Touching heaven through our work

WE don’t have to die first before we can already have a

feel of heaven, if not practically touch it. By doing our ordinary

daily work, whether big or small, in public or hidden at home, and

doing it with real love for God and for others, we can already achieve

this ideal that is proper to us.

  

            For this to take place, we of course have to work with

working faith and piety, since without them, we will not be aware that

working with love for God and others can already connect us with our

final home in heaven. It’s love that is fueled by faith and piety that

does the trick, so to speak.

   

            Working with love for God and others lends sacredness to

whatever task we are doing, no matter how mundane it is. And that is

because as image and likeness of God, as God’s children whose creation

is still a work in progress in our earthly life, any kind of work, as

long as it is honest and is part of our responsibility, enters into

the dynamics of God’s providence over us, his continuing work of our

very own creation.

  

            That ordinary daily work we have, which we often take for

granted, is where we usually encounter God. It is where we correspond

to God’s continuing creation of us, until we conform to his radical

will for us to make us his image and likeness and children of his.

  

            This means that our work is not simply ours, but is rather

a work with God. In fact, it is first of all the work of God, before

it is also our work. It’s important that we be keenly aware of this

truth so that we can consciously and freely work in sync as much as

possible with God’s will and ways.

  

            We need to spend time to make this truth sink into our

consciousness and become an abiding guide in our daily life. If our

work does not make us feel at least the presence of God, let alone,

get to know his will and ways, then we are not working the way we

should work.

  

            In a sense, our work becomes prayer, even if it involves

dirt and the so-called “blood, sweat and tears.” Our work is where we

engage ourselves with God and enter into the dynamics of love that

characterizes our relationship with God and with others.

              Indeed, our work can somehow be considered as sacred,

because in spite of its worldly character, it is still a work with God

and a work of God. This is a truth that we have to appreciate some

more and act accordingly.

  

            We should disabuse ourselves from the thought that to be

sacred would involve us only in activities inside churches or that

things should be done in silence and in great solemnity. Sacredness

can be had also in the middle of the world, in the hustle and bustle

of mundane concerns and businesses. The only crucial thing to remember

is that irrespective of where we are, we should always be with God and

do things with him.

   

            We should train ourselves to feel very much at home with

God in heaven even while working here on earth. Truth is God is

actually leading us to him and is bringing heaven also to us through

our earthly activities.

  

            We need to feel this truth of our faith, overcoming

whatever awkwardness we may feel at the beginning. We have to process

this very important task, teaching our mind and our heart, our senses

and even our instincts to conform to this very sublime reality that we

often take for granted.