--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Attention is our first duty whenever we…" description: "\"Attention is our first duty whenever we want to know what is our second duty. There is no such cause of confusion and worry about what we ought to do, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e87/henry-clay-trumbull-23925_attention_attention-is-our-first-duty-whenever-we_1521654.png" --- # Attention is our first duty whenever we want to know what… ![“Attention is our first duty whenever we want to know what is our second duty. There is no such cause of confusion and worry about what we ought to do, and how to do it, as our unwillingness to hear what God would tell us on that very point.” quote by Henry Clay Trumbull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e87/henry-clay-trumbull-23925_attention_attention-is-our-first-duty-whenever-we_1521654.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e87/henry-clay-trumbull-23925_attention_attention-is-our-first-duty-whenever-we_1521654.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e87/henry-clay-trumbull-23925_attention_attention-is-our-first-duty-whenever-we_1521654.png) > “Attention is our first duty whenever we want to know what is our second duty. There is no such cause of confusion and worry about what we ought to do, and how to do it, as our unwillingness to hear what God would tell us on that very point.” [Henry Clay Trumbull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-clay-trumbull/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Listening to divine guidance is the first step toward understanding our deeper responsibilities and avoiding confusion. **In simple terms:** Hear God first to know your true duties. Key Takeaway Seek spiritual listening before acting. Themes faith duty spiritual listening clarity purpose obedience Mood contemplative inspirational Type religious philosophical When to use this quote - Personal decision‑making - ethical dilemmas - spiritual practice - leadership Key Concepts Divine guidance moral responsibility inner listening Questions to Reflect On - Do you listen for inner guidance? - How do you discern true purpose? A Different Perspective Not everyone believes in a divine voice, limiting applicability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Confusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confusion/) [Duty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/duty/) [Focus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focus/) [Responsibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/responsibility/) [Worry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worry/) ## Related quotes > [In a free country it is the duty of writers to pay no attention to duty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-b-white/in-a-free-country-it-is-the-duty-of-writers-to-pay-no-attention-to/) [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) > [Your first duty is to be yourself. You can't always get what you want, but if you try you just might get what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernajoy-vaal/your-first-duty-is-to-be-yourself-you-can-t-always-get-what-you-want/) [Bernajoy Vaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernajoy-vaal/) > [“When duty, a cause, etc., is the fixed point, the latter force is paramount, and only accident or a series of accidents can balance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bram-stoker/when-duty-a-cause-etc-is-the-fixed-point-the-latter-force-is/) [Bram Stoker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bram-stoker/) > [ “\[...\]what we are talking about are negative obligations--the duty not to cause harm.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-gibney/what-we-are-talking-about-are-negative-obligations-the-duty-not-to/) Mark Gibney > [A perfect man would never act from a sense of duty; he’d always want the right thing more than the wrong one. Duty is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/a-perfect-man-would-never-act-from-a-sense-of-duty-he-d-always-want/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [Politics is the practical exercise of the art of self-government, and somebody must attend to it if we are to have self-government; somebody must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elihu-root/politics-is-the-practical-exercise-of-the-art-of-self-government-and/) [Elihu Root](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elihu-root/) > [Once we know the plot and its surprises, we can appreciate a book's artistry without the usual confusion and sap flow of emotion, content…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-dirda/once-we-know-the-plot-and-its-surprises-we-can-appreciate-a-book-s/) [Michael Dirda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-dirda/) > [If a man is unable to find the way to Jesus, he ought to be led. 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Worldwide market leaders gain when there is confusion in the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subhash-chandra/i-believe-confusion-is-good-worldwide-market-leaders-gain-when-there/) [Subhash Chandra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subhash-chandra/) > [The fog of illusion, the fog of confusion is hanging all over the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-morrison/the-fog-of-illusion-the-fog-of-confusion-is-hanging-all-over-the-world/) [Van Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-morrison/) ## More by Henry Clay Trumbull > [“Character gains through its expression, and loses through its repression. Love grows through its expression. Sympathy grows through its expression. Knowledge grows through its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-clay-trumbull/character-gains-through-its-expression-and-loses-through-its/) [Henry Clay Trumbull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-clay-trumbull/) > [It takes practice to use one's eyes, even when God has opened them. 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There is no human tenderness like a mother's tenderness…In all ages everywhere, the true children…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-clay-trumbull/there-is-no-human-love-like-a-mother-s-love-there-is-no-human/) [Henry Clay Trumbull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-clay-trumbull/) > [There are ever two ways of striving to fill one's place in the world: one is by seeking to prove one's self useful; the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-clay-trumbull/there-are-ever-two-ways-of-striving-to-fill-one-s-place-in-the-world/) [Henry Clay Trumbull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-clay-trumbull/) > [All that any of us has to do in this world is his simple duty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-clay-trumbull/all-that-any-of-us-has-to-do-in-this-world-is-his-simple-duty/) [Henry Clay Trumbull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-clay-trumbull/) [Explore all 25 Henry Clay Trumbull quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-clay-trumbull/) ## More Attention quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. 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They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. 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