The older I get, the more the word hurry scares me. Life can feel like it is nothing but hurry. But more than that, it reminds me of another word that hurry seems to resonate with.
Hurricane.
Hurricanes leave chaos behind as they move through an area. Homes are destroyed, families are torn apart, and loved ones are gone. Lives are in complete upheaval.
Life can sometimes feel that way, can’t it? Like a hurricane?
But life doesn’t need to be like a hurricane or in a constant state of hurry. No, I’m not referring to being busy. Jesus was busy but NEVER hurried. (Story of Lazarus, anyone?)
No, I’m talking about always being hurried, as you can never let yourself breathe, sit, and do nothing for 5 minutes. Try this – shut off your phone for 30 minutes and sit. No music. No scrolling. No swiping. Just sit. After 5 minutes, you’ll get stir-crazy. But after 20, you’ll discover that you’ve given your soul a chance to catch up to your body. Why? Because for the last 20 minutes or so, you’ve put the stop on hurry and always having our minds distracted.
Author John Ortberg records his mentor’s words regarding hurry so well.
You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life.
I love those words. They don’t mean that we can’t rush when late. Nor do they mean we can’t be productively busy. They mean that we begin to eliminate or at least cut back on the things that cause us to hurry and be distracted.
Think about it. Satan is smart. He’s been watching humanity for a long time. And his ultimate goal is to put distance between us and God. If he can’t do that with outright sin through giving in to temptation, then he’ll accomplish the same result with…you guessed it…hurry.
I like how the psalmist writes it and in the kid’s version of the NIV!
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be honored among the nations. I will be honored in the earth.” Psalm 46:10 NIRV
This is a call by the psalmist to surrender to know God personally and intimately – something we can never do if we are in a…
Hurry. Distracted. Binge watching. Constantly scrolling and swiping.
I’m not anti-tech. I’m for it. But it’s a tool you and I need to control, not the other way around.
Here’s the bottom line – Ruthlessly eliminate hurry this season. Slow down. Turn down, Shut off. And engage. Engage God, who gave you Everything so you could have everything! (that’s Jesus and life abundant!). Sit down for a meal with your family, phones off, tablets away, music off, and TV off. You can leave the lights on but shut everything else off.
And when the family isn’t around, take 30 minutes to yourself. Turn off everything that distracts and engage God. Don’t be afraid. He has exactly what you need, more than another scroll on your phone or purchase on Amazon.
Be still and know that He is in control and He has you safely in His arms.
You are loved!
