Why You Should Slow Down to Catch Up With Jesus
Think about what your average week looks like, how do you feel most of the days? What does your schedule look like? Is there margin in it? Whether you head into an office each day of the week, work virtually, or are a stay at home mom, work from home mom, etc. I want you to ask yourself, “Am I working from a place of rest or am I working for rest?”.
I know what you might be thinking, Is slowing down biblical?
You have to follow your convictions but we should always look at Jesus’ life, He’s the best example, right? Your convictions will never contradict the gospel.
As John Mark Comer explains it in the “Fight Hustle, End Hurry” podcast on episode 7. Simplicity, Jesus lived a deliberate, on purpose life. Jesus was unhurried and present in the moment.
Jesus was very active walking and teaching throughout His ministry but He was singularly focused on advancing the gospel and everything He did flowed from that focus. John tells us in John 21:25 that Jesus did many things well BUT he was never too busy to help or notice others, to stop his travels to spend time with God in solitude.
Jesus truly sought first the Kingdom of God, His center most deliberate purpose in life was God and that shows through everything He did.
This isn’t an excuse to start saying no to everything and live in seclusion but more about what are we saying yes to than what we are saying no to. What is your main focus and what do you have to say no to, to keep the main thing, the main thing as John Mark Comer describes it. On the topic of saying yes. What are your yes’s costing you? Think time, finances, peace, mental space, etc. Do you have the resources needed to healthily commit to this?
The enemy seems to be the author of the “American Dream”. His goal is to distract you with so many seemingly good things that you begin to get overwhelmed, stressed out, and too busy so as to diminish your full effectiveness for the Kingdom.
We are people bound by multiple hobbies, goal setting, side hustles, having our kids in the best programs, sports teams, summer camps, homes full of too much stuff, Pinterest boards pinned to the max with our hopes and dreams, we are distracted and out of touch with God. and when I say we, I mean the majority of the population. None of these things are inherently bad, they can be good and I believe God gifts us with simple pleasures like hobbies and watching our kids play sports. What we have to ask ourselves is, is this just a good thing or is this a God thing? Is this thing distracting me from what God has for me?
Signs you may need to slow down and simplify:
Overwhelmed
Stressed out
No margin in schedule
Rush from one task to the next
Cluttered mind
Constantly Distracted
Every morning when I wake up I ask Holy Spirit to make my schedule. I say, “I have these plans but ultimately, God, this day is yours, do with it what you will. Open the doors you have for me today and shut the doors you want shut.” Living slow and simple also has a lot to do with our heart posture. You can rush through tasks or you can slow down and try to joyfully move through them maybe not even at a different pace but with a different mindset.
Be willing to slow down if needed, to stop rushing from one thing to the next, to give your toddler two extra minutes to try and put her shoes on by herself before rushing out the door, to stop and strike up a purposeful conversation with a coworker. This might be tough for my color coded, block schedulers out there but I have homework for you:
Write down your priorities in life with the highest at the top
Write down your current commitments
Write down your must do’s, should do’s, maybe do’s, and should not do’s.
Look at everything you’ve said yes to in your life and ask yourself, do your commitments reflect your greater purpose, do they align with your priorities? Do you have the resources to keep this in your life or schedule? If you said spending time with family was a priority but you’re too busy for date night with your husband or there’s no room to add a movie night with your kids you may need to eliminate some things to allow for that. Are you giving your deliberate and mindful attention to each of them, doing them with purpose?
Whatever you do, may it flow from living singularly focused on God giving Him praise throughout every task.
To your faith and freedom,
The Freed People
