The Return to Devotion

The Return to Devotion

For when you realize striving was never the same as love

 

You’ve done most things “right.”
You’ve worked hard, stayed committed, kept your promises – maybe even exceeded expectations.
But something still feels off.

No matter how dedicated you’ve been.

You may be in the wrong room.
I was too – for a long time.

I’m someone who gives it all.

When I commit, I go all in – my time, my effort, my heart.
And still… something didn’t feel right.

 

It wasn’t until I burned out that I realized:
I was giving my all in the wrong space.
That’s when I discovered there are two rooms:
The Striving Room and The Abundance Room.

Guess where I was?

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Where are you: Striving or Abundance?

Striving says:
“I must work harder to be worthy.”
“If I stop, I’ll fall behind.”
“I need to be chosen.” 

Abundance says:
“I am enough now.”
“My presence carries value.”
“What’s aligned will find me.”

Striving looks like:
• Hustle, urgency, burnout
• Over-giving, under-receiving
• Comparing, chasing, proving

Abundance looks like:
• Clarity and nourishing rest
• Trust in timing
• Receiving without guilt

Striving is always moving… but never arriving.
If you recognize yourself here, it’s not failure.
It’s a signal.
A call to shift.

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 What is abundance? 

Abundance is often mistaken for luxury or ease.
But it’s much simpler – and deeper.

Abundance is your ability to meet your needs when you need to.
It’s not about excess. It’s about enoughness.
A quiet knowing that what you need will be there, when it matters.

It changes more than your bank account.
It softens your nervous system.

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From Striving to Abundance: a personal threshold

I spent a long time with this question:
How do I move from Striving to Abundance?

I’d done the work, invested in growth, said the prayers.
But something still didn’t align.
The problem wasn’t lack of effort – it was misplaced energy.

Then one quiet morning, around 3AM, a sentence landed in me like a sacred gong:
“Devotion is an organic core program for Life.”
It moved through me like truth I had always known.

I’ve believed in hard work.
I’ve paid high prices for support, thinking the cost would guarantee transformation – only to feel unsatisfied.

I’ve also given from full devotion, even when no one was watching, paying, or clapping.

Then I realized:
My devotion doesn’t depend on what I’m paid.
It isn’t something I perform or measure.
It’s who I am.

That was the moment I stopped confusing value with price and began to remember:
Real abundance flows through devotion – not proving, pleasing, or performing.

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What is devotion (and what it isn’t)

For me, devotion is staying committed to what makes my soul sing and letting go of what no longer aligns with that song.

It’s not about effort for effort’s sake.
It’s about choosing what excites and inspires you even if the world doesn’t quite get it yet.

Let me be clear:

Devotion is the quiet, unwavering choice to honor what matters most – with your presence, not your performance.

 

What do I mean by presence?

Presence is when your whole self is here: your attention, your care, your willingness to connect.

It’s peeling vegetables with peace.
Crying without rushing to fix.
Listening deeply.
Even making hard decisions from clarity, not fear.

 

Presence doesn’t mean perfection.
It means honesty.
It means you’re with what you’re doing.

It isn’t a performance.
It’s a posture of love.

Perhaps the real question is:
What would change if you began showing up like that, not just for others, but for yourself?

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Common Misconceptions About Devotion

Many of us carry beliefs about devotion that were shaped by pressure, not truth.

Here are a few to gently untangle:

Devotion means self-sacrifice.
→ Truth: Real devotion includes you.

Devotion requires suffering.
→ Truth: It can endure discomfort, but it’s rooted in care, not pain.

Devotion is for the spiritual or religious.
→ Truth: You can be devoted to anything that matters: your healing, your art, your family, your truth.

Devotion is soft or passive.
→ Truth: Devotion can be fierce. It holds boundaries. It moves mountains, gently.

Devotion should always feel good.
→ Truth: It’s real, not always easy. But unlike striving, it nourishes you.

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Devotion vs. hard work

We’ve been taught that hard work is the key to success.
The more you struggle, the more worthy you are.

Hard work and devotion are not the same.

Hard work is fueled by pressure and fear.
It says: “If I don’t do this, I’ll fall behind.”
It can disconnect you from your body, your joy, your truth.
It often leads to burnout.

Devotion is fueled by clarity and care.
It says: “I choose this because it matters to me.”
It includes your nervous system.
It honors rest.
It aligns and sustains you.

Hard work is about getting there.
Devotion is about being here.

When you return to devotion, you don’t stop caring.
You stop carrying what was never yours.

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The Return: a personal invitation

 If you want to live in the Abundance room – not just visit, not just hope – but live there…

Devotion is the way.

Abundance isn’t something you chase.
It’s something you return to.
Devotion is what keeps you aligned with that return.

Without devotion, even your most aligned choices can be driven by fear.
You might still be striving, just in disguise.

Devotion helps you stay true:

• to yourself,
• to what inspires you,
• to what your soul knows is yours.

It lets you rest without guilt.
Offer without depletion.
Receive without shame.

Hard work may get you far.
Devotion brings you home.

If your heart is whispering “There must be another way…” this is it.

Come back to what lights you up.
Come back to what’s yours.
Come back to yourself, again and again.

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Reflections to sit with

You don’t have to figure everything out.
Just begin by listening:

• What excites or inspires me right now even if it doesn’t make sense?
• Where am I still striving out of fear or pressure?
• What would devotion look like in my life today?
• What might I be ready to release so I can come back to what truly matters?

There are no right answers. Just honest ones. Even one honest answer is enough to begin the return.

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💌 A note from my heart to yours

If you’ve made it here, thank you.
Thank you for being willing to feel. To pause. To remember.

This path – from striving to devotion – isn’t about perfection.
It’s about honesty.
It’s about coming home to what your soul already knows.

You don’t have to rush.
You don’t have to prove anything.

Just come closer to yourself.

That’s what I’m doing too, every single day.

This transmission lives here for you, when you are ready to receive it 💛💜

With you,
in quiet courage and devotion,

Astuti

P.s. Please share this with someone in your circles who would breathe deeper remembering themselves within this perspective. Thank you!

 

“May the remembrance within you bloom in perfect time.”

 

Click here for a free discovery call with Astuti: https://astuti-martosudirdjo.youcanbook.me/

Go here to find out more about her self-paced online programs: https://embodiment.upliftmylife.today/

 

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