Chapter 13 - Behavior 10 - The Hurry Habit: Is God in a Hurry?/Set an Overload Alarm

“Never be in a hurry; do everything quietly and in a calm spirit.  Do not loses your inner peace for anything whatsoever, even if you whole world seems upset.”  St. Francis de Sales

So many times, honestly way more than I choose to count, I have said “I am tired of always being tired!”  Now I understand that sometimes health problems could be making you tired.  Sometimes my unhealthy eating habits & lack of exercise have caused me to be tired but most of the time it is because I have been caught in the Hurry Habit.

When I started this blog post, I did a search for devotions on hurry and found two really good ones really quickly. 

“Hurry is a Thief” – Living Free – April 28, 2011 – www.Crosswalk.com

Hurry is a Heart Condition by Glynnis Whitwer – Daily Devotion for 12/31/12 – www.proverbs31.org

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”  Matthew 11:28-30 (MSG)

We often are so busy, so distracted and so preoccupied that we tend to settle for something less than the authentic Christian life.   When we hurry through life, bouncing from here to there, we never fully enjoy the things and more importantly the people around us.  We are abundantly blessed but when is the last time you took the time to “Stop and smell the roses” ?!?!  

As Joyce reminds us, if you and I want to break the hurry habit, we will have to make changes in our lifestyle & mind-set.  We need to adjust our focus.  Joyce tells us to focus on staying peaceful and patient  and hurry will eventually be a thing of the past.

When need to protect our peace by refusing to overload our schedule, Joyce tells us to set an overload alarm.

In the “Hurry is a Thief” blog, it gives 4 S’s to help slow down the pace and develop a lingering heart.  I want to share them with you now along with scriptures that came to mind.

Slow Down – God is not in a hurry.  Why are you?  Slow down.   This made me think about  Mary & Martha. 

The Master said, “Martha, dear Martha, you’re fussing far too much and getting yourself worked up over nothing. One thing only is essential, and Mary has chosen it—it’s the main course, and won’t be taken from her.”  Luke 10:41-42 (MSG)

Silence -  Take time to be still and experience God’s presence.

He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;  I will be exalted among the nations,  I will be exalted in the earth.”  Psalm 46:10  (NIV)

Solitude -  Follow Jesus’s example and set aside regular “alone” time for yourself.

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.  Mark 1:35 (NIV)

Sabbath – God has provided a day of rest – Enjoy it!

By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. ³ Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. Genesis 2:2-3 (NIV)

In Glynnis Whitwer’s devotion, she reminds us that hurry is a heart condition. The one paragraph that summed it up for me was this:   “I didn’t want to be a woman who rushed through life.  I did not want my children to look back and say “Wow, Mom got a lot done!”  I wanted them to be convinced thoroughly and utterly, of my love for them.  And not just my children but my husband, parents, sisters and so on.”  

This made me think of the Live Your Dash poem by Linda Ellis.  I am sure you have all seen it but I going to share it with you again now as I think it puts the Hurry Habit into perspective.

The Dash
by Linda Ellis copyright 1996

I read of a man who stood to speak
at the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on her tombstone,
from the beginning…to the end.

He noted that first came the date of her birth
and spoke of the following date with tears,
but he said what mattered most of all
was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time
that she spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved her
know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own,
the cars…the house…the cash.
What matters is how we live and love
and how we spend our dash.

So, think about this long and hard.
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
that can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
to consider what’s true and real
and always try to understand
the way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger
and show appreciation more
and love the people in our lives
like we’ve never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect
and more often wear a smile,
remembering that this special dash
might only last a little while.

So, when your eulogy is being read,
with your life’s actions to rehash…
would you be proud of the things they say
about how you spent YOUR dash?

So as I read about the Hurry Habit, I have to ask myself a serious question, how am I living my dash?   Do  I need to listen to my overload alarm and say no to some things that are disrupting my peace?

Please pray with me:

Father God, I thank you that your timing is perfect.  You are never in hurry.  You always have time for us.   Help us Father to take your example and strive for peace in our busy lives.  Let us take time to enjoy the blessings you have bestowed upon us and  to give thanks to You for every one of them.  Father I ask for your special blessing on each woman and her family.  Give them your peace today.  In Jesus name, Amen.

As you work on tackling your temple, take time today to stop and smell the roses.  Take time for yourself today.  Ask God to show you areas of your life where you need to slow down. 

Until next week,
Mel