Recently I read an excellent book written by John Mark Comer, “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry.” It caused me to stop and think. Perhaps you have read this book already. If not, I encourage that this is a good read to help us in our spiritual growth as we travel this earth, anticipating eternity.
Some of the questions presented in Comer’s book are designed for us to reflect on our lives. Some of those are: Are we always in a hurry and not taking the time to stop, to think, to redirect? How are we spending our time? What is the purpose of what we do? What are we doing so emphatically that we are missing something more important? Are we caught up in the immediate, ending up tired, and having little energy for the things we want to do?
John Mark Comer writes these words of Scripture in the beginning of his book: Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light (Matthew 11.28-30).
How do we do this? Through the pages of this book Comer leads us in thinking about how hurried our lives can become and what it means to rest – to take time to regroup, to be refreshed, and to be well prepared for what is before us. When we become so hurried in our lives, we can miss the time to reflect on what is of greater importance. We can sometimes say, “if only I had more time I could rest more, I could take that time for evaluation of my life, but not now. I’ve got too much to do, too much depending on me, too much that is urgent for the right now.” I preached a sermon years ago which comes back to remind me of truth. The premise was the importance of remembering that if I don’t have enough time to do what I want to do and think I should be doing, I need to stop and think – God made me in time; God made me with purpose; and if I don’t have enough time to do what God has made me to do, something is wrong. God did not make a mistake. Therefore, it must be me. I need to refocus on what I am doing, for He always gives me enough time to accomplish His will.
After rehearsing his own life dilemma, Comer emphasizes the importance of reconstructing our lives in order to be the people God has called us to be, in the time He has given to us. He wisely provides four “practices for unhurrying” our lives and taking the yoke of Christ. These are titled, “Silence and Solitude, Sabbath, Simplicity, and Slowing Down.”
Silence and Solitude – taking time to be alone; taking time to read the Scriptures meaningfully and pray, not just fulfilling a daily obligation, but taking time to think and not just be caught up in the “do.”
Sabbath – following the principle the Lord gave in the Ten Commandments, the importance of a day of rest. God did not take the time to rest because He was tired, but rather to reflect on what He had done and to give us an example. The “Sabbath” is a time for us to stop working, to take time to not be caught up with the regular activities of the week, but to spend time reflecting on God, His creation, and His redemptive plan for our lives; to spend time with family, with friends, and fellowship in church.
Simplicity – at times our lives become very complex with all the things we are trying to accomplish in our lives; children, and adults, can be caught up with wanting to be involved in every activity, and keeping up on social media with every acquaintance. It is important to ask the question if all this is necessary in fulfilling the will of God in our lives?
Slowing Down – the old phrase that we should stop and smell the roses is a good reminder. You may not like the smell of roses, but the point is to slow down and see what is going on in our lives, to reflect on what God is doing, and to reorder our lives to focus on what matters most for today, and eternity.
John Mark Comer ends with this passage from 1 Thessalonians 4.10-11 – We urge you brothers and sisters… to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life. This is not a life that does nothing, sits recluse to wait for some great movement of the spirit. Rather, to lead a quiet life is one that is not bombarded with the noise of the world, but instead is resting in the truth of God’s Word, leading to righteousness for His glory.
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