Issue 157 - December 29, 2019 | | In 2016 a Satsang held in the divine presence in California a devotee seeks guidance on work-life balance and also continue to do Seva.
Here is what Swami said:
Understand the ultimate purpose of either your work or Seva. Achieving that purpose should be your goal: the purpose of all the work that you do, whether in the home as a wife, in your office as a professional, or in a center where you perform Seva, should take you towards God and make you a purer person. If that is being achieved in some way or another, then it doesn't matter which direction you take. You must consider even your office work as Seva. Remember for whose sake you are doing it; that you are not doing it for your own sake, you are doing it for God's sake so that, when you offer it to God, God will give you a 'salary'.
With that salary, you can look after yourself – which, in itself, is also a gift from God – and use your body and your mind to help ten others. Only when you are safe, happy and healthy, can you help ten others. Therefore, considering office work also as Seva is very important. Making distinctions between 'God's work' and 'my work' and between 'worldly' and 'spiritual' causes all the confusion. With everything that you do, first offer it to God saying, "This is Swami's work. Through this, I am able to look after myself and my family and, because of this, I am able to put my energy, intelligence and all my skills into helping ten others." This understanding should come first. Then, you will not find any kind of conflict or confusion. You will do your best, whatever you need to do in the office, when you are there; you will do your best at home; you will do your best when you are in a center, or in a group or a congregation, whatever needs to be done – because everything you are doing is an offering to God. You would certainly want to offer your best to God, nothing less. With that thought constantly in mind, doing everything for God becomes a constant way of life and you will not experience conflict at all. | | 2019 Region 4 Service Summary | | Argentine Seva Activities | | 2019 was an excellent year for Seva activities for the youth in Argentina. The main project was feeding the homeless, so six different groups distributed food to the needy in their own cities. As a result, the youth from the Buenos Aires City, Escobar, La Plata, Morón, Iguazú and Salta served 25,772 people. In addition to this, the youth of Córdoba visited elders in a Nursing Home once a month to spend some good time with them and to give them joy. | | Update on Brazilian Youth Seva Activities | | Since Swami's last visit to Brazil, under His command, the youth have started Seva activities involving Narayana Seva mainly. Since 2018, three new States, apart from Rio de Janeiro that has been doing Narayana Seva since Swami's first visit, came up and also began serving food to the needy. They are Sao Paulo, Brasília and Pernambuco with a small participation from two more States. These are now part of Swami's mission to feed and help the poor! | | Canadian Service Update - 2019 | | The youth of Canada offer their most prayerful pranams at the divine lotus feet of their beloved Swami and express their heartfelt gratitude to Him for all the Seva opportunities He has provided for them! The youths from Alberta and the Greater Toronto Area have been participating in weekly Seva activities which have involved visiting seniors with advanced dementia, at Providence Healthcare and helping them have their meals and spending time with them. After Swami's divine visit to Toronto, the youth joined together and formed the Canadian Sai Youth Group. | | 1. Revision and style correction of the Spanish translation of the Handbook for Teachers and the workbook for parents by Suwanti and Ron Farmer. Edition is now beginning.
2. In Chihuahua city, Mexico the feeding of the poor and downtrodden continues on a weekly basis. In the year 2019, 7,279 meals were served to children and adults. A complete three-course meal plus dessert is served.
3. In Capital of Mexico, meals are distributed on a weekly basis among people waiting for their families outside a hospital. Until today, they have served around 5500 meals.
4. The group has been collaborating with the Spanish translation of several modules of the Leadership Program of the Hope Collaborative Leadership Program by Hope Collaborative. They are committed to translate the complete program.
5. Designed Teacher's Manuals of the five Human Values for adolescents. These manuals are part of the Values Program of the Institute of Human Values of Latin America. | | Guided by HIS Mission to feed the hungry, the USA Young Adults (YA), for the first time, joined hands with other non-profit organisations in the community, such as Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) and 4Others and took up a task to pack meals (uncooked rice, soy, veggies and vitamins) that was shipped to reach hundreds of hungry children around the globe via FMSC's network of distributors! | | | | | | | | | |
