DOING IT FROM THE HEART

I do not know about how the rest of you may feel but there are days when having to persevere on a project or work close to my heart can seem just too much. I had been helping some friends coordinate two mission activities which are about to take place in Singapore and Hong Kong soon. After nearly 10 months of coordination, you would think I would be very happy isn’t it? Surprisingly, the answer was not yet until a short while ago.

Often after a long time of planning and coordination, when passion and enthusiasm was sky high at the start of the project, I run smack into a wall that has appeared from nowhere! Usually, this happens just at the final stages of achieving the goal. I feel tired, I wonder if I have it in me to do it all properly; I even wonder at times if I took on more than I can handle. Well, with all these swirling emotions, it is no wonder joy seems like an elusive butterfly.

That is when I remember the words of advice I often get from the priest I work for – “Do it slowly, little by little. Don’t worry, pray and God will guide you.” Often it would be preceded by, “Go and sleep now, Susan.”  I used to get very exasperated when I was told this initially (regardless of what time it was!) – it seemed absurd when the going was tough! How am I expected to go and sleep peacefully with obstacles that seemed difficult to overcome? Anyway, for some reason, I would obey and just do so and it always worked out beautifully.

 

I have realized that being aware of my own spiritual needs is very important. When there is much more to do, there is also much more need to pray more to be spiritually strengthened. It is not all about our own mental or physical strength. Nowhere in the bible does it say that God resides in my brain. In fact, it is stated God lives in our heart and the need to open our hearts wide. The bible verse, “For your heart will be always be where your riches are” (Luke 12:34) says it all.

To do anything in the right way that brings quiet joy and fulfillment to the very depths of our being, we must do things from our heart. That is what we see in truly inspiring people like Mother Teresa, Mahathma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. They faced incredible odds; they faced great hardship and obstacles; yet there are two things they believed in – to do everything in love and to pray.

Well, I had been feeling tired and somewhat deflated/depressed this past week until about 90 minutes ago - when I prayed and meditated quietly why I believed so strongly in these 2 upcoming mission activities. I then stretched out across 2 chairs in my office and took a short nap. Well, I got up with the urge to write a new posting for my blog. Yes! Not to do the pending work I still have but to write – an activity that brings me joy.

I just needed to take some time out to listen to my heart. And that is what I would like to share with all of you. In the rush and busyness of everyday life, we forget to listen to the gentle but persistent promptings of our heart. We need to do so – for then joy springs forth in all we do and we know, “What is impossible for man is possible for God.” (Luke 18:27)  

And you know what, I am finally excited and looking forward to be a part of two blessed events…

"Throw back the shoulders, let the heart sing, let the eyes flash, let the mind be lifted up,  look upward and say to yourself ... nothing is impossible!”

Norman Vincent Peale  (1898-1993);Preacher, Author