John Ortberg writes about a chaotic time in his life:[1]
Not long after moving to Chicago, I called a wise friend to ask for some spiritual direction. I described the pace of life in my current ministry. The church where I serve tends to move at a fast clip. I also told him about our rhythms of family life: we are in the van-driving, soccer-league, piano-lesson, school-orientation-night years. I told him about the present condition of my heart, as best I could discern it. What did I need to do, I asked him, to be spiritually healthy? Long pause. “You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life,” he said at last. Another long pause. “Okay, I’ve written that one down,” I told him, a little impatiently. “That’s a good one. Now, what else is there?” I had many things to do, and this was a long-distance call, so I was anxious to cram as many units of spiritual wisdom into the least amount of time possible. Another long pause. “There is nothing else,” he said. “You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life.” I’ve concluded that my life and the well-being of the people I serve depends on following his prescription, for hurry is the great enemy of spiritual life in our day. Hurry destroys souls.
I was talking recently with a married couple. The wife had heard this story by John Ortberg. She said, somewhat tongue in cheek, “I’m trying to ruthlessly eliminate hurry from my life, but my husband won’t let me.” It’s a tough thing, isn’t it? Most of us know, almost intuitively, that the pace of our lives destroys our souls. But it’s hard to change gears. Even when we finally find the will to do so, others in our lives may make it more difficult than we’d imagined.
Yet ending the rat-race of our lives is critical to establishing and enjoying deep and meaningful relationships. We simply cannot be who Jesus envisioned us to be in relationship to other people when hurry characterizes our lives. Relationships take time. Compassion takes time. Kindness takes time. The smaller our hurry the greater our ability to bless the people we come into contact with during the day.
Slowing is a discipline designed to eradicate hurry from our lives. Specifically, the practice of slowing involves intentionally placing yourself in situations and circumstances designed to give you time to breath and pay attention to others. It means placing yourself in a condition where you are forced to wait.
Consider the following possibilities: [2]
- Drive in the slow lane
- Eat your food slowly
- Get in the longest line at the grocery store
- Go the entire day without looking at a clock.
Some additional slowing practices include these: [3]
- Make shorter appointments
- Don’t schedule back-to-back appointments with no break in-between
- Take a deep breath before answering the phone.
Take ten minutes today and force yourself into a situation where you have to wait. While your engine idles during those ten minutes, look around. Who do you see? What are their needs? In what ways might God work through you to bless them?
[1] John Ortberg, “Ruthlessly Eliminate Hurry,” LeadershipJournal.net (7-4-02)
[2] John Ortberg, The Life You’ve Always Wanted (Zondervan, 1997), 89.
[3] Adele Calhoun, SpiritualDisciplines Handbook (IVP, 2005), 81.
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