I have been asked, “So how do you manage?” more times than I care for. In the beginning, I would try to share but more often than not, I would see a glazed look coming over their faces if I shared too many details or mentioned relying on God or Jesus in the sentence.
The glazed look
It then dawned upon me that while many are curious about how we live our lives and “manage” without any outside help, most are really not interested in the details. I think they just want to know the magic spell I chant to get things done so that they too can get it all done. You know, the chant we utter that gets us from here to there in the fastest possible way and with the least possible exertion?
No? There is no such thing?!?! Just kidding!
But I see this happening across the board in my interactions with friends and strangers (whether in real life or online) when they ask either myself or others ahead in the path they want to go on.
Homeschooling
Take for example for homeschooling. The moment we hear of a family who has churned out a successful homeschooler (whatever that means), we want to meet them and hit them with ALL. THE. QUESTIONS.
- What curriculum did they use?
- What did they do to get the child into XYZ university?
- Did they engage a tutor?
- What about extra-curricula activities?
- And on and on and on…
Home Management
On the home management, we want to know the latest gadget or the best hack is to keep our house tidy and our family well-fed with the least amount of work. And so, we all have fallen prey to buying the latest gadgets (Gadgets: Boon or Bane?) to make our lives easier, forgetting that we still have to manage the gadget – well, at this point at least.
Our Spiritual Walk
Even in our spiritual walk, we want to know the latest hack that allows us to know God’s will for us. And then another hack to enable us to walk in faithfulness to the assignments He has tasked us to do.
Mention fasting and praying and our faces fall. Instead, we prefer buying books and devotionals, attending conferences and seminars or run after prophets to hear from God and know His will for us.
It’s Pure Hard Work
Don’t get me wrong. And don’t misunderstand where I am coming from.
All these are good in themselves. Talking to veterans in homeschooling, taking advice from those who have gone ahead of us, investing in gadgets, attending conferences, and buying devotionals or books to improve our physical and spiritual lives are good things to do as we research and seek godly advice.
But there comes a time when we actually have to DO THE WORK. Because there is no magical shortcut. And for a lot of things, you just have to put in the hours. It is really pure hard work.
The people ahead of us? The people who make it look easy? They have worked hard to get to where they are.
No Shortcuts
There is no magic spell.
You either have to do it yourself or pay someone to do it. And to get the funds to pay someone, you need to do some work to get the funds.
As for spiritual issues, sorry, there are no shortcuts either. A prophet may declare something over you. But you still need to check it out. And just because he/she declares it over you does not mean you do not have to do anything about it.
Noooo! Just give me the magic spell!
But I guess no one really wants to hear that. And that is probably why we keep buying gadgets and attend conferences on homeschooling/home management/take-your-pick.
People are always looking out and hoping that the next speaker will give them that magic spell that will allow them to get from where they are to where they want to be – all in an instant, without breaking into a sweat.
Hard Work is Worth it
But the good news for those who are willing to do the work is this: hard work coupled with prayer does bring forth rewards. Now whether it is in the form of reward we want is another story.
For example, if we pray for God’s help to let go of things as we declutter, the clutter will be gone. Our home will be neater and more organised. As for hearing God and knowing His will? He promises in His Word, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah 29:13)
Yes, there is pure hard work to be done. But oh! the rewards are so worth it. Do the work. Don’t give up. Don’t be paralysed with fear at the amount of work to be done. Pray for strength and wisdom on how to handle it and then just DO it!
May this bless you and encourage you.
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Do the Work
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1 Comment on It’s Pure Hard Work
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thanks for this honest and direct post – it’s a timely reminder. so true that we’re all about short cuts and magic formulas…that’s what it was like studying for exams too!