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Tag: hurry

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How to Eliminate Hurry

I was listening to The Ziglar Show Podcast with Kevin Miller the other day while on my daily walk. Miller interviewed John Mark Comer about his recent book, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry. Comer was leading a megachurch that was running six services each Sunday in the Portland, Oregon area. He was finding himself burnt out and unconnected with the people around him when he reached out to a mentor for advice. His mentor shared “You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life. There is nothing else.” Out of that, his book was born. The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry: Staying Emotionally Healthy and Spiritually Alive in Our Current Chaos.  

John Mark shared that he believes “Hurry is incompatible with love, joy, and peace that are at the center of Jesus’ vision for life in the Kingdom of God.” 

In this podcast, Kevin and John Mark discuss four key practices we can begin using to eliminate hurry: 

  • Silence and Solitude
  • Sabbath
  • Simplicity
  • Slowing 

I have been working on these four practices for about a year now. I still have a long way to go. Some days are difficult. I haven’t “mastered” these four practices, yet I find myself desiring to live a life more centered on Jesus. 

I would encourage you, especially during the COVID19 Crisis, to take some time and begin to slow down. Spend time in solitude and silence – choose a time of day and find a place to “Be Still”. Take time to delight in the Sabbath rest. What would happen if you would unplug from your phone for 24 hours?  Living simply shouldn’t be too difficult right now with school and all activities put on hold. How could you start to eliminate hurry in your life? 

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Grace In The Pace

little girl running

“Hurry is the great enemy of our spiritual life in our day. You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life.”  

Dallas Willard quoted in Soul Keeping

Recently when going to the airport to pick our adult children, I parked my car and hurried into the building entrance to catch the elevator. Standing there waiting for the elevator was a mom, her little girl, and a grandma. The mom said to me, “Looks like you are in a hurry!”  Stunned by her question, I said, “well, actually, I am early.” I was about 40 minutes early picking up our daughter. I nervously laughed and said, “I guess just naturally walk fast.” 

The other night I stopped by our grocery store to pick a few items. I had been gone all afternoon, traveling almost four hours round trip for a meeting with my state pastor. As I got out of the car, I noticed myself walking towards the entrance in a hurry. All of a sudden, when I got the produce department, I realized what I was doing. I purposely slowed down as I  walked through the rest of the store.

While I was sharing with my spiritual director today, I reflected on these stories. She shared something God showed her a few years ago while she was on a silent retreat at the Abby of Gethsemani.  While attending the 3:15 AM Vigils, she took notice of some of the monks coming in late, yet they didn’t seem to be in a hurry. Later, as she sat with that image, The Lord gave her the phrase “Grace in the pace”. 

GRACE IN THE PACE. WOW! That struck me. I am realizing that while I am on this journey…  God is teaching me to slow down. To look at the condition of my soul —to have grace in the pace.  

“Being hurried is an inner condition. A condition of the soul. Busyness migrates to hurry when we let it squeeze God out of our lives.”

John Ortberg, Soul Keeping

Note the difference between being “BUSY” and “HURRIED”:  

Busy

  • A full schedule 
  • Many activities
  • An outward condition
  • Physically demanding
  • Reminds me I need God

Hurried

  • Preoccupied
  • Unable to be fully present
  • An inner condition of the soul
  • Spiritually draining
  • Causes me to be unavailable to God

“Jesus was often busy, but never hurried.”

John Ortberg, Soul Keeping

Even when Jesus and his disciples had been out teaching all day, Jesus didn’t give them their next assignment and tell them to go on their way. He told them to come away with him and rest. He understood the importance of getting away and finding rest.

What about you? Are you busy? Are you hurried? Maybe God is calling you to slow down your pace. Maybe he is saying you need a little grace in your pace.