Prayer Is Like a Stream

If flowing water stops, can anyone still call it a stream?
Let your prayer run on unbroken.
When prayer breaks off, it soon becomes a pool,
and a pool, large or small, is bound to go foul.
Do not settle for others’ respect if it is only skin-deep.
If you enjoy people’s praise, your spirit will soon go foul as well.
When the prayer of your soul runs on and flows,
the water of life flows, and you live,
and the people around you live too; that is the work to come.