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“Abide
in Me."
~ John 15:4
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Our Great
Enemy
Hurry
is the great enemy of our spiritual lives.
Well-known
author and pastor John Ortberg recently defined “busy” as descriptive
of our outer condition, while “hurry” is a condition of the heart. How
many of us feel hurried? It may turn out to be the most chronic
spiritual malady of our day.
We
know we’re suffering from hurry when our lives display
ingratitude, frustration, anxiety, sharp words, a chronic sense of
never enough time, physical tension, or an inability to be truly
present in any given moment (always thinking ahead or about something
else).
Such
hurry functions as a cancer in the soul, written off as “stress” or
“the cost of living” but steadily destroying our spiritual vitality.
Busyness poses its own challenges, but a soul unsettled, a heart hurried,
an inner man in turmoil, crushes our capacity to abide in Christ.
The
Lord invites us through the Psalmist to “Cease striving (be still) and
know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10) Such stillness is not just the
absence of activity but the focusing of the eyes of our hearts on Him.
Can
we remain in Him, enjoy Him, and know Him when our spirit is rushing?
Does our fretting distract us from His Presence?
As
Dallas Willard once said, “We must ruthlessly eliminate all hurry from
our lives.” We know this to be true. So, what stops us from doing it?
How shall we grow unhurried? Two simple steps would make a difference.
First,
abide more in Christ. Jesus said to His disciples, “Abide in Me, and I
in you…. I am the vine, you are the branches.” (John 15:4-5) How close
are you holding to Him right now? Do you practice His Presence (with
prayer and attentiveness) throughout the day?
Second,
release the outcomes. “Apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)
The chaos of our lives frequently escalates the more we try and take
control of them. Do we live with faith in His grace, goodness,
generosity, and sovereignty?
Ultimately
we have to answer a razor-sharp question. “Is the life I’m inviting
other people to live, the life I’m living myself?”
May
we know the peace of Christ at the core as we continue the Journey
today.
In
HOPE –
David
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