--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ordinarily rivers run small at the…" description: "\"Ordinarily rivers run small at the beginning, grow broader and broader as they proceed, and become widest and deepest at the point, where they enter th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e3/henry-ward-beecher-175_broads_ordinarily-rivers-run-small-at-the-begin_1368061.png" --- # Ordinarily rivers run small at the beginning, grow broader… ![“Ordinarily rivers run small at the beginning, grow broader and broader as they proceed, and become widest and deepest at the point, where they enter the sea. It is such rivers that the Christian's life is like. But the life of the mere worldly man is like those rivers in Southern Africa, which…” quote by Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e3/henry-ward-beecher-175_broads_ordinarily-rivers-run-small-at-the-begin_1368061.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e3/henry-ward-beecher-175_broads_ordinarily-rivers-run-small-at-the-begin_1368061.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e3/henry-ward-beecher-175_broads_ordinarily-rivers-run-small-at-the-begin_1368061.png) > “Ordinarily rivers run small at the beginning, grow broader and broader as they proceed, and become widest and deepest at the point, where they enter the sea. It is such rivers that the Christian's life is like. But the life of the mere worldly man is like those rivers in Southern Africa, which, proceeding from mountain freshets, are broad and deep at the beginning, and grow narrower and more shallow as they advance. They waster themselves by soaking into the sands, and at last they die out entirely. The farther they run the less there is of them.” [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote contrasts two life paths: one that expands and deepens like a river reaching the sea, representing spiritual growth; the other shrinks and fades, symbolizing worldly pursuits that lose substance over time. **In simple terms:** Spiritual life deepens, worldly life shrinks. Key Takeaway Cultivate lasting purpose over fleeting gain. Themes spiritual growth purpose transformation Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - personal development - faith practice - career planning - environmental stewardship Key Concepts Christianity metaphor life cycles Questions to Reflect On - What habits deepen your purpose? - How can you avoid the “drying out” of your ambitions? A Different Perspective Worldly success can be hollow without deeper meaning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Broads](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/broads/) [Christian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christian/) [Christian life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christian-life/) [Christianity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christianity/) [Deep Beginning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deep-beginning-4703154/) [Dies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dies/) [Grows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grows/) [Lasts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lasts/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-is/) [Life is like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-is-like/) [Like Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-rivers-406482/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mere/) [Mountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mountain/) [Narrower Shallow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/narrower-shallow-4703153/) [Ordinarily Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ordinarily-rivers-4703152/) [Proceeding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/proceeding/) [Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rivers/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Sand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sand/) [Sea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sea/) [Shallow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shallow/) [Soaking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soaking/) [Southern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/southern/) [Southern africa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/southern-africa/) [Worldly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worldly/) ## Related quotes > [It was the silent time before dawn, along the shores of what had been one of the most beautiful lakes in southern Africa.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-michener/it-was-the-silent-time-before-dawn-along-the-shores-of-what-had-been/) [James A. 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Paul Kruger, president of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-e-boone/it-is-often-argued-that-the-people-who-will-be-affected-by-a-major/) [Louis E. Boone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-e-boone/) > [Reality shows that, contrary to other countries in southern Africa, we have no basis for a classical guerilla struggle. We have never had a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-slovo/reality-shows-that-contrary-to-other-countries-in-southern-africa-we/) [Joe Slovo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-slovo/) > [Our aim is to gain control of the two great treasure houses on which the West depends: The energy treasure house of the Persian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonid-brezhnev/our-aim-is-to-gain-control-of-the-two-great-treasure-houses-on-which/) [Leonid Brezhnev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonid-brezhnev/) > [In New York I heard A Piece of Ground, written by a white South African, Jeremy Taylor. I modified it a little and sang…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miriam-makeba/in-new-york-i-heard-a-piece-of-ground-written-by-a-white-south/) [Miriam Makeba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miriam-makeba/) > [“Because it is located so far south, and the coastal plain quickly rises into high land, South Africa is one of the very few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-marshall/because-it-is-located-so-far-south-and-the-coastal-plain-quickly/) [Tim Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-marshall/) > [Laws gain their authority from actual possession and custom: it is perilous to go back to their origins; laws, like our rivers, get greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/laws-gain-their-authority-from-actual-possession-and-custom-it-is/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [At the time I did not know that stories of life are often more like rivers than books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-maclean/at-the-time-i-did-not-know-that-stories-of-life-are-often-more-like/) [Norman Maclean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-maclean/) ## More by Henry Ward Beecher > [Astronomers have built telescopes which can show myriads of stars unseen before; but when a man looks through a tear in his own eye,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/astronomers-have-built-telescopes-which-can-show-myriads-of-stars/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [A lie always needs a truth for a handle to it. 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It is not for want of schoolmasters that we are still ignorant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/the-best-lessons-a-man-ever-learns-are-from-his-mistakes-it-is-not/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [I never knew an early-rising, hard-working, prudent man, careful of his earnings, and strictly honest who complained of bad luck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/i-never-knew-an-early-rising-hard-working-prudent-man-careful-of-his/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [THERE are joys which long to be ours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/there-are-joys-which-long-to-be-ours/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [People may talk about the equality of the sexes! They are not equal. 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Everybody ought to bathe in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/mirth-is-god-s-medicine-everybody-ought-to-bathe-in-it/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [Some of God's noblest sons, I think, will be selected from those that know how to take wealth, with all its temptations, and maintain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/some-of-god-s-noblest-sons-i-think-will-be-selected-from-those-that/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [You have seen a ship out on the bay, swinging with the tide, and seeming as if it would follow it; and yet it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/you-have-seen-a-ship-out-on-the-bay-swinging-with-the-tide-and/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) [Explore all 990 Henry Ward Beecher quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) ## More Broads quotes > [Thoroughly understand what it is to understand, and not only will you understand the broad lines of all there is to be understood but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-lonergan/thoroughly-understand-what-it-is-to-understand-and-not-only-will-you/) [Bernard Lonergan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-lonergan/) > [We'll walk together holding hands, and kiss in broad daylight, and love each other as much as we want to, and no one will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/we-ll-walk-together-holding-hands-and-kiss-in-broad-daylight-and-love/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [There was only the broad square with the scattered dim moons of the street lamps and with the monumental stone arch which receded into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/there-was-only-the-broad-square-with-the-scattered-dim-moons-of-the/) [Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/) > [We must remember that intelligence is not enough. 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It is such rivers that the Christian's life is like. But the life of the mere worldly man is like those rivers in Southern Africa, which, proceeding from mountain freshets, are broad and deep at the beginning, and grow narrower and more shallow as they advance. They waster themselves by soaking into the sands, and at last they die out entirely. 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