--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our awareness of God starts where…" description: "\"Our awareness of God starts where self-sufficiency ends.\" — Harold S. Kushner" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ea/harold-s-kushner-4877_awareness_our-awareness-of-god-starts-where-self-s_607986.png" --- # Our awareness of God starts where self-sufficiency ends. ![“Our awareness of God starts where self-sufficiency ends.” quote by Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ea/harold-s-kushner-4877_awareness_our-awareness-of-god-starts-where-self-s_607986.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ea/harold-s-kushner-4877_awareness_our-awareness-of-god-starts-where-self-s_607986.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ea/harold-s-kushner-4877_awareness_our-awareness-of-god-starts-where-self-s_607986.png) > “Our awareness of God starts where self-sufficiency ends.” [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Spiritual awareness begins when we recognize our dependence on a higher power. **In simple terms:** God awareness starts when we admit we need help. Key Takeaway Accept dependence on something greater. Themes faith humility spirituality Mood contemplative hopeful Type spiritual philosophical When to use this quote - personal crisis - therapy - religious study - community support Key Concepts theology existentialism Questions to Reflect On - When have you felt you needed divine help? - What role does self‑sufficiency play in growth? A Different Perspective Overreliance can hinder personal agency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Awareness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awareness/) [Discipleship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discipleship/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self sufficiency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-sufficiency/) [Sufficiency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sufficiency/) ## Related quotes > [Development of character consists solely in moving toward self-sufficiency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/development-of-character-consists-solely-in-moving-toward-self/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [Absence of gratitude is the mark of the narrow, uneducated mind. It bespeaks a lack of knowledge and the ignorance of self-sufficiency. It expresses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/absence-of-gratitude-is-the-mark-of-the-narrow-uneducated-mind-it/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [It must not be supposed that happiness will demand many or great possessions; for self-sufficiency does not depend on excessive abundance, nor does moral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/it-must-not-be-supposed-that-happiness-will-demand-many-or-great/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [Indeed, the keynote of government is injustice. With the arrogance and self-sufficiency of the King who could do no wrong, governments ordain, judge, condemn,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-goldman/indeed-the-keynote-of-government-is-injustice-with-the-arrogance-and/) [Emma Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-goldman/) > [A lot of people say there is no happiness in this life and certainly there's no permanent happiness. But self-sufficiency creates happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/a-lot-of-people-say-there-is-no-happiness-in-this-life-and-certainly/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Surrounded by the self -sufficiency of American culture, we can convince ourselves that we have what it takes to achieve something great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-platt/surrounded-by-the-self-sufficiency-of-american-culture-we-can/) [David Platt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-platt/) > [America has a history of political isolation and economic self-sufficiency; its citizens have tended to regard the rest of the world as a disaster…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-lurie/america-has-a-history-of-political-isolation-and-economic-self/) [Alison Lurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-lurie/) > [A very real barrier to faith is this feeling of self-sufficiency, this unrealistic idea that one can accomplish everything by his or her own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/a-very-real-barrier-to-faith-is-this-feeling-of-self-sufficiency-this/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [“The flat is small, with only a sliver of ocean view from the bedroom window, but I pay for it myself—not from the family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-chase/the-flat-is-small-with-only-a-sliver-of-ocean-view-from-the-bedroom/) [Emma Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-chase/) > [The myth of the self-sufficient individual and of the self-sufficient, protected, and protective familytells us that those who need help are ultimately inadequate. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-keniston/the-myth-of-the-self-sufficient-individual-and-of-the-self-sufficient/) [Kenneth Keniston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-keniston/) > [We in the West seem to have made a fetish out of complete individual self-sufficiency, of not needing help, of being completely private except…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-rogers/we-in-the-west-seem-to-have-made-a-fetish-out-of-complete-individual/) [Carl Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-rogers/) > [In many cases, mathematics is an escape from reality. The mathematician finds his own monastic niche and happiness in pursuits that are disconnected from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanislaw-ulam/in-many-cases-mathematics-is-an-escape-from-reality-the-mathematician/) [Stanislaw Ulam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanislaw-ulam/) > [Self-sufficiency is the enemy of salvation. If you are self-sufficient, you have no need of God. If you have no need of God, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-nicholson/self-sufficiency-is-the-enemy-of-salvation-if-you-are-self-sufficient/) [William Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-nicholson/) > [Annual earnings in the fast-food industry are well below the income needed for self-sufficiency, and fast-food industry jobs are also much less likely than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-rolf/annual-earnings-in-the-fast-food-industry-are-well-below-the-income/) [David Rolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-rolf/) > [In its flawless grace and superior self-sufficiency I have seen a symbol of the perfect beauty and bland impersonality of the universe itself, objectively…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/in-its-flawless-grace-and-superior-self-sufficiency-i-have-seen-a/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) ## More by Harold S. Kushner > [When a mentally retarded child is born, the religious question we often ask is, "Why does God let this happen?" The better question to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/when-a-mentally-retarded-child-is-born-the-religious-question-we/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [Seek something outside your nine-to-five job as an additional source of fulfillment and as a way to feel the joy of helping others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/seek-something-outside-your-nine-to-five-job-as-an-additional-source/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [But at the end, if we are brave enough to love, if we are strong enough to forgive, if we are generous enough to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/but-at-the-end-if-we-are-brave-enough-to-love-if-we-are-strong-enough/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [Life is like the baseball season, where even the best team loses at least a third of its games, and even the worst team…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/life-is-like-the-baseball-season-where-even-the-best-team-loses-at/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [The circumstances of your life have uniquely qualified you to make a contribution. And if you don't make that contribution, nobody else can make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/the-circumstances-of-your-life-have-uniquely-qualified-you-to-make-a/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [None of us has the power to make someone else love us. But we all have the power to give away love, to love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/none-of-us-has-the-power-to-make-someone-else-love-us-but-we-all-have/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [We teach children how to measure and how to weigh. We fail to teach them how to revere, how to sense wonder and awe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/we-teach-children-how-to-measure-and-how-to-weigh-we-fail-to-teach/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [God, who neither causes nor prevents tragedies, helps by inspiring people to help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/god-who-neither-causes-nor-prevents-tragedies-helps-by-inspiring/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [There seems to be something in the human soul that causes us to think less of ourselves every time we do something wrong... And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/there-seems-to-be-something-in-the-human-soul-that-causes-us-to-think/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [There is a Jewish notion that holiness is found with other people. To understand what life really is, one has to share it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/there-is-a-jewish-notion-that-holiness-is-found-with-other-people-to/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [The path to God is rarely a steady climb upward. We climb, we fall back, and we climb higher again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/the-path-to-god-is-rarely-a-steady-climb-upward-we-climb-we-fall-back/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [You don't have to be religious to have a soul; everybody has one. You don't have to be religious to perfect your soul; I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/you-don-t-have-to-be-religious-to-have-a-soul-everybody-has-one-you/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [When your life is filled with the desire to see the holiness in everyday life, something magical happens: Ordinary life becomes extraordinary, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/when-your-life-is-filled-with-the-desire-to-see-the-holiness-in/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [When I talk to people who feel this emptiness and lack of fulfillment, I recommend they find a source of balance in their lives.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/when-i-talk-to-people-who-feel-this-emptiness-and-lack-of-fulfillment/) [Harold S. Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-s-kushner/) > [Forgiveness is a favor we do for ourselves, not a favor we do to the other party.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-s-kushner/forgiveness-is-a-favor-we-do-for-ourselves-not-a-favor-we-do-to-the/) [Harold S. 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