We Are the Vessel
Les Brown, a globally respected life coach and orator, often shares a personal story about the consequences of casting aside your own dreams. He once had an acquaintance named Marion, a gifted writer with a PhD in communications. Her job was not spiritually enriching and she longed to express her talents. Brown made the decision to collaborate with her and make her an addition to his seminar which focused on speaking with power. Marion was excited about it, however, her husband did not see the greatness she possessed and became thorn in her confidence. Despite this barrier, Brown convinced her to join him in the seminar, which would be the catalyst of her new career.
Three days later, Brown received a phone call from Marion’s husband. He said, “Tell Les Brown that Marion is dead.”
On his flight to her funeral, Les Brown had a few of Marion’s papers which had accidently intermixed with his. His eyes scanned the literary treasures that were now eternal drafts. There were unfinished poems, the skeleton of a play, which would remain forever ghosts on a page. Only she could fill the place that no one else could fill. Nobody else could complete these writings, for Marion was the vessel through which they came.
We must not listen to the carnal mind for often it does not allow our genius to come into fruition. We “waste our sweetness on the desert air” when we limit the divine designs of our own lives. One of the greatest forms of worship is to blossom the talents that are burrowed within us. We manifested as the expression of a Divine Mind and each of us has a gift that only we can do in our own way, a way that nobody else can do. Our talents leave a spiritual mark in the universe when we allow them to speak through us. Suppressing these abilities withholds beauty, healing and power.
Matthew 5:15 states, “Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel (basket), but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.” What transformative works could Marion have performed if she had done what she was sent here to do? What radiance could have sent its rays to the souls of the masses if she had not placed a basket over it? We admire Jesus the Christ for utilizing all of his gifts. We proclaim the George Washington Carvers, the Da Vincis, the Hatshepsuts of the world as geniuses and place them on pedestals. We praise all of them for being fully themselves. We too are equal in brilliance, yet millions of people shame themselves and silence our divinity.
Marianne Williamson writes in her book A Return to Love:
“Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so other people will not feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.”
When we play on a miniscule level, we are insulting the Divine Spirit. If God acts large and we are one with God and expressions of Him/Her, then we too can play for higher stakes. Other people may attempt to become barriers in our path because they are fearful of our vibrancy. Some act out of anger, envy or because they are not willing to take the necessary steps to build up their own lives. Marion’s husband, for example, could have given verbal encouragement, Instead, he tried to hinder her. However, we need to never be afraid, for no human being or entity can delete or redirect the plans that God has planned for us. We must see ourselves through God’s eyes and accept the gifts that we already possess. Everything that we need has been inlaid in our souls. “Fear not, little flock; for it is your father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32)
Be still and know that you are not a mere happening in this realm, but a channel through which Divine Power charges through. Do not leave your life full of the drafts of what could have been. We are children of the Most High and it is our duty to live boldly and truthfully. If we do not live our own lives, who will live it for us?