"We are ruthlessly eliminating hurry from our lives!"
Annemarie and I use this mantra as a semi-serious, semi-sarcastic reminder when one (or both!) of us goes into serious overdrive.
I'll be striding through the house, frustrated that I'm running late, and she'll gleefully chirp, "Remember, Mom, we are ruthlessly . . . "
SIGH.
S-l-o-w d-o-w-n.
The spiritual discipline of an "unhurried life" does not come naturally to me. I'm a Type A. Choleric. A human do-ing.
Touch and Go
As a result, my devotional life can best be described as touch and go. Read a verse and run.
How ironic, even oxymoronic, is that? Devotion means "profound devotion and attachment" which requires time.
Tarrying.
Lingering.
Dwelling.
This morning, as I sat with Psalm 27, listening for God's Word to me, two things jumped out at me.
From verse 5a, "For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle..."
If a king as powerful as David recognized his need to hide, why do I stubbornly persist in trying to "go it alone"?
And from verse 8, "My heart says of you, 'Seek his face!' Your face, Lord, I will seek."
I love the emotion, here! David doesn't say, "The logical choice is to..." No way! This isn't his head talking. He's seeking his heart's desire.
Hide and Seek
David's willingness to "hide and seek" contrasts sharply with my misplaced time and energy. All too often, I touch my Bible for a few miserly minutes, and then go do the Type A dash, frittering away my time (and energy!) on task after task.
Through the Psalms, I am learning to s-l-o-w d-o-w-n.
To hide in -- and invest time dwelling on -- God's Word.
And to seek my heart's desire (which I will not find by dashing from task to task!) in the One who invites me to dwell with Him.
To hide.
And seek.
P.S. Almost 2 Years Later
I remembered this blog post as I drove to speak to a MOPS group in Monterey this morning.
Two years ago, as I was making the exact same drive, a tractor pulled out in front of me and went 20 miles per hour in a 45 mph zone.
For 3. whole. miles.
I fussed.
I fumed.
I just about exploded with Choleric hurry-up energy.
It's not that I was in any danger of being late. I'd left with plenty of time to spare. I just hated having to wait!
I'd love to tell you that I've been miraculously cured of my Type-A tendencies. But you wouldn't believe me. And I'm not sure that being "cured" is the goal.
More like tempered.
I’ve been making more conscious choices to downshift.
And my husband has been quoting Megamind -- "Who are you?" -- a lot in the last year or so as he's seen me...
And my husband has been quoting Megamind -- "Who are you?" -- a lot in the last year or so as he's seen me...
- ...taking the slow lane...on purpose.
- ...lingering...rather than leaping to the next task.
- ...dwelling during early morning devotion time...truly hiding and seeking.
So today, I'm praising God for imperfect progress toward becoming more even-tempered.
Your Turn:
- Which better describes your devotional life: “touch and go” or “hide and seek”? Why?
- In what area of your life would you like to “ruthlessly eliminate hurry”?
- Anything else on your heart!
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