What’s on your desk?

My view

We all have hard jobs, and none of us can do them alone.

I have constant reminders on my desk that not only can I not do my job alone, there is no reason for me to think I should do it alone.  These images of the Blessed Mother with the infant Jesus, the Holy Family, and St. Michael the Archangel vanquishing the evil one remind me that I am not alone, and that my prayers are carried to the Lord whenever I ask for that assistance.

Some of my Protestant brothers and sisters hold the mistaken notion that when we have images of Mary, Joseph, the Angels and Saints, that we are committing idolatry because (they believe) we are praying to the images.  That is simply not the case, however, as these images are just reminders of the fact that they are able to help us in our prayers as they intercede with God on our behalf.

Another wonderful aspect of having these images in my office is the sheer artistic beauty of the pieces themselves.  I was given each of these as a gift, and I remember distinctly opening up the package that contained this framed image of Mary and Jesus and weeping. It was such a beautiful, wondrous work of art, making me think of how much Mary loved her son, and how much Jesus and Mary both love me.

I have many images of Mary and Jesus in my office, as well as Angels and Saints, giving me comfort and joy whenever I see them.  Knowing that they see me as I work, working for the glory of God in all I do, makes me content in my labors.

Hard jobs don’t have to be lonely jobs.  We may have been given great responsibilities, but we were never given them with the warning that we were on our own.