Dessauer

"Man is a creature who depends entirely on revelation. In all his intellectual endeavor, he should always listen, always be intent to hear and see. He should not strive to superimpose the structures of his own mind, his systems of thought upon reality. ... At the beginning of all spiritual endeavor stands humility, and he who loses it can achieve no other heights than the heights of disillusionment."
(Dr. Friedrich Dessauer, atomic physicist)

I like to collect quotes that capture my attention. They might catch my attention because I identify with the speaker or because they proclaim truth in a way that others haven’t or because they speak into my heart and sometimes just because I am unable to digest or resolve the written words and I want to work them out. Some years ago I found this quote from Dr. Dessauer. It caught my attention then as truth and it still speaks to me now, despite that I am still deciphering in full what he is conveying and I seem to pull out something different each time I read it. More recently the word humility jumped off the page as this is an area I am working in my life.

From time to time I pick up Humility: The Journey Toward Holiness by Andrew Murray and continue to battle against my flesh. In the forward, Donna Portow writes, “The truly humble person walks with absolute confidence, knowing that we are simply empty vessels through whom God wants to accomplish his work.” She further discusses that being an empty vessel embraces that it is not about us at all, it’s about God. Murray states, “ . . . meekness and lowliness of heart are the chief marks by which they who follow the Lamb of God are to be known.” Yes, I have come to grips that I am a prideful woman full of self and letting go of self is no easy task. Walking in humility is a lifestyle and one not often modeled.