Unhurried
UNHURRIED by Samantha Decker
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/slowing-down-and-embracing-rest-with-samantha-decker/id1758350196?i=1000701583893
Have you ever wondered "what book should I buy that I will know I will enjoy reading?" This is when a podcast interview with an author really helps!
I listened to this podcast before I asked for this book at Christmas. I have now read the book and listened to the podcast again - I have enjoyed both so much!
This book is divided into 3 parts ...
Part 1 - the problem of hurry, control and an over-planned life
Part 2 - make room for him
Part 3 - consider your ways
PART 1 - THE PROBLEM OF HURRY, CONTROL AND AN OVER-PLANNED LIFE
CHAPTER 2 - WHAT IS MARGIN?
"Margin" I am sure you know what that word means. It reminds me of an exercise book and the part on the left hand side usually divided off by a horizontal red line. But there is another meaning ...
A spare amount or measure or degree allowed or given for contingencies or special situations.
When was the last time you felt like you had a spare amount of time? I always remark that when Christmas afternoon arrives suddenly everything seems to stop. There has been so much activity in the days before the Day that suddenly it just makes you pause and think about what all the madness was about. That is where this book by Samantha Decker Unhurried comes in. This book makes you think about how God works in our schedules and the normalcy of a day but are we creating room for him to do exactly that?
A spare amount or measure or degree allowed or given for contingencies or special situations.
When was the last time you felt like you had a spare amount of time? I always remark that when Christmas afternoon arrives suddenly everything seems to stop. There has been so much activity in the days before the Day that suddenly it just makes you pause and think about what all the madness was about. That is where this book by Samantha Decker Unhurried comes in. This book makes you think about how God works in our schedules and the normalcy of a day but are we creating room for him to do exactly that?
It is so fitting that in the second chapter of Unhurried we look at Mark chapter 1, a passage we have been studying in our Precepts Bible Group recently.
The scene is set on a particular Sabbath when Jesus was so busy healing and teaching. But we see that Jesus rose very early the next morning while it was still dark to go to a desolate place to pray. I am sure Jesus was tired and weary from all he had to do the previous day - maybe this is a good reminder to all who pastor or lead a church - Jesus deliberately and intentionally created margin at the start of his day.
What does this mean in practical terms for me today? Maybe it is finding time in my busy schedule to set aside time for margin - reading God's word and praying.
One habit I usually put in place each day is to hear God's word read and commented on as I drive to work through Spotify, then when I arrive to stop and pray committing the day to God first. When I get my break at work I spend the time in silent prayer asking once again for God's help as I continue to move through the day or read a few pages of a book that features scripture. At times when I am not working I like to journal in my bible and read books that help in this respect.
The scene is set on a particular Sabbath when Jesus was so busy healing and teaching. But we see that Jesus rose very early the next morning while it was still dark to go to a desolate place to pray. I am sure Jesus was tired and weary from all he had to do the previous day - maybe this is a good reminder to all who pastor or lead a church - Jesus deliberately and intentionally created margin at the start of his day.
What does this mean in practical terms for me today? Maybe it is finding time in my busy schedule to set aside time for margin - reading God's word and praying.
One habit I usually put in place each day is to hear God's word read and commented on as I drive to work through Spotify, then when I arrive to stop and pray committing the day to God first. When I get my break at work I spend the time in silent prayer asking once again for God's help as I continue to move through the day or read a few pages of a book that features scripture. At times when I am not working I like to journal in my bible and read books that help in this respect.
In Unhurried Samantha Decker expands the idea of margin by using a second story from the bible - in Acts 8 we see Philip acting in obedience to God immediately. He had been appointed 2 chapters previously to help the disciples. Then God used him in Samaria as he proclaimed Christ and performed signs. He was doing an amazing work and the people were so happy. There was no reason to stop but God called him away to meet a man on the road to Gaza. Leaving many to reach one? Sounds like God didn't know what he was doing but he did.
In that meeting with the Ethiopian eunuch Philip showed the man eternal life in Christ. That man accepted Christ as his own and personal Saviour. As a result he took the gospel back to his nation.
But God's Spirit took Philip away yet again, not back to Samaria as we might think but another new area to preach in. And Philip is obedient yet again.
When was the last time you listened to God and his Spirit when he asked you to do something? That is what challenged me from this passage of scripture. Would I even know how to hear God speaking to me?
Looking again at God's word I am reminded that when I draw near to God he will draw near to me - James 4 verse 8. How? By digging in to God's word and spending time in prayer.
Maybe this is a reminder to slow down. God wants to work in and through each of us if only we will take time to listen and obey.
Genesis 2 verses 1 to 3 shows that God rested after creation. But he also recognised when he was finished. Is there something we need to finish doing today? Have we started something and not finished it? Do we fail to see that by finishing something it is enough?
I am a list kind of person. If I want to achieve something I will sit down and write out what I want to end up with when it is all done. But sometimes it is easy to get caught out in trivial things that don't necessarily matter. It is hard to let go of such minor things but I need to learn from God's creation account. He didn't make everything in 1 day, he could have but he didn't.
Am I willing to ask God what needs to be done today and obediently do it?
"Margin is the spare amount of time for God moments. Will you implement practices to slow and create space to listen and obey his prompting?"
CHAPTER 3 - WHY CREATE MARGIN?
Ephesians 5 verses 15 and 16 reminds us to make the best use of time because our days are evil. In other words our days are numbered - we are not however to use them hurriedly but wisely.
Satan, our enemy wants us to be busy ... all the time. We believe the lie that by hurrying we can do more. But when we hurry we elevate our selfish priorities and diminish God's eternally focused promptings.
Overcommitment, hurry and control affect our perspective. Margin relieves the pressure.
We live in an instant gratification society and certain things don't fit the mould. Neither does God's schedule. As followers of Jesus we create margin to ensure the literal rhythm of our day ends up focused on eternity. This requires a lot of patience and surrender.
Satan, our enemy wants us to be busy ... all the time. We believe the lie that by hurrying we can do more. But when we hurry we elevate our selfish priorities and diminish God's eternally focused promptings.
Overcommitment, hurry and control affect our perspective. Margin relieves the pressure.
We live in an instant gratification society and certain things don't fit the mould. Neither does God's schedule. As followers of Jesus we create margin to ensure the literal rhythm of our day ends up focused on eternity. This requires a lot of patience and surrender.
I love how Samantha continually turns us back to scripture to make her points! She looks at Habakkuk, a minor prophet in the Old Testament. One of his simple prayers to God is recorded in the second verse of his opening chapter - "O Lord, how long shall I cry for help and you will not hear?" Samantha asks us - "Have you ever asked God a similar question? how long will I have to wait until ... How much longer until you do ..." fact is we don't like to wait do we?
God's answer to Habakkuk was not what he wanted. God was doing something about the wickedness in Judah. He was sending the Chaldeans to judge Judah. The Chaldeans were marked by cruelty and God was sending them against his own people? How could this be God's plan? How did Habakkuk respond?
"I will take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what he will say to me and what I will answer concerning my complaint."
Notice the 4 words - stand, station and look out". He chose patience. He chose to wait. He chose margin. He chose to trust even when he didn't understand and didn't have the full picture. And in the end God promised he would judge the Chaldeans, bring justice to his people and ultimately make a way for our future redemption.
Waiting on the Lord is always better,
The result of patience isn't the only reason why we need to create margin. We also create margin to put ourselves in a posture of humility and a position to serve others.
A life without margin is a life that says my schedule, my plans, and my priorities are what's important. And the pressure and demands of this immediacy cause us to overlook needs that are actually present.
Looking to the interests of others often involves sacrificing things we hold the tightest and want the most.
Recently this has become so very real to me personally. I have had to put my own needs on the back burner to care for my own father. I have had to realise that in the present he matters more than anything I want or need. It is not easy to recognise (or even actually do) how much someone else's needs matter more than my own. It is hard at times to set "margin" within my schedule. And you know what? It does not get any easier. I have had to deal with a lot of guilt as a result. It is in that guilt that I have turned to God and asked him what I should do. The answer is not usually what I want to hear but being obedient is so important. I have to admit that I don't honestly know what exactly I should be doing at times but "winging it" sometimes is the only option available.
We create margin because rest is a good gift from our Father who loves us. Often in the Old Testament we see God promise unrest as a punishment for disobedience. This idea starts in the garden - look at Genesis 3. After Adam and Eve sinned by disobeying God and eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, God laid out the consequences. He cursed the serpent, told the woman her pain would be multiplied in childbearing and her desire would be contrary to her husband and then said to Adam ...
"Cursed is the ground because of you: in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life, thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust and to dust you shall return." Genesis 3 verses 17 to 19
Pain and unending hard work are consequences. On the other hand, rest is a gift. And margin is a tool we use to prioritize the rest God gives us. When we long for rest and find ourselves labouring instead, it doesn't take long for us to realize the consequences of our actions. This theme continues throughout scripture.
In Joshua we see that the Promised Land is described as "a place of rest" for the Israelites. Remember they had been slaves in Egypt, then wanderers in the desert and yet God had a home for them. A place to rest from their turmoil and labour. A place of peace and fellowship with him. However, because they never fully obeyed and surrendered to him, rest was temporary and fleeting. And yet the Lord continued working, offering us all a true place of rest.
When we turn to the last book of the bible, Revelation we see the Spirit explaining how what we do on earth will follow us and says of those who die in the Lord: "they may rest from their labours."
The consequences we read about in Genesis 3 will be no more in heaven. No more physical, emotional or spiritual labour. Instead we will rest in his presence, a return to the intimacy and perfection of the garden. Until then, we need to make an effort to create margin for rest. The consequences if we don't are detrimental.
If we don't create margin our hearts and our lives will become a breeding ground for idolatry. Idols today are the things our heart values the most: self, money, success, control. What is an idol?
"Anything that we come to rely on for some blessing, or help, or guidance, in the place of wholehearted reliance on the true and living God." John Piper
How challenging! Do I plan unceasingly because I don't fully rely on God's sovereignty over my day? When I slow down and intentionally set aside time I am disciplining myself to place my trust in God. Just sitting here typing this, I am reminded of all the times when I do other things (just as important things) before I read my bible or spend time in prayer.
Think of Saul in the Old Testament. A couple of years into his reign, the Israelites had been fighting the Philistines and things were not looking good for them. The Philistines had rallied but the people of God were hiding, trembling and waiting for instructions from the king. Samuel, God's prophet told Saul to wait 7 days for him to come and meet him at Gilgal. By the seventh day Samuel still hadn't arrived and Saul took things into his own hands. He went ahead and offered the burnt offerings. Just as he did so Samuel came and asked him what he had done - 1 Samuel 13. Only the priests were allowed to offer burnt offerings - Saul was a king not a priest.
It was as if Saul was saying "God I gave you a chance. I waited 7 days but I cannot wait any longer. I am going to take the reins here and make it work, just for the sake of the people." He didn't trust God to take care of them in his way. His impatience cost him dearly. Saul would lose the kingdom not because of the Philistines but because of his heart's sinful condition.
Would I wait more than 7 days? Am I obedient to what God asks me to do?
Spiritual warfare is anything the enemy uses against us to pull our hearts and minds away from God. The bible teaches us that there are 3 elements working against us: the flesh, the world and the enemy. The flesh is in our own sinful desires and tendencies. The world is the busyness, chaos and demands we feel pressing around us. The enemy is Satan and those with him who are actively working against us, seeking to blind us to our own idols. The enemy is powerful but the bible is clear that because of Jesus we have power over him.
PART 2 - MAKE ROOM FOR HIM
CHAPTER 4 - IN LIGHT OF ETERNITY
"If we truly want to become Christlike, we must shift our perspective heavenward. Our mission is clear only when viewed through the lens of eternity. This requires an intimate knowledge of his word so that we can put on the mind of Christ as we go about our days."
Samantha starts off by explaining how to live moment by moment in light of eternity. Everything within us can still reflect Christ and this shift stats in our hearts, souls and minds.
Our minds are continually at work and constantly jumping from one thought to the next to the next. Our minds are a battleground for our daily sanctification. We don't naturally think and dwell only on what honours God. Unfortunately because of our sin nature, we have work to do when it comes to filtering the filth out of our brains and fortifying our minds against that which hinders us.
Scripture reminds us of this multiple times ...
Philippians 4 verse 8 "Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if there is anything excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things."
Colossians 3 verse 2 directs our thinking upwards "Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth."
Isaiah 26 verse 3 reminds us what the result of keeping our mind on God is "You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on your, because he trusts in you."
Romans 8 verse 6 notes the consequences of failing to keep our minds on God "For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace."
Following Jesus includes following him with our minds! It begins with training and disciplining our minds for action. We will live out what we think and believe.
During Jesus' ministry on earth, a scribe approached Jesus and asked him which commandment was the most important.
"Hear, O Israel, The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." Mark 12 verses 29 and 30
Notice the order - heart, soul and mind - strength is last. It is only when our inner self is loving as God commanded that our outer self (our strength) will display true love as well.
We can try to love God and love people but if it is not birthed out of a heart for him, our true self will quickly be revealed. We may be putting on an act or we may be deceived or distracted. Either way, this often looks like bitterness, pride, burnout or depression. We can't fake it before the Lord; he knows our hearts, souls and minds.
God knows our thoughts! But he has given the Holy Spirit to help guide, purify and renew our minds. We simply must ask and seek his guidance at each point of the day. When we are faithful to ask, God is faithful to provide. We actually have the mind of Christ ...
"For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ." 1 Corinthians 2 verse 16
When we receive Christ as our personal Saviour our old self is gone. Now every thought is meant to align with God's plan for the world. we see with his eyes, listen with his ears and think with his mind. It is this eternal perspective that aligns us with the Lord's purposes and plans.
"Christianity asserts that every individual human being is going to live forever ... There are a good many things which would not be worth bothering about if I were going to live only 70 years, but which I had better bother about very seriously if I am going to live forever." C S Lewis Mere Christianity
Dwelling on heaven will change everything. But this eternal perspective doesn't come naturally. How do we do it?
At every moment our emotions and circumstances are fighting for space in our minds, but it's the truth of the Word we need to make room for. God made us to have emotions and feelings so having them isn't bad or sinful but we must not become slaves to them. We combat emotional instability by knowing and clinging to truth. This means knowing that what God says is imperative, which involves reading your bible, memorizing scripture and meditating on what you have seen to be true.
Be wise about what you allow to enter your mind. The bible tells us we have freedom in Christ.
"The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves" Romans 14 verse 22
Be fully convinced in your own mind. Don't let legalism keep you from doing what God has called you to do, and don't let the things of this world become a part of who you are.
How do you discipline your mind? By working on removing what doesn't honour God and replacing in with thoughts that do.
Secondly, knowing what awaits us in heaven is next
Remember heaven is permanent and lasting. When things on earth feel broken, we can remember heaven is indestructible. And when things on earth feel painful, taxing, and hard, we can remember heaven is without flaw. None of us know the number of our days, but we can look at heaven full of hope, longing and expectancy no matter what today holds. There are 3 important things to know about how heaven differs from earth ...
Heaven is Forever - this world is fading away.
"So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal." 2 Corinthians 4 verses 16 to 18
Heaven is indestructible
"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor trust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there you heart will be also." Matthew 6 verses 19 to 21
No moths, no rust, no thieves. In heaven, our treasures last.
"Whatever we make to be our treasure will be sure to become the attraction of our heart if we accumulate earthly riches, our hearts will by degrees be tied up in our money-bags; and on the other hand, if our chief possessions are in heavenly things, our hearts will rise into the higher and more spiritual region. The position of the heart is sure to be affected by the pace where the treasure is laid up." C H Spurgeon
Don't let hurry, control and over-planning direct the "attractions of your heart" earthward. Prioritize margins, shift your eyes toward heaven and position your heart to treasure God and the gifts he gives. This can never be destroyed.
Heaven is perfect
"And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying 'Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." Revelation 21 verses 3 and 4
God will dwell with us. He will wipe our tears from our eyes. There will be no death in heaven, nor will there be any mourning or crying ... nor any pain. Heaven will be different from earth because "the former things (will have) passed away.
There is a final key to living in light of eternity ...
Everything God has done, is doing and will do is for the purpose of his glory. What does this mean? To glorify God is to exalt his character and attributes, to praise him for what he has done and will do, to trust him with our lives and the lives of those we love, to revere him, to obey his word and to seek to honour him as Lord in every area of our life. It means we take the opportunities he places before us to make him and his name known in our speech and in our actions.
The bible reveals this idea on every page. Ever since the fall in Genesis 3, God has been at work, glorifying himself by providing a way for salvation (Jesus), redeeming his people and equipping them (through the Holy Spirit) to honour God with their lives.
If we will surrender control, live slower, and remember this in each moment of the day, our plans will fall in line with his purposes. Our lives will be centered around giving him the glory he deserves.
The book of Ezekiel shows this idea of God's desire for his glory over and over with the statement "they shall know that I am the Lord" appearing over 60 times in this book alone.
"It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Lord God, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes." Ezekiel 36 verses 22 and 23
Living in the light of eternity is something that is rarely preached on. I love my possessions, my family and the work that I do. It really hits me hard when I lose a loved one or there is a sudden death in my community, particularly if you do not know where that person stood with the Lord. All the plans and hopes and dreams are shattered in a moment in time. The reality of how quickly life can be taken from us should spur us on to share the good news of the Gospel of Jesus with those we know and love but do we?
CHAPTER 5 - THE LORD'S PLANS PREVAIL
Have you ever been in the situation where your plans collided with God's? Feeling like you were missing out on the goodness of God while waiting for life to start? Samantha encourages us to not let the waiting make you miss what God's doing now.
God works in the waiting, in the extra spaces, in the unplanned. Through his word, God slowly called Samantha to slow down and trained her eyes to look for him at work. He also reminded her that he prepares and equips his followers for the task at hand.
Many divine encounters detailed in the word of God occur only when someone detours from their plan or experiences the unexpected.
Think about Moses in Exodus 3. After murdering an Egyptian Moses fled to Midian and married Zipporah. Moses made his plans for the day - they involved sheep, lots of sheep. He started off his day by leading them through Horeb towards the "mountain of God". Suddenly Moses sees a bush burning but instead of a pile of burnt wood and ashes he saw a healthy bush burning, actually on fire, but still living, not eaten up by the flames. Our focus should not be on the bush but rather on what Moses did.
"I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned."
Moses turned aside. He stopped, looked and realized thought the bush was burning it was not consumed. Now he gave it his full attention. It was only when the Lord saw that Moses turned, that he had gone over to look, that he called to him - "Moses, Moses" He replied "Here I am". If the Lord speaks to us do we stick around and check it out?
When Moses discovered the task God had for him, it took time for him to agree and obey. He questioned his abilities: "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?" Moses feared what others would think - "They will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, 'The Lord did not appear to you.'"
Moses then proceeded to make excuses - "Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue."
And when God had countered all his objections, he finally asked to just stay where he was comfortable: "oh, my Lord, please send someone else." (Exodus 4 verse 13)
It is not always easy to abandon our plans for God's plans. There will always be excuses, hesitations, fears; and, often, they will be legitimate. But God's plans are always better. In his sovereignty, God knows what his people need and will always provide.
When Moses finally decided to lay his plans and fears aside and obey the Lord, God used him to deliver Israel from bondage in Egypt. How will God use you and I when we finally lay our plans and fears aside?
Another example is Saul on the road to Damascus.
Saul had a clear and well-laid plan and he was pretty good at implementing it.
"Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem" (Acts 9 verses 1 and 2)
Saul had a mission: persecute the disciples of Jesus. He gained support from the high priest. And he had a plan: find followers of the Way, that is, those who were disciples of Jesus, bind them and bring them to Jerusalem. Nice and clear-cut. No snags.
What happens next is a clear picture of what it is to experience the unexpected.
"Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?' And he said, 'Who are you Lord?' And he said, 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting."
Saul had a plan, but ultimately the Lord's plan prevailed. When God spoke, Saul totally and immediately abandoned his plans outright. Instead, he walked forward into God's plans for his life. God completely transformed him. When it comes to letting go of our plans, sometimes God stops us and asks us to turn and respond as Moses did. Other times, like in Saul's case, he uses circumstances, events, people and divine encounters to bring us to our knees, disrupt our well-laid plans and change our paths.
Either way, we can choose to continue planning, striving and working for ourselves, or we can choose to lay aside whatever we are occupied with at that moment to follow Jesus.
"We humans have the faculties to plan, save, invest and freeze the ground beef until we need it for lasagna. The birds can't do this! They live day-to-day, worm-to-appetizing-worm, not because of their planning abilities but because Creator God takes care of their needs." Kelly Minter
God takes cares of our needs. We don't need to plan as though he doesn't.
Samantha talks about how God was revealing his sovereignty - but what does 'sovereign' mean? How does it apply to pursuing the Lord's plans, creating margin and living in obedience?
"God has the rightful authority, the freedom, the wisdom and the power to bring about everything that he intends to happen. And therefore, everything he intends to come about does come about. Which means, God plans and governs all things." John Piper
What seems like chaos is meant to accomplish God's purposes and plans. He sees the picture because he created it. Reliance on him helps us to interpret and understand the lines as they are drawn.
The Lord's plans prevail because he is sovereign.
God plans and governs all things. He planned the burning bush. He planned the encounter with Saul on the road to Damascus and he has planned every moment of your life.
"I am God, and there is no other; I am God and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose.' ... I have spoken and I will bring it to pass; I have purposed and I will do it." Isaiah 46 verses 9 to 11
And yet we have a choice. We can choose to trust in his plan and join in his work, or we can choose to continue striving and fighting for control.
We see God's sovereignty and mankind's free will throughout scripture and in our lives today. We do have the ability to make our own choices, but we must also recognise these choices have ramifications. What we choose and how we use our will makes an eternal difference.
While on earth there may be things we cannot reconcile or fully understand; however, how we respond to these truths matters. We can continue resisting or we can lay aside our objections, praise him and humbly submit to our sovereign God.
Choosing to join God in his sovereign work happens in the day-to-day moments of our lives.
When we choose to live unhurried and intentionally create margin we are creating opportunities for detours.
Jesus gives us the perfect example in John 9. Verse 1 says "As he (Jesus) passed by, he saw a man blind from birth." Jesus was on the move, but having a goal or destination in mind did not keep him from seeing and meeting the needs of those around him. Not only was he open to "detours" but he was looking for them. And often, they occurred "as he was going."
As the text continues, we read that Jesus healed this man physically (verse 7) and spiritually (verse 38). Jesus' obedience to the Father's promptings changed a man's eternity.
Are my eyes open to the people around me? Am I willing to stop in the middle of my day to meet the needs of others and to engage in eternally impactful conversations? As I choose to slow down and open my eyes, I choose to be more in tune to the promptings of the Spirit.
Allotting extra time will not only help you create margin, but it will also give you opportunities to lift your eyes and look around. If we are to respond when the Lord asks us to stop or detour, we must know his voice. This involves spending time in prayer and reading his word. The more time we spend with him, the easier it will be to discern his will.
Once you become accustomed to busyness and hurry, slowing down takes practice. Start small.
God is sovereign and his plans have and will prevail. Will we slow down and join him as we are going?
CHAPTER 6 - A CALL TO ABIDE
Throughout the bible we see a reminder from the Lord to his people in the call to "abide".
The call to abide is a call to remain, to stay, to live and to be held and kept continually. It is the picture of a mother tenderly holding her infant, knowing dinner can wait and sleep will come eventually but this short season with a newborn is to be treasured.
If we are to examine our ways and surrender our plans to the Lord's purposes, abiding must sit at the centre. Abiding is the decision to remain so in tune with the Spirit that everything else pales in comparison.
"Abiding in Jesus isn't fixing our attention on Christ, but it is being one with him... a man is abiding just as much when he is sleeping for Jesus, as when he is awake and working for Jesus. Oh, it is a very sweet thing to have one's mind just resting there." Hudson Taylor
Abiding in Christ isn't just an idea or something that sounds nice to pursue, it's actually a command we see Jesus give. It's a necessity for believers who seek intimacy with the Father.
Is my mind resting on Christ? Am I pursuing intimacy with him?
Scripture gives us insight into the importance of remaining (abiding) in Christ in John 15.
In the time leading up to Jesus' death and resurrection, he leaves the disciples with several clear and significant instructions. These instructions include loving one another (John 13 verse 34), doing the works he does (John 14 verse 12), looking for the coming Holy Spirit (John 14 verse 16) and preparing for the world to be against them (John 15 verse 19). Nestled in the middle of this list, we find his instruction to abide ...
"Abide in me, and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." (John 15 verses 4 and 5)
The word "abide" is used 4 times in these 2 verses. Here we learn about a few key components of abiding.
Abiding is two-sided
Not only does a Christian want us to remain in him, but he has a desire to remain in us as well. As the Spirit dwells within, we can know God and know his will. This brings joy, power, purpose and peace.
Abiding serves a purpose: We are to bear fruit
As believers, we should know and understand our call to make disciples and bear the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5). However, this is only possible when we remain in Christ. Cutting ourselves off from the vine will lead to a fruitless life.
Abiding requires us to remove self-righteous efforts and agendas
"Apart from me you can do nothing" Jesus said. he did not say, "Apart from you can do some things, or only good things, or things you think are good." He said "Nothing". Even my good intentions, well-meaning pursuits and impressive-to-the-world accomplishments are meaningless apart from God.
This call to abide is a call to lie prostrate before the Lord, knowing there's nothing I can bring other than my desperate need and willing heart to be with my Saviour. It is here where we die to self and learn what it is to live yielded and filled with the Spirit.
We are in a covenant relationship with Christ. Abiding with Christ shouldn't be considered optional. However, it is good, life-giving and essential in fulfilling our calling and aligning our desires with the Father's.
When was the last time I stopped and chose to simply be with the Lord?
This doesn't have to look like waking up early to find time that is quiet (although it could). Maybe it's taking a walk, or playing worship music in the car, or actually taking your lunch break, or simply turning the TV off.
Time with the Father is the same way on a magnified level. Jesus ends the instruction to abide in John 15 by explicitly stating his purpose: "These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full." (John 15 verse 11)
Abiding leads to joy: abundant, filling, life-giving joy.
Not only does abiding lead to joy, but it also produces soul-level delight in God, our Father.
We've defined abiding as remaining, staying, living and being held and kept continually. Delight is the result of this. Delight is a tenderness, a stirring of our affections, and a deep pleasure and contentment rooted in who God is.
As we draw near and learn to listen to the Spirit's promptings above our own plans, something supernatural happens: we begin to experience the joy of his ways. We delight in his holiness and find that we want more and more of Christ in us.
"Trust in the Lord and do good, dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37 verses 3 and 4
These promises are so sweet and appealing. There's a critical caveat we can't overlook: our delight is to be in the Lord. Not in what he can do, not who we think he is, but in who he actually is. This is why we must slow down. This is why we must lay aside our plans for his purposes. And this is why we must abide.
If we are to truly find our delight in the Lord, there are a couple of warnings we must recognize and take heed of.
Delight is not a means to an end
Sometimes we live expecting God's blessings in return for our obedience. This is the "prosperity gospel". It's not what scripture promises and it actually robs us of delighting in God. It causes us to seek him out because of what he can give, not because of who he is.
"Delighting in God is not a means to get what we want from him. That is manipulation. Genuine affection for God is an end in itself, not the means to some further ends. Genuine delight has no ulterior motives, no additional demands. Delight says thank you to God for his many blessings such as good food to eat, a house to live in, people who love you, and a job to go to, but it also says, I will not worship these things by demanding them from you." Nancy Guthrie The One Year Praying Through the Bible for Your Kinds
We don't slow down to have a "better" less stressful life, though that may be a beneficial by-product. We slow down to tune our hearts to the Spirit. We don't abide in Christ only when we feel out of control or helpless. We abide because we long to know our Saviour more. Delight is birthed from an intimacy that comes from knowing God. And as we know him, our heart's desire becomes to be more like him.
There's one more way Satan has twisted delight in this world.
Drawn by Turkish Delight
James warns us "Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death." (James 1 verse 15)
Desire, temptation and delight in anything other than God may seem so innocent at first. It was just a little candy right? However, the reality is what we desire soon fills our hearts and clouds our minds.
What is my Turkish Delight? Is there something in my life that I am delighting in more than God? Our hearts are prone to seek delight in things that will never satisfy. However when our delight is in the Lord, there is truly nothing sweeter.
So what do we do when we realize we've become captivated by Turkish Delight?
When our delight is misplaced we need to slow down and recognize the error of our ways. Then, we repent and draw near to the Father. And as we draw near, our heart softens, our ways change and we become more and more like Jesus - fighting the battles he calls us to fight.
Delight is good and sweet and life-giving, but only when our delight is in the Lord. Slow down, abide and ask God to help you delight in him today.
There's a final piece to slowing, delighting and abiding in God, and it involves recognizing the value of what we've been given through Jesus. We must guard the treasure entrusted to us.
"Guard (with greatest care) and keep unchanged, the treasure (that precious truth) which has been entrusted to you (that is, the good news above salvation through personal faith in Christ Jesus), through (the help of) the Holy Spirit who dwells in us." (2 Timothy 1 verse 14)
Paul calls the truth that has been entrusted to us "treasure" or in the original Greek, kalos (good) + paratheke (deposit). When Jesus saved us by living a sinless life, dying on the cross and defeating death by rising again, he gave us access to the greatest treasure of all: the truth of the gospel. it is a "good deposit" he's placed within believers.
The gospel is a treasure that required great sacrifice. And with the help of the Holy Spirit, we've been charged to guard it. This involves maintaining its integrity, keeping a close watch on it and protecting it at all costs.
When was the last time I recognized the treasure I have been given and consequently put measures in place to guard it well?
When we abide in the Lord, delight in his goodness and take time to dwell on the treasure we've been given, our perspectives change. We want to spend more time with him We want to share about the treasure we've been given. And we want to preserve the truth of who God is and what he's done for us.
2 Corinthians 4 verse 7 says "But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us."
Alone, we are incapable of protecting and guarding this treasure well. We are simply frail, breakable, perishable "jars of clay" and yet, it's the task we've been entrusted with. The power belongs to God and the Holy Spirit dwells within to help us in this calling.
But this means we must draw near. Day by day we sit at his feet, abiding, delighting and asking for help to guard the precious, invaluable, life-changing treasure we've been given.
We have a heavenly Father who deeply desires to hold us. There's a phrase in Zephaniah 3 verse 17 that says "He will quiet you by his love." And it is this picture: drawing so near to God that we allow his deep love for us to quiet our spirits, whisper his truth and offer peace and joy, no matter the circumstances around us.
How do you allow the Lord to hold you each day:
Schedule even a few minutes of time in the day to sit before the Lord - no phone, no distractions and no plans. Ask the Lord to speak to your heart, to have a sense of him holding you and to remind you of his nearness.
Identify your "Turkish Delight" - is there something in your life you are delighting in more than God? Your family? Your job? Your "me" time? Admit this to the Lord, take some time to repent and ask God to help you delight in him instead.
Recognize and value the "good deposit" you've been given in Christ. View the gospel as a treasure and set practical measures in place like clinging to the Word and sharing it frequently in an effort to guard it well,
There is nowhere better than the arms of Jesus. Don't miss the opportunity to day by day abide in him.
CHAPTER 7 - LORD, I WANT TO BE MORE LIKE YOU
Samantha tells a lovely story in her book about the weekly collection at church. Every Sunday her parents would give the children a coin to drop in the offering plate. On one particular Sunday they gave her a coin and told her the coin was to "give to Jesus." And apparently her eyes lit up and excitement grew as she eagerly asked "Is He gonna be there today?"
Is Jesus truly invited to be where we are today? Have we paused in our busyness and schedules and serving (even in good things) long enough to look for his presence? Are our actions simply a result of going through the motions, or are they birthed out of a desire to be near and like the Lord?
It's not uncommon for us to jokingly look at each other and say "Is He gonna be there today?"
We have read how slowing down, creating margin, and surrendering our plans don't happen naturally. Instead, we must establish rhythms and practices designed to remind our hearts how to look for Jesus. these practices are also called spiritual disciplines.
What comes to mind when you hear the phrase "spiritual disciplines"? Do you instantly run in the opposite direction? Are you filled with shame or disappointment, feeling like you don't quite measure up? Do you think of them as nice ideas but unattainable goals? Or do you beam with pride thinking you've checked enough of them off your list for the day?
The truth is, even if we've spent our whole lives in the church, we often don't fully understand what spiritual disciplines are, why we should put them into practice and what they practically can look like in our lives We have misconceptions, half-truths and years of not0so-great experiences that shape our views.
However, what if we shifted our thinking, broke down what we though we knew and built it up with truths from God's word? It starts with a humble heart and a simple prayer of "Lord I want to be more like you."
"Discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness" (1 Timothy 4 verse 7)
Spiritual disciplines are deliberate practices done to turn our attention toward God. They are meant to help us center our lives around who Jesus is, what he's done for us and the mission he's called us to fulfill (Matthew 28 verses 18 to 20).
The bible tells us in 2 Corinthians 3 verse 18 that the Holy Spirit is transforming us into God's image. However, we have a part to play in obedience by putting into practice spiritual disciplines.
We must understand they are not a list of legalistic rules, not the ultimate goal of Christianity, nor necessary for salvation (Ephesians 2 verses 8 and 9). Instead they are the means by which we pursue godliness.
Here are some spiritual disciplines we see people practice in the bible that you can implement yourself ...
Spend time in the word - Psalm 119 verse 105, 2 Timothy 3 verse 16
Pray - Philippians 4 verse 6, Hebrews 4 verse 16
Fellowship with other believers - Acts 2 verse 42, Hebrews 10 verses 24 and 25
Meditate on truths found in God's word - Isaiah 26 verse 3
Confess your sins to God - Proverbs 28 verse 13, 1 John 1 verse 9
Fast from food and/or other pleasures - Isaiah 58, Matthew 6 verses 16 to 18
Serve others - Colossians 3 verses 23 and 24
Spend time alone (solitude) - Luke 5 verse 16
Worship corporately and/or individually - 1 Chronicles 16 verse 29
Observe the Sabbath - Leviticus 23 verse 3, Mark 2 verses 27 and 28
Give generously - Luke 12 verses 33 and 34, 1 John 3 verse 17
"Any discipline we practice is a way to express and deepen our devotion to the Almighty." Ben Stuart, Rest and War
We don't only practice spiritual disciplines to deepen our devotion, but we practice spiritual disciplines to fight against our flesh. Disciples require effort, attention and a commitment that goes beyond how you feel.
In Romans 7 verse 18 Paul writes "For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right but not the ability to carry it out."
We don't have the ability to be Christlike on our own, but with the Spirit in us and our commitment to discipline ourselves, we do have the ability to take steps toward godliness.
How can we do this when our days are busy, our free time is limited, and our spiritual life seems to fluctuate?
You just do it: day by day, little by little.
Set aside 10 minutes, then 15, then 30 to pursue the things of God. Use natural pauses and downtimes in your day (eg early mornings, daily commutes, lunch breaks, time when kids are napping or resting) to focus on a single spiritual discipline. Give up little things like phone time, TV time, or social media to make space. Then, when the space is created, use it purposefully.
Do you want to be more like Christ? If so, you will need to develop a lifestyle of setting your heart toward the Lord and your mind toward spiritual disciplines.
Spend Time Daily in the Word
Apart from Christ we are sinful and "prone to wander ... prone to leave the God I love." Knowing this, daily time in the word should not and cannot be option ... even if we have full schedules.
If we rightly, posture our hearts, God can use our time in the word to teach, reprove, correct and train our hearts (2 Timothy 3 verse 16). Because we are quick to forget, the time we spent yesterday is not sufficient for today. Our hearts need to daily draw near.
The Israelites learned a similar lesson in Exodus 16.
After they left Egypt, the Israelites found themselves wandering in the desert, hungry, complaining, and wrongly wishing to return to bondage. However, the Lord heard their grumbling and decided to provide daily nourishment for his people (verse 12).
Each morning manna from heaven appeared on the ground for the people to gather. The only requirement was that they only gather what they needed for each day (with the exception of a double portion the daily before the Sabbath). The Lord wanted his people to daily depend on him.
If the people gathered too much, the manna stank and bred worms. If they didn't gather enough for the Sabbath, none was given and they went hungry. Both dependence and obedience were required.
The same is required of us. We must depend daily on the Lord to provide through his word and faithfully obey the commands we receive.
You need to read God's word daily. It's not a chore, it's an opportunity to draw near to your Maker. Let his words comfort, sustain, encourage and equip you to take part in his purposes each day.
Time in the word isn't the only discipline we need to put into practice though.
Keep in Constant Communication
Does your prayer life ever look a little like a toddler's? Squirmy, forced and more about completion than the process?
While we're in the trenches of day-to-day living, prayer (like most aspects of our lives) often feels all over the place. However, Scripture is full of truth and examples of what a healthy prayer life looks like no matter what life season we're in. It starts in the beginning.
In the garden, Adam and Eve had complete and tangible access to God. They spoke to him and he heard and answered audibly (Genesis 2 and 3). But when they disobeyed the Lord and listened to the voice of the serpent, sin entered and as a result, they were driven out of the garden (Genesis 3 verses 23 and 24). The voice they listened to mattered.
However God in his goodness didn't cut off communication. Prayer is the means we have to continue speaking to and hearing from the Lord. Because of Jesus and his sacrifice on the cross, we still have complete access to the Father through the Spirit (Ephesians 2 verse 18).
How do we do that practically? How do we access the Father when the work project doesn't go well and the toddler is throwing a tantrum because you put her milk in the wrong sippy cup and you accidentally burn the cookies you were making for a neighbour?
God's word is full of practical instruction ...
Gave an example of how to pray - Matthew 6 verse 9 to 13
Encouraged us to pray about everything - Philippians 4 verses 6 and 7
Promised he would hear us - 1 John 5 verse 14
Told us prayer is powerful and effective - James 5 verses 13 to 18
Prayer isn't about sitting still with our heads bowed and eyes closed or following a formula. It's about meeting with a loving and gracious Father who desires a relationship with us.
In the craziness of life, let's ask and anticipate he will meet us in the margins. Let's discipline ourselves to create structured times of prayer, and ask him to teach us in the chaos, praying spontaneously as we go.
Spend Time Alone
Another lesser-discussed spiritual discipline is solitude. As we work to slow down and surrender our plans to the Lord, this one is important.
Solitude is the practice of getting away from everything and everyone that pulls at our attention in order to fully focus on the Lord. It's creating margin, silencing the noise, and asking God to meet us in the quiet.
We see over and over in scripture how Jesus "would withdraw to desolate places and pray" (Luke 5 verse 16b).
Meet Together
While we do need to create times of solitude, the other side of the coin is true, too: we need to prioritize getting together with other believers. This means slowing down enough to put into practice the disciplines of fellowship, service and corporate worship.
As we learn about the early church through scripture, we see how God designed for us to purposefully get together.
"And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near." Hebrews 10 verses 24 and 25
Meeting together with a local body of believers is one of the most beautiful gifts God has given us on this side of eternity. We need each other!
Like all spiritual disciplines though, meeting together and willingly investing in others is a choice.
What should biblical community truly look like?
The Oxford dictionary defines community as "a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of shared common attitudes, interests and goals." And in the case of biblical community those shared interests and goals are Jesus and his mission of making disciples (Matthew 28 verses 18 to 20).
In Romans 15, Paul explains living in biblical community looks a lot like setting aside your own desires to meet the needs of others - just like Jesus did. He then writes:
"Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another, according to Christ Jesus, so that with one purpose and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us, for the glory of God." (Romans 5 verses 5 to 7
Members of a community strive to be of the same mind
This is a call for unity, not uniformity. In Christ, we have the same mission, but we need each other to complete it (1 Corinthians 12). Use the gifts you've been given to serve within your community and encourage others to do the same.
The purpose of community is to glorify God
Community exists not solely for our own benefit (though we do benefit from it) but for the purpose of glorifying God. When we deny ourselves and serve others, we are living displays of the gospel. Encouraging, admonishing and loving others is a way to bring glory to him.
Community welcomes others in
Biblical communities are not exclusive. Yes, we are to pursue deep, meaningful, long-term relationships but we are also called to welcome new brothers and sisters in. Accept each other, invite new friends into your community and consider others before yourself.
When seasons of hardship and grief hit - we need each other.
When seasons of comfort and joy flourish - we need each other. Community is life-giving, good and honouring to God.
What does your community look like? Are you pursuing unity and staying on mission? As you build community, is it your heart's desire to give the glory to God? Do you invite others to join you?
All of this requires slowing down. When we are too busy, we have the potential to not only miss the needs of others, but also our need for relationship with them. If your schedule is so packed that it prohibits meeting together, it may be an indication to lay some things aside and discipline yourself to invest in community. This doesn't mean you should say yes to every bible study and church event possible, but it does mean you make investing in community a priority.
Am I slowing down enough to look for God at work around me? I need to make a practice of pausing, praying and asking God to open my eyes. I need to ask God what area of my life needs to be more disciplined and then focus on that first. I need to learn to schedule this time out each day so it becomes a natural rhythm and priority for me. I need to ask God to increase my hunger for scripture. Am I pursuing unity, glorifying God and welcoming others.
When we view spiritual disciplines through the lens of becoming Christlike, we start to fall in love with the practice. Our days will slow, our eyes will shift to eternity and we will start prioritizing God's purposes over our plans.
CHAPTER 8 - WHAT ABOUT WORK?
"So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
1 Corinthians 10 verse 31
Work like rest is of and for the Lord. It's our job to both find the balance and remain on mission.
How can we slow down and create margin when we have meetings at ten, two and four? Or when work in the home is literally never-ending?
In short, we must have a right understanding of work, rest, and an inner sense of unhurriedness.
Sunday Scaries - the anxiety that sets in on Sunday nights with the impending return to the office, school or work. In our fast- paced society, having anxiety about work is so common, we've given it a name. And the truth is, we often speak of work as a negative thing. It's synonymous with hardship, toil, striving and exhaustion. But the reality is: Work was God's design for us from the beginning.
Shortly after God made Adam, Genesis 2 tells us: "The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it." (Genesis 2 verse 15) Remember this took place before the fall in Genesis chapter 3. Things were as they should be. And yet, work was involved.
Work was never intended to be God's punishment for us. Instead, work was designed to give us purpose and fulfilment alongside our Creator. Can you imagine what Adam's work was like? As he took care of the garden where God had placed him, all was as it should be. He toiled not laboriously, but gladly, knowing the work he did was an act of honour and obedience toward God.
However the fall and resulting curse of sin changed the reality of work.
"Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, 'You shall not eat of it' cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life, thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return."
Before the fall, work was pleasant. After the fall, work became hard, toilsome and laborious. Now Adam was to work as before, but things wouldn't go his way. The ground would produce thorns and only by his sweat would he be able to provide for his family.
And unfortunately, this is our reality too. We are to work, but it won't always be easy.
For us to have a right understanding of work, we must take it a step further, because, unlike Adam, we live in a post-messianic world. Jesus has come, set us free from sin, and given us a new mission: to love God and love others, even through our work.
The church at Colosse had similar questions about the value of work, so in Paul's letter, he addressed work in relation to Christian households. He wrote: "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ." (Colossians 3 verses 23 and 24)
How do we serve Jesus as we wait for his return? We work heartily.
Work looks different for all of us but it is how we serve Jesus as we wait for his return. But what if you don't? What if you choose to do the work God has entrusted to you, whatever and wherever that might be? Does it really affect your relationship with the Lord and with others?
Solomon, the wisest man to ever live, thought so:
"Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest. How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man." Proverbs 6 verses 6 to 11
Nobody tells the ants to gather food and prepare for winter and yet they do. Nobody encourages them to work together or get started early or work long hours, but they do. As a result, they have the food they need to survive.
Rest, margin and a slower pace of life do not give us permission to become sluggards. Sluggards fail to honour God and instead slip into full dependence on others.
To go back to the question above, yes, failing to do the work God has called us to affects our relationship with both God and others. As a reminder and point of clarity, work is not income-driven but purpose-driven. What is God calling you to do? How can you fulfill the mission he's set before you? This is the work that needs to be done. And once the work is done for the hour or day or week, we rest.
As we rest, God not only allows our physical bodies relief and time to recover and restore, but he also rejuvenates us spiritually too.
Our rest strengthens and equips us for times of work.
The evidence is most clearly seen in the commandment of the Sabbath. As Moses went up Mount Sinai to meet with God, this is what he received as the fourth commandment:
"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labour, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy." Exodus 20 verses 8 to 11
This commandment was given to a people who were used to work. As slaves in Egypt, the Israelites were nearly crushed by the amount of toil and labour forced upon them. However, as they found themselves free, and in the desert, this is one of the ten commandments given to them,
A Sabbath day, or a day of rest, is simply time dedicated to the Lord. It's holy, set apart, distinct, consecrated, so we can realign our hearts and minds with his. Even though we no longer live under the old covenant, rest is wise and a big deal in God's eyes.
Notice a few things about this commandment:
Rest on this day helps keep it holy
The Lord rested, so we rest
A day of rest is blessed by the Lord
Did the Lord need to rest after creation? Probably not ... He's God. But do we need to rest? Yes! We need to depend on him to provide for us even as we rest, and we need to experience the blessings rest brings.
So if we acknowledge rest is needed, we also need to ask what rest looks like. Does this mean one day a week we stay in bed and stare at the wall? No, although I must admit there are some days this seems more appealing than others. It means we create purposeful margin and ask God to meet us there.
Purposeful Margin
Purposeful margin really is what it sounds like: it's a setting aside of time for the Lord. Now, what the Lord chooses to do with this time is up to his calling and our obedience.
Purposeful margin is not a formula or plan or series of events, it is a willingness to go if the Lord says to go and stay if the Lord says to stay. And it's this surrender of our day that creates a restful and dependent spirit.
Here is the challenge - set aside time (whether it's a day or simply a few unaccounted-for hours) and surrender it to the Lord. During that time, pray, rest, get in the Word, intercede for others, and ask God to align your plans with his. Be willing to follow, surrender and obey when prompted.
Needed Rest
As we look at work and rest, there's one more side to rest we shouldn't ignore: needed rest. This rest is different from purposeful margin in that it's not time we set aside, it's time we need in order to be prepared to work again. This includes sleep at the end of each day, time in recovery after sickness, relief when we are burdened, and freedom from the striving of the world.
In Matthew 11 verses 28 to 30, we encounter one of the most popular verses of scripture about rest:
"Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
This passage is an invitation to turn away from sin and a works-based religion to enter into a relationship with Jesus. At the heart, it's a verse about the character of Jesus.
He gives us rest from labouring and trying to be what the world says we should be - successful, happy, powerful - and instead offers this salvation and freedom from striving. He knows, because he faced it all, and in him we find rest.
Take a minute to think about the implications. He knows he's asked us to go and make disciples and he knows it's not going to be easy (take a look at some of the trials of the disciples if you aren't sure) but he doesn't leave us there. He offers to walk with us, to take the troubles upon himself and to give rest.
But how do we engage in needed rest and walk in the freedom he offers?
Come to Jesus - First and foremost in salvation and then regularly spending time with him through the word and prayer.
Take My yoke upon you - His ways and his will are easier to surrender to as we live by faith with our eyes on eternity.
Learn From Me - Live as His disciple or follower.
This needed rest is what gives us the energy daily to accomplish what God desires. The Christian life is not one of striving, it's one of surrender. His yoke is easy and his burden is light.
In our lives, idleness looks like laziness, slothfulness and even an aversion to work. it's the same picture of a car idling; the engine is running, but the car isn't going anywhere.
As we have learned about creating margins and living unhurried, we must remember that neither purposeful margin nor needed rest is an excuse for idleness. Scripture warns of the dangers.
The church body in Thessalonica received this warning from Paul in 2 Thessalonians 3 verses 6 to 15. Paul goes so far as to tell them to "keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness" (verse 6) because those who walk in idleness are "not busy at work, but busybodies" (verse 11).
The dictionary defines a busybody as "an officious or inquisitive person".
Paul calls us to be the opposite. We are to be faithful workers. In 2 Thessalonians 3 verse 13, he writes this: "But as for you, brothers and sisters, do not grow weary of doing good." To combat idleness, we work. And we don't work aimlessly, we work for the good of others and the glory of God. We stay on mission.
Have you confused your need for rest with idleness? Has your creation of margin actually turned into laziness?
Here are a few indicators of idleness to be wary of:
You are constantly relying on the provisions and goodwill of others. (Constantly being the keyword here. This is not talking about seasons when this is needed.)
You aren't working in a job, in your home, or in your community.
You spend more time concerned about other people's business than your own.
Other people could describe you as a busybody.
As you reflect on your day/week/month, you can't describe anything you have accomplished for Christ.
You haven't shared the gospel with anyone recently.
You feel purposeless and like your life doesn't have meaning.
You aren't living on mission.
If any of these describe you, it may be time to turn away from idleness and work for the glory of God. And why must we deal with idleness? So we don't become burdensome and hinder our witnesses.
Jesus came to give us abundant life (John 10 verse 10). Don't waste yours by remaining idle.
So what does it look like practically to live out these truths? Can we truly find the balance between rest and work? And most importantly, how do we do it in a way that honours God?
In short, we live Spirit-led lives.
As soon as we make the decision to follow Jesus, we gain the Holy Spirit. Scripture helps us understand how to know him and follow his promptings.
If we want to live Spirit-led lives, we can:
Ask the Father
"If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (Luke 11 verse 13)
Set Our Mind on the Spirit's Desires
"Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace." (Romans 8 verses 5 and 6)
Bear the Spirit's Fruits and Keep in Step with Him
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit." (Galatians 5 verses 22 to 25)
Make Sure We Don't Quench or Grieve Him
"Do not quench the Spirit" (1 Thessalonians 5 verse 19)
"And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption." (Ephesians 4 verse 30)
As we begin to do these things and follow the Spirit's promptings, we will learn how to better balance rest and work. This looks different for each of us and may even look different as we enter different life seasons.
First Corinthians 10 verse 31 reminds us: "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
Don't miss this. If you rest, do it for the glory of God. If you work, do it for the glory of God. This is a life well lived.
CHAPTER 9 - USING YOUR GIFTS
"As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace." 1 Peter 4 verse 10
If you have been in the church for very long at all, chances are you have heard the term "spiritual gifts". Many believers have an incomplete - if no wrong - view of spiritual gifts. Knowing what spiritual gifts are and identifying our spiritual gifts helps us know how to prioritize tasks and walk in obedience to the Lord. It also helps us know when to say no and allow others to step up to use their gifts.
What are spiritual gifts?
"Spiritual gifts are a divine, supernatural ability, given by God at the time of salvation (which is when one receives the Holy Spirit). These spiritual gifts are revealed, developed and matured over the course of the believer's lifetime, in accordance with God's timing and in conjunction with the believer's desire and obedience to discover and develop their individual gifts. Spiritual gifts are given to every individual believer, without merit, enabling them to serve, to motivate, and to facilitate their service in the body of Christ. All to the glory of God!" Paula Vawter
The Greek word used in 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12 and 1 Peter 4 for "gifts" is charisma. The root of this word is charis, which means "grace". These words in the original language mean each of our giftings comes from God. They are not anything we could achieve or obtain on our own; instead, they truly are gifts. As gifts, they are to be used for the building up of the body of Christ.
These are more than just natural talents or skills. You can look around and easily identify people who can do amazing things. There are incredible artists, athletes, scholars who have immense talents. But this doesn't necessarily mean they have or are using spiritual gifts.
Everyone has some sort of talent, but only believers possess the Holy Spirit. This means only believers have spiritual gifts. And unlike talents that may be used for entertainment or personal gain, spiritual gifts are to be used for the common good (1 Corinthians 12 verse 7), to serve one another (1 Peter 4 verse 10) and for the equipping of the saints (Ephesians 4 verses 12 and 13). Talents typically impact the here and now while spiritual gifts have an impact from now into eternity.
A list of different gifts found in Romans 12 verses 3 to 13, 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4 verses 1 to 16 and 1 Peter 4 verses 10 and 11 includes the following:
Administration
Apostleship
Discernment
Evangelism
Exhortation
Faith
Giving
Healing
Helping
Hospitality
Interpretation of tongues
Intercession
Knowledge
Leadership
Mercy
Miracles
Music
Prophecy
Service
Shepherding
Speaking in tongues
Teaching
Wisdom
"For the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot should say, 'Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body', that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear should say 'Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body' that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body."
1 Corinthians 12 verses 14 to 20
So often we become busy and overcommitted and stretched too thin because we're trying to be an eye when God has instead gifted us with hearing. Knowing and understanding our giftings frees us to be the ear and stop trying to be the eye too. God in his sovereignty has distributed gifts perfectly to accomplish his purposes. It's our job to creatively explore and ultimately embrace what we've been given and use it for his glory. God wants us to slow down, identify our gifts, and start asking him how he wants us to use them for the building up of the body.
But how do we know what our spiritual gifts are?
Ask God
Right before Paul dismisses spiritual gifts in Romans, he writes this in Romans 12 verses 1 and 2
"I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect."
If you want to know what your spiritual gifts are, offer yourself to God. Spend time in the Word. Seek him in prayer. In this, you'll be able to discern what God's will is for your life and what gifts he's graciously given to you.
You have been given your particular gifts for a purpose. Don't neglect them, hide behind them, covet other gifts, or use them to bring attention to yourself instead of God. Instead, take some time to surrender any way your gifts might not fit into your plan, and instead ask God how he wants you to use them to step into the role he's purposed for you.'
What is my role?
In your current season of life, what would you say your job is? Your calling? Your role? Your purpose?
These questions are multifaceted and to be completely honest more murky than I'd like. It's not always easy for us to define what it is we are supposed to do. To complicate it further, oftentimes what the world would demand of us is a far cry from what God asks of us.
As believers, we all have a united purpose in fulfilling the Great Commission to "go therefore and make disciples" (Matthew 28 verse 19). But we also have individual roles and tasks God assigns to each of us. It's important for us to know and recognize what God is specifically asking of us so we will again know how to "stay in our lane."
We have been given specific roles for a unified purpose: to glorify God, build up the body and make disciples. In the same way, we have different spiritual gifts, we also have different roles. Again, if we all did the same thing it would make for a pretty ineffective witness.
This doesn't only apply to gender-specific roles or just to marriage or parenting; we see it in the jobs of ministries we have, the opportunities God gives us and in the life circumstances around us. Keep in mind, as seasons of life change and we mature, our callings/jobs/roles will change and develop with us. In addition, as we grow in our relationship with the Lord, he provides avenues for us to further explore and use our gifts in different ways.
In 1967, Martin Luther King Jr famously delivered a speech at a junior high in Pennsylvania answering the question "What is your life's blueprint?" At one point, he says this:
If it falls your lot to be a street sweeper, sweep streets like Michelangelo painted pictures, sweep streets like Leontyne Price sings before the Metropolitan Opera. Sweep streets like Shakespeare wrote poetry. Sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will have to pause and say: Here lived a great street sweeper who swept his job well.
Whatever role God has given you, whatever job he has set before you, and whatever he has called you to do, do it to the best of your ability for the glory of God.
Know when to say yes
When we are aware of our spiritual gifts and know what role God has called us to fulfill, it makes knowing what it is we are supposed to do with our days much clearer. Look for opportunities to say yes when you know it will allow you to use your gifts. Tackle projects and tasks within your job or role with joy, knowing you're doing what it is God has called you to do. And at every point, be open to the Spirits promptings to redirect or lead you as he wills.
A few practical ways to put these principles into practice ...
Identify your spiritual gifts
Use one of more of the ways to know your spiritual gifts from above and start asking God what your gifts are. Ask for wisdom and discernment and open your ears and heart to hear from him.
Find one way to use your gift
Start small, but be intentional in looking for service opportunities in your church or community where you can put your gifts to use. If you have spiritual gift of hospitality, invite a new family to your home this week. If you have the spiritual gift of music, see if there's an opportunity for you to serve on the worship team. If you have the spiritual gift of shepherding, consider starting a discipleship group or meeting regularly with someone around you to intentionally discuss spiritual things.
Be a Great Street Sweeper
No matter how menial, redundant, or insignificant your role may fee, it has great potential to be a spiritual act of obedience and worship to God. Ask God to change your heart your heart and equip you to be a great wife/surgeon/artist/businesswoman/teacher/homemaker/street sweeper for his glory.
Knowing that God has given us spiritual gifts and a role to fulfill changes everything. You don't have to do it all. Instead, do what God has laid before you today: nothing more, nothing less.
CHAPTER 10 - SURRENDER CONTROL
"But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, 'You are my God.' My times are in your hands." Psalm 31 verses 14 and 15
Control and hurry are two sides of the same sword. Both reveal a lack of trust in the sovereignty and faithfulness of the Lord and instead take on a "me" mindset - a mindset that says my agenda, my plans, and my desires are more important than the bigger picture of God's eternal work.
How do you react when you feel like you've lost control over a situation in your life? Are you quick to surrender and submit to the Lord's will? Or as I did, do you hold on for dear life and try to manipulate situations with little or no success?
Control is more of an illusion than a reality. We think it's something we can obtain or hold on to, but it will always be outside of our grasp.
Margin at its core, involves conceding control. As we create intentional time for the Lord to use us, we ultimately surrender the illusion of control we think we have over our days. This is a call to sacrifice the control we cling to and replace it with a faith and a trust that acknowledges the Lord alone holds our future.
We have examples of people in the bible who have learned to lay this desire down at the feet of Jesus.
If there's someone in the New Testament who epitomizes the picture of living hurried and desperately trying to remain in control, it would be Martha. Luke 10 verses 38 to 42.
As I studied this story through the lens of control, the Lord revealed so much more depth in the hearts of these women: depths I've seen mirrored back in my own heart.
First off, it's important for us to understand who these 2 sisters were before we start evaluating their actions. We see a little more of their stories and their character in John 11 and 12. We learn they live in Bethany and have a brother named Lazarus, Many theologians believe Martha was the oldest sibling, then Mary and then Lazarus. We also learn a little about them individually.
Martha's faith was put on display in John 11 verses 20 to 27. After her brother had died, Martha met Jesus and acknowledged his power over death, his power to resurrect and confessed Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world." These are big words of devotion and faith in the middle of Jesus' ministry when many were still unsure of who he was. Martha also welcomed Jesus into her home back in the Luke passage and spent time serving him - both of which were acts of love toward her Saviour.
Mary also displayed great faith, just in different ways than Martha. When Martha went to meet Jesus after Lazarus' death, Mary stayed in the house mourning. But when she got up and went a little later, she fell at the feet of Jesus. In fact, we see her at Jesus' feet multiple times in these few passages. Mary even anointed his feet with expensive perfume and wiped them with her hair in John 12 verse 3. During these days, the act of sitting at someone's feet was an act of submission. Like an apprentice who acknowledged the expertise of their teacher, sitting at one's feet displayed a desire to learn from them and to follow their lead.
Both Martha and Mary clearly loved Jesus and followed him as disciples, which is part of what makes Martha's need for control, so relatable. She wasn't seeking to live apart from Jesus and she wasn't intentionally choosing a path of sin, she just had missed what was most important: Jesus above everything.
When Jesus arrived at her house, Martha understandably became distracted with trying to make everything perfect for him.
What is wrong is when distraction and control turn our hearts bitter and angry, or we are trying to impress our guests, rather than serve them.
Martha became critical of Mary and even frustrated with Jesus for his inaction. Look at her words to Jesus "And she went up to him and said, 'Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.'" (Luke 10 verse 40)
Can you hear the annoyance and accusation in her voice? I wasn't there, and we don't have documentation of every minute leading up to this conversation, but I have a feeling this anger had been building and burning in her heart. Each minute that Mary sat while Martha cleaned, served and prepared gave her more fuel for the fire.
Examine Jesus' response though:
"But the Lord answered, 'Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.'" (Luke 10 verses 41 and 42)
"Only one thing is necessary." What was the one thing? Time at the feet of Jesus.
It comes down to this: If you claim Jesus as Lord but attempt to boss him around, you aren't surrendering to his lordship over your life.
When like Martha our attempt to control even good things (like welcoming Jesus into your house) becomes a priority over abiding with our Saviour, it's time to slow down and reprioritize.
This is what we learn from David in Psalm 31.
David knew what it was to wait on the Lord, to surrender his control, and to trust that the Lord's purposes were greater. From tending sheep as a shepherd to ruling over Israel as king, David experienced God's faithfulness and sovereignty. And in the midst of trouble, here was his cry: "But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, 'You are my God.' My times are in your hand." (Psalm 31 verses 14 and 15)
We can't add a single minute to our life, or control the number of our days, but we can surrender to the One who can. This surrender brings peace and freedom. If we trust God is who he says he is, there is no better place to be than in the hand of God.
Later in David's life when he took an unauthorized census, God let him choose his punishment from 3 options: 3 years of famine, fleeing from his enemies for 3 months, or 3 days of pestilence, the one he ultimately chose (2 Samuel 24). I love that he chose the one that set him firmly in God's hand.
"I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercy is great; but let me not fall into the hand of man." (2 Samuel 24 verse 14)
What about you? Are you striving to trust God wholeheartedly despite the ongoing struggle of the flesh to control? Are you making choices to daily surrender your desire for control to him? Have you considered the peace and freedom that is yours when you choose to stand firm in the sovereign hands of the Lord? He is merciful and holds your time in his hand.
How do we do this in the day-to-day though? What does it look like to make decisions that reflect our faith in God's sovereignty?
We ask God to enable us, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to surrender our desire for control to him as a habit or way of life.
At times, decision-making has paralyzed me. What if I make the wrong choice? What if this isn't what God has for me? I even see this manifest in small choices throughout my day.
Often this "analysis paralysis" is rooted in a deeper fear of losing control. It's a heart issue that reveals deep-seated pride. It exposes my wrong belief that I can somehow "mess up" God's plan. Not only is this belief a lie, but it actually hinders my witness, weakens my faith, and seeks to place limits on a limitless God.
The story of Samson. Samson wanted to marry a Philistine woman, which was in direct disobedience of the Law. As we tend to do when our kids are making a poor decision, his parents objected and offered alternative solutions (in this case, marry any Israelite woman).
But then Scripture says this: "His father and mother didn't realize the Lord was at work in this, creating an opportunity to work against the Philistines, who ruled over Israel at that time." (Judges 14 verse 4)
God had bigger plans for Samson's choice. His poor decision wasn't going to affect God's purposes. In fact, God was going to use it to accomplish them!
Often in scripture we see God bringing about his will despite the sin nature in the heart of men. Even still, there is no wisdom in presuming upon God's grace and sovereignty by making willfully poor choices. Even Paul asks in Romans 6 verses 1 and 2 "Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?"
Yes, our decisions have consequences and yes, we should always seek wisdom from God in making them, but decision-making should not lead to fear. God desires to use us knowing full well his purposes will ultimately be accomplished! He is sovereign, in control of all things all the time.
We can feel vulnerable and be tempted to doubt God's word when we don't fully understand it. This is the time to be even more mindful of the ways we grasp for the illusion of control. Instead, this actually presents an opportunity for us to trust him more.
So if decision-making shouldn't bring fear but still has to be done, how can we make the best decision, while still surrendering control? A few practical steps ...
Intimately know what God commands
If a choice that would directly go against God's Word is an option, the decision should be easy to make - our answer is no, even if that choice may seem momentarily appealing. However, this means we not only need to know what the bible says, but we also need to be attentive to the Spirit's promptings.
Love People
When faced with a decision that seems to be in a gray zone or hard to make, pause and determine how it will affect those around you. Will it cause harm to anyone, even if it's just to their feelings? Will it cause a brother or sister weaker or younger in the faith to stumble? Could it harm your witness? If so, take heed!
Seek Wisdom
God promises us wisdom if we will seek it. Run to his word. Ask other believers who have walked similar paths before you. Pray for discernment. Wisdom always provides clarity.
Take a Step
If the decision in front of you doesn't go against God's commands, doesn't harm those around you, and has been wisely evaluated, then take a step and ask God to clearly open and close doors.
We can confidently make the decisions in front of us if we recognize and submit to God at every point.
Relinquish Control
Giving up control is hard. But knowing who is in control makes it a little easier. There is great freedom and goodness that comes with living in submission to the Lord's will.
In The Cost of Control, Sharon Hodde Miller expresses it this way: "The only time in human history when perfect freedom and peace existed in the world was not the absence of boundaries, but within them."
Just like choosing to eat from the tree in the garden of Eden, control may seem appealing. But also like the choice to take the fruit from the tree, it leads to destruction. it will always demand more power, more knowledge and more self-centered thinking.
Here's the beauty though: when we hand over the little control we think we have to an Almighty God we gain the freedom and the peace he intends for us. The confines are there for our good. Control opposes limits but submission recognizes the freedom of boundaries.
Here are practical applications and processes to implement ...
Prioritize the "one necessary thing"
Just like Mary, choose to sit at the feet of Jesus. Spend time dwelling on his sovereignty, laying down your fears and anxieties, and confessing your desire to control what you shouldn't. This may involve time in the word, prayer, silence or even listening to worship music. Don't let the temporary get in the way of the significant.
Know who holds you in his hand
It's not belittling or self-deprecating to recognize how small you are and how big God is. You have great value to God, but you are not big enough or powerful enough to even put a dent in his plans or purposes. Recognize who he is and who you are when you try to control circumstances around you.
Practice wise decision-making
Start practicing wise decision-making with the small things, so you'll be prepared when big decisions stand before you. Know his commands, love people, seek wisdom and then take a step.
PART THREE - CONSIDER YOUR WAYS
Chapter 11 - Little by Little
"For everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid foot is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil." Hebrews 5 verses 13 and 14
As a follower of Jesus, I also need to grow as I walk through different spiritual seasons.
This growth, including the growth necessary to live unhurried, surrendering our plans for his purposes, is a process. One we must take step by step.
Here, the author of Hebrews almost scolds his Jewish-Christian audience for their lack of maturity. He writes they should be teachers by this point, but instead need to be taught (chapter 5 verse 12). They are still drinking milk when instead they should eat solid food. Their lives are marked by stagnation and spiritual immaturity.
The bible is a believer's guidebook for developing spiritual maturity. As you are spending time in the word, are you developing skills in better recognizing the differences between what God says is right and wrong? Are you drinking milk when you should be eating meat? Have you grown to the point where you're seeking to consistently place the Lord's priorities over your plans?
The beauty of growth is that it doesn't happen immediately.
Growth is a hard-fought process defined by Christ-centered determination and dependence on the One who is our foundation and source of strength. It is a moment-by-moment decision to pursue things of the Lord instead of things of the world. Growth is slow, steady and only truly visible on the other side of the season.
When it comes to living unhurried, it's important to realize this type of growth also happens over time. Unless we pack our bags and move to a monastery overnight (which I don't recommend), our lives won't naturally slow down. we must make choices and changes day by day, moment by moment.
The good news is, according to God's word, one step of obedience after another is glorifying and honouring to him.
Often in the Old Testament, the Lord gave instructions to his people one step at a time. it was only when they had completed the step that they knew what to do next.
Shortly after the death of Moses, Joshua assumed command of the Israelites who had been wandering in the desert, and the Lord gave him instruction to cross the Jordan River and enter the promised land.
Joshua knew enemies awaited him beyond the river, but he also knew this land was promised to his people. But the first step to conquering and living in the place God had designed for them was to cross the river.
"So when the people set out from their tents to pass over the Jordan with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, and as soon as those bearing the ark had come as far as the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the brink of the water (now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest) the waters coming down from above stood and rose up in a heap very far away ... And the people passed over opposite Jericho." (Joshua 3 verses 14 to 16)
It was only when the feet of the priests were dipped in the water that the water stopped flowing.
Scripture doesn't tell us if those priests were reluctant or fearful or hesitant, but it does tell us their feet had to enter the water first. It's the first dipping of a toe that displays true obedience. They were willing to step in, trusting the Lord would make a way even as the water flowed.
Dipping your toe into an unhurried life could look like:
- Setting a timer to spend several minutes in prayer each morning before reaching for your phone.
- Saying no to just one thing this week,
- Initiating a conversation with a friend at a time that feels inconvenient for you.
- Scheduling one hour of "free" time. Or, in other words, designating a time to be open to whatever God has for you.
- Choosing the longest line at the grocery store and praying for the people in front of you.
These aren't massive life changes or drastic measures to take, but they are small steps of obedience that reflects growth and a desire to pursue God's purposes above your own.
Shortly after the Israelites crossed the Jordan, they found themselves facing yet another huge obstacle: Jericho.
Pastor Alan Carr described the city: "Jericho is known as the oldest city in the world. In Joshua's day, it was surrounded by a system of 2 massive stone walls. The outer wall was 6 feet thick and about 20 feet high. The inner wall was about 12 feet thick and was 30 feet high. Between the walls was a guarded walkway about 15 feet wide. Israel's problem was that they had a city to conquer, but there were some extremely huge walls in the way."
The Israelites had seen God do miraculous things, like stop the water of the Jordan, and knew God provided this land but the obstacle in front of them was huge. Some of them were no doubt fearful, uncertain and even confused about if this was really what God had planned.
But God told Joshua, "See I have given Jericho into your hand" (Joshua 6 verse 2). Now, the people just had to decide if they were going to obey. The people were to march around the city for 6 days, and then march around the city 7 times on the seventh day. Then they were to shout loudly and if they did this, God promised "the wall of the city will fall down flat" (Joshua 6 verse 5).
This was all the information they had. God asked them to obey, not dependent on their feelings in the moment or their personal desires, but on their devotion to him.
The walls of Jericho only fell because the people chose obedience step after step. Each day they had to wake up and choose to walk. God had told them what he would do, but their obedience was required.
So often, God's timing is not our timing. We've looked at how he's sovereign and we've seen how his ways are best, but if we are truly going to live like we know this to be true, we have to take the steps. One day after another, we have to march, trusting God will do what he says he will do.
This is the process of becoming like Jesus.
"Sanctification" simply means the ongoing transformation of our hearts and lives to become like Jesus. It's the process of being made holy. But it's just that: a process.
Salvation (sometimes called positional sanctification or justification) happens the moment you admit to Jesus you're a sinner, believe Jesus is the Son of God and confess your faith in him as Lord of your life (John 3 verse 16). For the one who genuinely makes this profession and experiences true heart change, at that very moment, your eternity with the Lord is secured forever (John 10 verses 28 and 29).
Sanctification (or progressive sanctification) is the process of becoming holy or like Jesus. From our salvation until the time Jesus calls us home, this is where we are (Philippians 1 verse 6).
Glorification (or perfect sanctification) is a one-time event that will happen when we stand before God, holy because of the blood of Jesus (Philippians 3 verses 20 and 21).
It's progressive sanctification that requires us to move forward gradually, recognizing that little steps, with our eyes on Jesus, are actually big decisions in becoming more and more like Christ.
"Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3 verses 12 to 14)."
This is the same Paul whose mission was sharing the gospel. He knew he couldn't and wouldn't ever fully obtain the righteousness of Christ while he was on this earth, because he's not Christ. And neither are we? Absolutely not. There is joy in following Jesus!
Paul "strained forward to what lies ahead" and "pressed on toward the goal" because the "prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" is worth it.
The little decisions to pursue Christlikeness are birthed out of a deep love for him. Once we realize the magnitude of what Jesus has done for us, we will want to live our lives as a reflection of that same love.
People do not drift towards holiness. Apart from grace-drive effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer and obedience to scripture, faith and delight in the Lord. We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slid toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated. D A Carson, For the Love of God
Are you drifting? This is one of the reasons why it's so crucial we slow down and remove the distractions we are so prone to dwell on.
What does it look like to be "spiritually mature"?
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law." Galatians 5 verses 22 and 23
Spiritual maturity comes when we keep our eyes on eternity and choose small steps of obedience day by day. These daily acts of obedience are not insignificant or meaningless; they are small, necessary steps in a larger walk marked by faith and Christlikeness.
Here are a few practical steps ...
Pick up a Fork
Remember how Paul accused the new believers of continuing to drink milk when they should be eating meat? If you are stuck in a similar pattern, it's time to put down the milk, pick up a fork and start eating meat, bite by bite. This means you stop depending on others to spiritually feed you. Listening to your pastor preach or your Sunday school teacher teach you on Sunday mornings is not enough. What are you doing to learn more about who Jesus is and how he wants you to live? Spend time in the Word, draw near to him in prayer and abide with him throughout your day. This will begin to nourish your soul and give you strength for the mission at hand.
Dip Your Toe
Another way to pursue spiritual maturity is to start by dipping your toe, just like the priests did. Focus on one spiritual discipline and then another. Don't try to do it all. Instead, ask God what one thing he wants you to do to become more like him today or this week. This too is part of the process.
Start Marching
If you want to continue in the process of becoming holy, you've got to start and keep marching into the calling he has on your life. God asked the Israelites to take step after step as an act of obedience. We too, need to take steps of obedience. Our daily marching can look different depending on our circumstances or season of life. God understands the struggles, weaknesses and temptations that challenge our ability and desire to march, and he meets us there with grace in our time of need (Hebrews 4 verses 15 and 16). The sweetest part is he's with us when we are tired or hurt or discouraged, offering his strength if we will rely fully on him. So take one step and then another and then another. You are not alone!
Chapter 12 - Know When to Hurry
"Behold, now is the favourable time: behold, now is the day of salvation." 2 Corinthians 6 verse 2
Slowing down, creating margin and resting in the Lord is biblical, foundational and what this book is about. But what if we need to know how to hurry too? How can we learn to slow down if we don't also know how and when to hurry well?
In 1 Samuel 25, we read the story of a discerning woman named Abigail and her harsh, badly behaved husband, Nabal.
After the death of Samuel, David and his men were in the wilderness of Paran and in need of food and water. Previously they had been alongside Nabal's shepherds and had treated them well, so when David sent his men to ask Nabal for provisions, he also expected to be treated graciously. However, that's not what happened.
Instead Nabal insulted David and his lineage, disregarded the kindness shown to his shepherds, and selfishly refused to provide for David's men. As a result, David and his men prepared to go to battle against Nabal.
When Abigail heard what was happening, she acted wisely, courageously and hurriedly. "Then Abigail made haste and took two hundred loaves and two skins of wine and five sheep already prepared and five seahs of parched grain and a hundred clusters of raisins and two hundred cakes of figs and laid them on donkeys. And she said to her young men, 'Go on before me; behold, I come after you. But she did not tell her husband Nabal" (1 Samuel 25 verses 18 and 19).
As soon as Abigail reached David, she "hurried and got down from the donkey" (verse 23), bowed before him, took ownership and begged for forgiveness. David responded in this way:
"Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me! Blessed be your discretion, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodguilt and from working salvation with my own hand! For as surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, who has restrained me from hurting you, unless you had hurried and come to meet me, truly by morning there had not been left to Jabal so much as one male." (1 Samuel 25 verses 32 to 34)
The story ends with God striking Nabal down and Abigail humbly and willingly becoming David's wife.
Abigail's hurry righted a wrong, helped to prevent further sin and wrongdoing and changed her life's trajectory. She rightly acted with urgency.
However, if there's anything to be learned from Abigail's hurry, it's that wisdom and discretion accompanied it.
Even before we learn of Abigail's act, scripture describes her as "discerning" (verse 3). Discerning is defined as "showing insight and understanding." She didn't allow being married to a wicked, foolish man influence her ability to practice wisdom, understanding, and righteousness. We don't know her full story, but we do know the Lord helped her decide right from wrong, truth from lies in this situation.
So when she learned of Nabal's sin, she was able to wisely discern the right course of action, and then do it quickly.
Do you often react without gathering all the facts? Do you make rash decisions without first seeking wisdom or guidance? Do you hurry so often that everything always feels urgent?
If so, it may be time to stop and ask the Lord for discernment.
1 Thessalonians 5 verse 21 commands us to "test everything; hold fast what is good." Testing often requires time, facts and wisdom; however, the resulting action can be done quickly and with urgency if it is of the Lord.
Abigail shows us the value of pairing hurry with discernment and the need to hurry in order to correct a wrong, but are there other reasons to hurry? What else does the word of God say about acting with urgency?
The bible gives us 3 clear categories of times to practice hurry. Hopefully as we understand these and apply them to our lives, we will be marked by righteous urgency instead of busyness.
Sharing the Gospel
In scripture, the first and most prevalent reason we see to hurry is spiritual urgency. Without question, sharing the gospel should take priority over our schedules, time and agendas because people's spiritual destinations are always at stake.
But what does it actually mean to "share the gospel". First and foremost, it encompasses sharing the basics of salvation and the good news of Jesus Christ. Even more than that though, sharing the gospel is an intentional lifestyle where we are making the most of every opportunity the Lord puts before us. Sometimes we plant seeds by teaching others about who Jesus is. Other times we water as we walk through life with someone pointing them to a relationship with Jesus. I know this can create pressure, but remember, ultimately God is the one who calls a sinner to salvation (1 Corinthians 3 verses 6 and 7). It's a privilege that he chooses to use us, so stay alert and willing.
When it comes to sharing the gospel, our job is obedience in sharing, no matter the outcome.
In John 9 verse 4 |Jesus explained spiritual urgency to his disciples like this "We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work."
Here's what it boils down to:
We must work while it's day. This means right now, while we are alive and able to share with those around us. We have a job to do and limited time to do it. How will you use the time you have?
Night is coming. Whether through death or Jesus' return, a time is coming when it will be too late. It's inevitable. And once night is here, we won't have more daylight to accomplish the tasks we wish we would've done. Faithfully act while there's still time.
Christian theologian Carl F H Henry put it like this, "The gospel is only good news if it gets there in time."
Sharing the gospel will often involve putting God's purposes over your plans. He desires everyone to know him and choose to follow him (1 Timothy 2 verses 3 and 4) and he desires to use you. It might not always be comfortable and definitely won't always be convenient, but it will always be worth it.
"How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!;" Romans 10 verses 14 and 15
You have the good news! Share it regularly. Share it faithfully. Share it now. "Behold now is the favourable time; behold now is the day of salvation" (2 Corinthians 6 verse 2)
Another reason for urgency we see outlined in scripture is obedience. God speaks strongly about the importance of obeying him in his word. Here are few examples:
"If you love me, you will keep my commandments" (John 14 verse 15)
"Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord' and not do what I tell you?" (Luke 6 verse 46)
"For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments, And his commandments are not burdensome" (1 John 5 verse 3)
Our obedience is founded on our love for him. When we have an abiding, intimate relationship with him, we will want to do as he asks, not just when it's convenient, but immediately.
Scripture is full of examples of people who are quick to obey. We regularly see phrases like: "On that very day ..." "Immediately ..." or "At once ..."
"While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, 'Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.' Immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him." Matthew 4 verses 18 to 22
Fishing was their livelihood. It's likely what they had done for the majority of their lives. It was comfortable, familiar and their means of provision. And yet, scripture doesn't record any hesitation. They didn't ask how long they might be gone or what they should do with their boats. They didn't question if they were financially able to take a little work break or if they had the skills to do what Jesus might need them to do. Instead, they obeyed immediately. And this obedience changed both their present and their future.
Obedience isn't always easy. It is always better, whether we can see God's "why" behind asking now or not.
Even in this, there's grace. Yest, God wants us to obey immediately, but when we choose disobedience, this doesn't necessarily mean it's too late. He is a God of forgiveness. Sometimes the opportunity may have passed, but this gives us an opportunity to learn, repent, and ask God for future opportunities. And sometimes the opportunity is still there. Don't delay obedience any longer. We should repent of our feet dragging and quickly move forward to obedience.
We don't need to live hurried lives but when God speaks, we would be wise to obey with urgency. Don't wait, he knows what he's doing!
Friendship has looked different in different seasons of my life. At times, friendship has been hard to come by, but other times, the Lord has blessed me with close friends. During these seasons of abundance, my friendships seem to be forged through both our faith in the Lord and walking through similar circumstances.
Share the Gospel Today
Ask God to give you opportunities to talk about him. Know that the way you live out your life (both in the mundane and the difficult) around unbelievers can have an eternally significant impact. There will never be a better time than today to share the gospel. You aren't guaranteed tomorrow so don't wait! Call a friend or family member the Lord has laid on your heart, get lunch with an unbelieving co-worker, or be bold enough to share with a stranger at the park. Jesus is worth it!
Right a Wrong
Be quick to acknowledge your sins and shortcomings and work to make them right. If you know there's a wrong that you've needed to right and have put it off, today's the day to pursue reconciliation. Quickly do what needs to be done so you can maintain your gospel witness and model true humility and repentance.
Hurry itself isn't the problem. In fact, God tells us to act with urgency under the right circumstances. Align your heart and life with him so you'll confidently know when to halt and when to hurry.
Chapter 13 - A Day in the Life: Creating a Schedule that makes room
"Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes." James 4 verse 14
Bema Discipleship - Trust the Story. Host Marty Solomon walks through the creation account in Genesis 1. After each day of creation, the text reads "There was evening and there was morning - the X day."
Marty explains that even though listing the evening before morning in this refrain is a little strange to us, it would have made perfect sense to a Jewish audience because, unlike our day, the Jewish day begins at sunset. That in itself is interesting, but what he explained next truly shifted my perspective.
He explains that the Jewish day begins when the sun goes down as a reminder from God to his people that their day doesn't begin with production, it begins with rest.
Marty even emphasized that this means their day doesn't begin with getting out of bed and thinking about everything that needs to be done that day.
Marty takes it one step further. He explains that starting the day with rest is a reminder that our identity doesn't lie in what we do, but in who God created us to be. Our rate or level of production has little value to God who created us in his image.
Using this perspective and keeping in mind all we've learned about hurry and surrender up until this point, let's take a look at a few practical examples of a day designed with margin.
God has made us each different and has laid different paths before us. The need to slow down and be in tune with the Spirit's leading is a command to all believers (John 16 verse 13), no matter life stage, mindset, or amount of "free" time.
Use Your Schedule To Set a Spiritual Schedule
You are locked into a schedule. You can't just not show up for work when you're scheduled to be there. However, because you know this, you can work around and within that pre-existing schedule.
Chapter 14 - Grace upon Grace: What happens if I start to Hurry Again?
"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and calamities. For when I am weak then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12 verses 9 and 10
Is there a sinful tendency you regularly go back to when life starts to get a little out of hand? Do you feel as if it's the fastest and easiest way to truly get what you want
What happens if I start to hurry again?
But there's a second, even more important question that follows. Do I truly believe God's grace enough? Grace is commonly defined as the unmerited favour of God toward us, and it is the foundation of the gospel.
It's here, in this reality of grace upon grace, that the Lord has given peace, assurance and a sense of completion. We're not alone. Once again, scripture is our guide as we study examples of people who also struggled with this return to old ways.
If there is anyone in the bible who had to completely turn from his old ways to pursue the things of God, it was Paul. He went from relentlessly persecuting Christians to becoming one of the boldest believers in all of history. However, he gives us insight into this battle between his old and new ways in Romans 7.
Paul writes to believers in Rome about the relationship between sin and the law, and as he does, he expresses the tension between following Jesus and living in the flesh.
"For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate ... For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing." Romans 7 verses 15, 18 and 19
You can almost hear the desperation and frustration in his voice. He wants to do what is good and right and pleasing to the Lord and yet doesn't have the ability to carry it out. Instead, he gives in to those sinful tendencies, repeatedly caught in this chasm between living a godly life and walking in the way of the world.
How often do you start your day with the best of intentions only to be derailed by something not in your plan? Or do you ever find yourself falling back into the same negative thought patterns or lifestyle habits that you've worked so hard to change?
The good news is Paul doesn't stop at this tension. Here's the hope he offers: "Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!" (Romans 7 verses 24 and 25)
Don't miss this! Yes we are wretched. Yes, we will continue to daily and even hourly battle our flesh. And yes, the bodies we are living in are bodies of death. But we have a Deliverer. The blood of Jesus is enough and his grace covers even our most stubborn sins!
This is the truth we must remember when the pace of our lives speeds up, when we fail to create margin, and when our plans start to take priority in our hearts. Stop and repent, knowing his grace covers this too!
Be honest with the Lord. Pursue intimacy with him. It's much easier to surrender your will to his when you start by honestly telling him what your will, desires and plans are.
Like Paul, we must keep waging war. We must keep disciplining ourselves to keep our flesh under control (1 Corinthians 9 verse 27). It's the "how" we must figure out.
When it comes to waging spiritual war against our flesh, we too must return again and again to the basics. Here are a few fundamentals.
Be Aware of Sin Tendencies
This world is broken. If you've turned the TV on or scrolled social media for even a few minutes in recent days, you can probably recount awful, evil, heart-wrenching stories of this world's brokenness. However, the truth is, if we take a few minutes to examine our own hearts, we will find the same brokenness and sin patterns there too.
For example, when we knowingly choose to prioritize our plans over the Lord's purposes, we pave a pathway for sin. When we fail to create margin in our lives and tune out the Spirit's leading, we create opportunities for sin. When we rush around blind to everything but our own to-do lists, we are flirting on the edge of disobedience and sin.
Some days the weight of it all feels overwhelming.
In Romans 8, Paul writes that "the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now." (Romans 8 verse 22) He explains how we have hope in Christ and wait eagerly for his return, but in the meantime, we suffer and groan as both internal and external brokenness avails. While we remain in this body of flesh, there will be an ongoing tension between the flesh and the Spirit. As a result, we long for relief and freedom; the redemption of our bodies from the temptations of the world (Romans 8 verse 23)
So what should we do? How do we respond?
We should choose bitterness, callousness, anger, fear, frustration and sorrow. Or we could obey the truth of scripture and repent and lament.
Repent
"Or do you have no regard for the wealth of his kindness and tolerance and patience (in withholding his wrath)? Are you (actually) unaware or ignorant (of the fact) that God's kindness leads you to repentance (that is, to change your inner self, your old way of thinking - seek his purpose for your life)"? (Romans 2 verse 4)
We serve a good, kind and patient God. He is one who can take the brokenness and make it whole. But Paul reminded the church in Romans that their response (and our response) to his kindness should be repentance. He also reminds the church at Corinth that it is godly sorrow that leads us to repentance (2 Corinthians 7 verses 10 and 11).
A recognition of our sin is not the same thing as the undue shame and guilt we put on ourselves in an effort to keep up; instead, it's an awareness of the things we do that break God's heart.
When we encounter the Spirit's conviction and experience godly sorrow, we repent by turning away from our sin and walking forward in obedience to him. So when we start to hurry we slow down. And when we start to ignore promptings from the Spirit, we stop, create margin and listen intently.
Lament
In a Desiring God article, Pastor Mark Vroegop writes,
Lament prayers take faith. Talking to God instead of getting sinfully angry or embittered requires biblical conviction. Laying out the messy struggles of your soul and then asking - again and again - for God to help you requires a solid theological mooring. Laments turn toward God when sorrow tempts you to run from him.
Lament is a passionate expression of grief or sorrow. It's a mourning and deep grief over something. As believers, our lament is a prayer to the only one who has power over the brokenness and who is able to comfort us in our grief. Why and how do we lament well?
Why do we lament?
To mourn the brokenness (Matthew 5 verse 4, James 4 verse 9)
It's ok to be upset over the state of the world and/or the state of our hearts. Bring it to the Lord.
To ask for help
This is a simple admission: "God we need you." He alone can give us the help and healing we need.
To display our trust in God's sovereignty
We know the ending. The tomb is empty, Jesus has risen, and he is coming again. Until then, our lament displays the confidence we have in his plan. It is a waiting and a longing for the Lord to come and make things right; to make the broken whole again.
How do we learn to Lament?
Lament takes practice. Here are few ways to get you started:
Ask the Lord to break your heart for what breaks his: if we are going to lament, we must avoid callousness. It's not easy or painless or fun, but true lament requires us to see the world through God's eyes.
Read the Psalms: The Psalms are full of laments and songs of sorrow. If you're looking for good ones to start with, read Psalms 7, 13, 38 and 130.
Practice: Finally, just start. Come before the Lord passionately bringing your sorrow to him.
When we experience brokenness, we can choose to react emotionally, or we can choose to respond biblically - repent and lament the sin within us and around us. What will you do?
Another thing we tend to forget when we are hurried is the importance of accepting and appropriating the grace God offers, believing it is enough. Enough to cover our weaknesses and propensities toward the things of the flesh. Enough to cover the prioritization of our wants and desires. Enough to cover our fears of not getting it all done or meeting our own (or others') expectations. Enough to cover our hurry!
Ephesians 2 verses 8 and 9 says "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast."
Our salvation is by grace and through faith. When we give into temptation and return to our sinful tendencies, this is the truth we must return to. And if we preach this to ourselves, we must also teach our hearts to believe that this same grace God offers is sufficient. This means we don't have to believe and make up for it with good works or religious living or self-inflicted punishment. It means we walk forward in the freedom Christ offers through his grace.
Appropriating this grace means we step forward in faith to take hold of what is ours in Christ. It's a lifestyle involving the steadfast pursuit of God and the reliance on his strength in our weakness. It involves humbly submitting to God's providential work in our lives. And often, it means we wait patiently, asking God to refine our character, that which we have faithfully appropriated in Christ.
Paul knew the truth well and explained it to the church in Corinth. After the Lord gave Paul "a thorn in his flesh" (as a side note, we aren't sure exactly what this was, but it doesn't sound pleasant) to keep him from becoming conceited, this is what God told him.
"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Corinthians 12 verses 9 and 10)
His grace is sufficient. Our weaknesses serve to put the grace of God offers and desires for us to take hold of on display.
What does this mean for our planning, perfectionism, hurry and striving? It means we, again and again, lay them at the feet of Jesus, choose to believe his grace is sufficient and give him glory because it is.
One last foundation to return to is active, ongoing obedience. Recall that we talked about sanctification earlier.
Near the end of David's life, he starts the preparations for the building of the temple. God told David that he wouldn't be the one to build it, but instead, his son Solomon would have peace in his time so he could build a temple. In all of David's planning, we get a little glimpse into what he tells his son in 1 Chronicles 28 verse 9.
"And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the Lord searches every heart and understands every desire and every thought. If you seek hi, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. Consider now, for the Lord has chosen you to build a house as the sanctuary. Be strong and do the work."
It boils down to a single command: "Do the work."
David didn't say, "if you feel like it" or "when it's convenient"; he commanded his son to obey the Lord's purpose for his life. And for Solomon, this meant building a temple.
What does it mean for you? What is God's specific purpose and calling for you during this season? No matter what it is, it requires a wholehearted genuine surrender of your plans, feelings and desires in favour of God's purposes. It takes strength, focus, discipline and determination but the eternal reward will be sweet, and the fellowship with the Spirit will bring joy and peace.
How do we do this? Step by step, day by day, minute by minute we die to self (1 Corinthians 15 verse 31). We lay down our selfish motives, agendas, and desires and listen to the Spirit's promptings. Then, when he speaks, we quickly say, "Yes Lord!" and get to work.
Is your heart and mind and depth of your spirit? Do you believe that his grace is sufficient for you? And do you strive to live it out, even when the battle to daily surrender is fierce and full of hardship?
Until we experience freedom from this broken world either through death or Jesus' return, this will be something we fight over and again. Thankfully in Christ, we are ultimately victorious. Although we struggle with legalism, perfectionism and our flesh, scripture tells us we are no longer to be controlled by sin's power (Romans 6 verse 6). Abundant grace is found in Christ alone. His is the victory!
When you start to hurry, when you prioritize your plans over his purposes yet again, and when you fail to create margin in your life, humbly kneel before him. He offers forgiveness and grace sufficient for today. Not only that, but his embrace is tender, and his voice is full of love as he gently whispers, "Slow down again!"9
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