Improving your work day

This week there were some difficult tasks at work.  You know the kind I mean – when things aren’t going smoothly; everything is just more complicated.

What I’m finding helpful this week is to pray about my work, my role and the atmosphere at work, the office, first thing each morning – striving to get a clear mental image of harmony.  I’ve learned through my experience in prayer that when we attain this image mentally, all frustration, fear of circumstances, difficulty fade away.

What helps me attain this mental image of harmony is to bless everyone I work with.  This is a practice I learned from the book The Gentle Art of Blessing by Pierre Pradervand.  It isn’t a type of prayer I had considered before, but it so simple and powerful.  This week it went like this: “Bless [name] in health, harmony and happiness; bless [name] in all they want and desire”, etc.  This helps me to raise my thought above seeing just ‘people I work with’ to see one another’s whole and perfect nature – each spiritual identity as an idea of divine Mind (God).  For me, this included recognizing each one has a family, hopes and dreams, and the right to health and spiritual freedom.   This gave me such a sense of awe, appreciation and love for everyone.

Well, yesterday, I was beaming at how perfectly tasks were going; many things were wonderfully accomplished; and there were so many lovely and helpful people.  Everything that needed to get done was resolved faster than I thought it would be.

In the evening, before going to bed, I made sure to mentally acknowledge each individual in gratitude who had been so helpful – who had expressed  lovely qualities and talents from God.

I’m so grateful!  I now know what a difference prayer can make in our work lives.  This simple ‘art of blessing’ and giving thanks for everyone’s skills and talents is a great practice to keep seeing God’s goodness in our day.

Time management – improve moments!

The past couple weeks I’ve been thinking about time management.  I know there are numerous human methods and theories about this; however, I went for some spiritual ideas, that I know to be true and helpful, when I was confronted with this dilemma.

There was a day, recently, when I wondered how I could accomplish all the things that needed to get done. I listened in prayer for divine guidance.  Immediately, an article entitled Improve Your Time by Mary Baker Eddy came to thought.  The author, who discovered the system of healing, Christian Science, wrote:

“All successful individuals have become such by hard work; by improving moments before they pass into hours…They spend no time in sheer idleness, in talking when they have nothing to say, in building aircastles or floating off on the wings of sense…

Success in life depends upon persistent effort, upon the improvement of moments more than upon any other one thing. A great amount of time is consumed in talking nothing, doing nothing, and indecision as to what one should do. If one would be successful in the future, let him make the most of the present.”

I love this idea: that success is dependent on moments – on being consciously aware and focused every moment.

Instead of letting my long to-do list rehearse in my mind, I just focused on improving each moment.  This resulted in my being fully engaged in each activity I was doing and able to stay on task.  I finished the day with time leftover and could work on some other projects I like doing.

Using “improve your moments” as my mantra throughout my day has made me more productive, less lethargic and given me a greater sense of fulfillment and purpose.

I am so grateful for this simple practice – improving moments before they turn into hours – which makes such a difference in our lives and shapes our success.

 

Practical Spirituality Heals

 

Want to learn more about how spirituality is practical in seeing and understanding the reality of things – the reality that includes health, goodness, and abundance for all?

 

Check out this video lecture given in February in the Chicago-area at the Evanston Public Library.  The lecturer is Christian Science practitioner and teacher Ginny Luedeman, CSB from Salem, Oregon .

 

This lecture will be available at the link below through June 24th, 2011.  Enjoy learning about spirituality that heals.

 

http://www.secondchurchevanston.com/lectures.html