that-is-worth/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```