--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I had failed to make a gift of myself to…" description: "\"I had failed to make a gift of myself to God.\" — Karen Armstrong" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b36/karen-armstrong-1053_failure_i-had-failed-to-make-a-gift-of-myself-to_1778308.jpg" --- # I had failed to make a gift of myself to God. ![“I had failed to make a gift of myself to God.” quote by Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b36/karen-armstrong-1053_failure_i-had-failed-to-make-a-gift-of-myself-to_1778308.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b36/karen-armstrong-1053_failure_i-had-failed-to-make-a-gift-of-myself-to_1778308.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b36/karen-armstrong-1053_failure_i-had-failed-to-make-a-gift-of-myself-to_1778308.jpg) > “I had failed to make a gift of myself to God.” [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. I failed to offer my true self as a gift to the divine, missing spiritual fulfillment. **In simple terms:** Missed offering self to God. Key Takeaway Offer authentic self spiritually. Themes spirituality self-offering humility Mood contemplative hopeful Type spiritual inspirational When to use this quote - prayer - meditation - volunteer work - creative expression Key Concepts Mysticism personal growth Questions to Reflect On - What blocks your spiritual gifts? - How can you reconnect with the divine? A Different Perspective Self-doubt can hinder genuine offering. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Gift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gift/) ## Related quotes > [What you are is God's gift to you; what you make of it is your gift to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-dalla-villa/what-you-are-is-god-s-gift-to-you-what-you-make-of-it-is-your-gift-to/) Anthony Dalla Villa > [What you are is God's gift to you. What you make of yourself is your gift to God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-you-are-is-god-s-gift-to-you-what-you-make-of-yourself-is-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I work hard to make a gift to the audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvie-guillem/i-work-hard-to-make-a-gift-to-the-audience/) [Sylvie Guillem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvie-guillem/) > [If you make one gift this year, make it the gift of knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/if-you-make-one-gift-this-year-make-it-the-gift-of-knowledge/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [We do what only lovers can: make a gift out of necessity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/we-do-what-only-lovers-can-make-a-gift-out-of-necessity/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [Art is a gift and if nobody hears it, that doesn't make it any less of a gift.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cree-summer/art-is-a-gift-and-if-nobody-hears-it-that-doesn-t-make-it-any-less-of/) [Cree Summer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cree-summer/) > [“I will not make a gift of myself, I must be won”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/i-will-not-make-a-gift-of-myself-i-must-be-won/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [I am now going to make you a gift that will stay with you the rest of your life. For the rest of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-hopper/i-am-now-going-to-make-you-a-gift-that-will-stay-with-you-the-rest-of/) [Grace Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-hopper/) > [“You used to make a gift to me of words. Now you just use them against me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-st-johnson-mike-barker/you-used-to-make-a-gift-to-me-of-words-now-you-just-use-them-against/) Joshua St Johnson Mike Barker > [“Every gift from God is good indeed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-stimpson/every-gift-from-god-is-good-indeed/) [Michelle Stimpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-stimpson/) > [This is a gift that God has given me. I'm not smart enough to write for everybody, but it's the love in these books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-karon/this-is-a-gift-that-god-has-given-me-i-m-not-smart-enough-to-write/) [Jan Karon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-karon/) > [I have the gift of laughter. I can make people laugh at will. In good times and in bad. And that I don't question.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-hackett/i-have-the-gift-of-laughter-i-can-make-people-laugh-at-will-in-good/) [Buddy Hackett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-hackett/) > [I look upon life as a gift from God. I did nothing to earn it. Now that the time is coming to give it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-cary/i-look-upon-life-as-a-gift-from-god-i-did-nothing-to-earn-it-now-that/) [Joyce Cary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-cary/) > [“The more people that meet each other, the better it is for all of them. ("The Gift Of God").”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fletcher-pratt/the-more-people-that-meet-each-other-the-better-it-is-for-all-of-them/) [Fletcher Pratt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fletcher-pratt/) > [By the gift of God, WWE fell into my lap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-brooke/by-the-gift-of-god-wwe-fell-into-my-lap/) [Dana Brooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-brooke/) ## More by Karen Armstrong > [If it is written and read with serious attention, a novel, like a myth or any great work of art, can become an initiation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/if-it-is-written-and-read-with-serious-attention-a-novel-like-a-myth/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [A gentleman is not born but crafted. He had to work on himself in the same way as a sculptor shaped a rough stone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/a-gentleman-is-not-born-but-crafted-he-had-to-work-on-himself-in-the/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [I was a lousy nun. I couldn't do it. I couldn't find God. It wasn't suitable for me. It is suitable for very few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/i-was-a-lousy-nun-i-couldn-t-do-it-i-couldn-t-find-god-it-wasn-t/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [I have become convinced, through my studies, that the only way to achieve a safe, just and viable world is to live by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/i-have-become-convinced-through-my-studies-that-the-only-way-to/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [In the past some of the most influential Jewish, Christian and Muslim theologians, such as Maimonides, Aquinas and Ibn Sina, made it clear that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/in-the-past-some-of-the-most-influential-jewish-christian-and-muslim/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [The great task of our time is to build a global society, where people can live together in peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/the-great-task-of-our-time-is-to-build-a-global-society-where-people/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [We want to create, never mind the leaders or the bishops or chief rabbis or imams, or Popes. We want to create a grassroots…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/we-want-to-create-never-mind-the-leaders-or-the-bishops-or-chief/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [If we don't manage to implement the Golden Rule globally, so that we treat all peoples, wherever and whoever they may be, as though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/if-we-don-t-manage-to-implement-the-golden-rule-globally-so-that-we/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [After I left the convent, for 15 years I was worn out with religion, I wanted nothing whatever to do with it. I felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/after-i-left-the-convent-for-15-years-i-was-worn-out-with-religion-i/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [“As we have seen, so many of the things we once took for granted have proved unreliable that we may have to “forget” old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/as-we-have-seen-so-many-of-the-things-we-once-took-for-granted-have/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [Yet a personal God can become a grave liability. He can be a mere idol carved in our own image, a projection of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/yet-a-personal-god-can-become-a-grave-liability-he-can-be-a-mere-idol/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [“I discovered that I felt at home and alive in the silence, which compelled me to enter my interior world and around there. Without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/i-discovered-that-i-felt-at-home-and-alive-in-the-silence-which/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [Each of the world religions has its own particular genius, its own special insight into the nature and requirements of compassion, and has something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/each-of-the-world-religions-has-its-own-particular-genius-its-own/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [“all rightly guided religion that submitted wholly to God, refused to worship man-made deities and preached that justice and equality came from the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/all-rightly-guided-religion-that-submitted-wholly-to-god-refused-to/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [“advocates of evolutionary theory since Thomas H. Huxley (1825–95) have found altruism problematic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/advocates-of-evolutionary-theory-since-thomas-h-huxley-1825-95-have/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) [Explore all 296 Karen Armstrong quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) ## More Failed quotes > [ I failed, I think, seven \[or\] eight times before I finally got my first \[championship\]. It was just, you know, just about me growing… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/i-failed-i-think-seven-or-eight-times-before-i-finally-got-my-first/) [Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/) > [I recognize I am essentially a failed human being in the sense that I can't possibly live up to the expectations of an Almighty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-recognize-i-am-essentially-a-failed-human-being-in-the-sense-that-i/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [The very first company I started failed with a great bang. The second one failed a little bit less, but still failed. The third…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-levchin/the-very-first-company-i-started-failed-with-a-great-bang-the-second/) [Max Levchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-levchin/) > [I wanted to be a huge star and I have failed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-otway/i-wanted-to-be-a-huge-star-and-i-have-failed/) [John Otway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-otway/) > [When the enemy is driven back, we have failed, and when he is cut off, encircled and dispersed, we have succeeded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-suvorov/when-the-enemy-is-driven-back-we-have-failed-and-when-he-is-cut-off/) [Alexander Suvorov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-suvorov/) > [“Humility is what you strive for when you've failed at everything else.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephan-pastis/humility-is-what-you-strive-for-when-you-ve-failed-at-everything-else/) [Stephan Pastis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephan-pastis/) > [Paradox: how do we know what we have failed to see because we have no language to express it, thus we cannot know that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/paradox-how-do-we-know-what-we-have-failed-to-see-because-we-have-no/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [I almost failed out of high school. I nearly gave in to the deep anger and resentment harbored by everyone around me... Whatever talents…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-vance-2/i-almost-failed-out-of-high-school-i-nearly-gave-in-to-the-deep-anger/) [J. D. Vance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-vance-2/) > [Actually, I failed drama in high school because of nerves. I wasn't able to memorize the words. I had complete stage fright.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/constance-marie/actually-i-failed-drama-in-high-school-because-of-nerves-i-wasn-t/) [Constance Marie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/constance-marie/) > [“WASHINGTON—Citigroup Inc. failed to get Federal Reserve”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/washington-citigroup-inc-failed-to-get-federal-reserve/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I tried to go to college; I just picked a trade, did a plumbing test - and failed. And then I thought, 'I may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-campbell/i-tried-to-go-to-college-i-just-picked-a-trade-did-a-plumbing-test/) [Luke Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-campbell/) > [When I started out I was a failed actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/when-i-started-out-i-was-a-failed-actor/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [“Somehow it had come to pass that this man was her whole world, and she had failed to take his measure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/somehow-it-had-come-to-pass-that-this-man-was-her-whole-world-and-she/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [Before I was a champion, I failed, and I was afraid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-long/before-i-was-a-champion-i-failed-and-i-was-afraid/) [Chris Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-long/) > [Alternative services would mean that there would be services available to compete with Google, Facebook, Amazon, Dropbox, Skype, etc., and they would be run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikko-hypponen/alternative-services-would-mean-that-there-would-be-services/) [Mikko Hypponen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikko-hypponen/) Browse all 907 Failed quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I had failed to make a gift of myself to God.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Karen Armstrong" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/i-had-failed-to-make-a-gift-of-myself-to-god/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Failed" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/i-had-failed-to-make-a-gift-of-myself-to-god/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b36/karen-armstrong-1053_failure_i-had-failed-to-make-a-gift-of-myself-to_1778308.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b36/karen-armstrong-1053_failure_i-had-failed-to-make-a-gift-of-myself-to_1778308.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b36/karen-armstrong-1053_failure_i-had-failed-to-make-a-gift-of-myself-to_1778308.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I had failed to make a gift of myself to God.” — Karen Armstrong", "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": "Karen Armstrong", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I had failed to make a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/i-had-failed-to-make-a-gift-of-myself-to-god/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/i-had-failed-to-make-a-gift-of-myself-to-god/#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 } } ] } ```