Work is Love Made Visible

I have to first state that I did not come up with this thought on my own. I was reading someones blog at http://arlerambabu.blogspot.com/. His post jump off the screen and hugged my heart. I asked him for permission to expound on it.

“You are an atheist. I have never seen you praying. You neither have fear nor respect towards the God”
Distracted and disturbed by the torrent of my wife’s accusations, I turned away from the easel towards her and said “did you say something?”
“Not just something. I said many things. I am asking you sir, why don’t you spare a few minutes every day to thank the God for making you walk on this beautiful planet”.
“Oh, prayer? I have been doing it every day”, I said. Nonchalantly preparing to turn towards my work. But my wife stopped me from turning away from her and said staring straight into my eyes,” A lie.”
“No dear it’s true. I devote at least 12 to 14 hours a day for my prayers” I said.
“12 to 14 hours? Every day? For prayer?”
“ You got it right darling. For me work is worship and prayer all included... For me work is love made visible?
I turned towards my easel and my grumbling wife towards kitchen."

What do you do when you know that you have put your heart and energy into your mission, journey or path, and someone comes along and says It's not good enough or worse they don't even acknowledge you tried.

The reason the quote above touched me, is the fact that I lived it for 7 years. There is nothing more painful than putting your heart, livelihood and being into something and have someone appointed over you letting you know at every turn you will never measure up. Who can cast the first stone?

The people who have been ordained or appointed to put forth the "Thus Saith's" don't walk softly in their power but yet slam their feet down in arrogance. This is not just about religion, whatever your labor of love is, place in the quote. Serving God hits home to me because that was my personal journey at a time in my life.

I opened my home, heart, wallet and energy to the work of God. For the most part it was rewarded the same way the man in the quote was rewarded. "What have you done lately". I remember being in prayer meetings, I would go to the back straight to the corner by the bathroom, I sat down Indian style facing the corner. I would tell God everything, I prayed for others, myself and the world. I would pour out my soul.

People laugh at those who believe in a higher power, but really think about the courage it takes to put effort into trying to contact someone you can't see, touch or hear (audibly). The prayer meetings took place with the lights off. When we were done the lights would come on. On several occasions this would be the beginning of undoing all you and God had accomplished in your prayer corner. Sometimes it happened during praying.

The Pastor yelling at the top of his lungs, how he does not think the congregations prayers are measuring up or worthy to what God would have us to present to him. So in turn this would go from a room filled with people in their own personal space and time with God to a room filled with people trying to compete for God's attention. We forgot that He sees and hears all because we, in an instant allowed a man to shred those facts from our hearts. If you think being a room of people praying out loud is weird, imagine being a room of people praying out loud trying to impress someone. It's not weird, it's plain foolish.

There are people in our lives who sometimes are placed there by us or by our family tree. We give them such a profound amount of energy over our destiny that we know longer listen to our inner voice to tell us whether we are navigating our missions, journeys or paths correctly. We rely solely on their words and body language to direct our destination, set forth just for us by the Creator himself (whoever it may be for you).

Parents, Preachers, Teachers, Family, Friends, etc. sometimes they knowingly and unknowingly get in the way of our destiny, they begin to make our destiny about them or them. Respect and worshipping are two different things. Never worship man or his word because it will fail every time. You can respect his word and his stance but that's his/her personal mantra, don't make it your own. God took out the time and carved one just for you.