By Jessica Brodie
Doesn’t it seem sometimes like life keeps rattling on like a freight train at full speed? There’s an urgency to everything. Buy now! Hurry! Don’t miss this! How quickly can I get there? How quickly can this be finished?
I’m guilty of getting sucked into this mentality myself. Growing up in a big city, rushing was a way of life. I told myself I didn’t like a slow pace, convinced myself it was too boring somehow.
Even the way I eat a meal has an element of “hurry up” unless I’m intentional about this. Typically, I scarf my food as if it will disappear on me.
Time and maturity bring wisdom, and I’m at a phase in my life where all this hurrying seems like nonsense. This especially hit home for me this week, as I was doing my morning Bible reading. I’ve been reading the Bible every day for at least a decade. Typically my goal is one chapter a day. There are times when I’ve read more than that, like if I’m on some of the shorter psalms, or I just feel especially hungry for God‘s word that day and need to go deeper and longer in it, but it's always a chapter. Anything less makes me feel incomplete, like I’ve shirked my job or something.
All that changed this week.
I’ve been reading the Gospel of Luke, and there’s so much going on in every chapter. The other day during my reading, I made myself stop after one section. It felt like too much magnitude to rush on to the next section. I felt like I needed to stop and really meditate on what I read, maybe divide that chapter into a few days’ worth of reading instead of doing it all in one day. I needed to reflect in a deeper and better way to really understand the lesson.
I needed to slow down and savor what the Holy Spirit was doing in my heart and my mind and the lessons God wanted me to learn.
So I made a conscious decision this week to temporarily shift my goal of a chapter a day. Instead, I’m taking bites and savoring instead of gulping mouthfuls. It feels good and right, at least for now. This week is Holy Week, and perhaps that savoring is working in new and special ways.
If you’ve already learned the art of savoring small moments, slowing down while eating or peacefully savoring scripture instead of gobbling it up with gusto, I applaud you.
But if this message is speaking to you today, perhaps you’ll join me in slowing down a little bit. Ask yourself: What is the rush? Why am I in such a hurry? Is there something in a slow, meandering pace that God needs to speak to me? Is he trying to get my attention in a whisper instead of a shout?
Remember in the Old Testament how Elijah, desperate for a word from God, sought him in an earthquake, a mighty wind, and a fire, only for God to finally speak to him in a low whisper (1 Kings 19:11-13).
If you feel like God is telling you to slow down a little bit, whatever that looks like, here are a few Bible verses that might speak to your heart.
“For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Selah” (Psalm 62:5-8 ESV).
“Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!” (Psalm 37:7).
“But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me” (Psalm 131:2).
“Teach me, and I will be silent; make me understand how I have gone astray” (Job 6:24).
God bless you, my friends.
~
If you know someone who would benefit from reading this blog, please share this with them:
I'm so excited to share with you some news that is extraordinarily close to my heart—and the long-awaited answer to a prayer. My Christian contemporary novel The Memory Garden releases this spring! The paperback comes out May 6. If you’re interested in joining my launch team to help spread the word about the book, I’d love to have you! You'll enjoy exclusive bonuses for launch members, including weekly videos in our special Facebook group, and be eligible for weekly prizes throughout the launch. You'll also get to read the book early. Click here to join the team.
Thanks to my Patreon sponsors: Matt Brodie, Emily Dodd, Jane, Marcia Hatcher, Frances Nwobi, Kathleen Patella, Billy Robinson, Yancy Rose, and Lanny Turner.
SHARE TODAY’S BLOG ON SOCIAL MEDIA: CLICK HERE OR THE SOCIAL LINKS BELOW.