15 Mar Stay the Course
Patience. It can be the bane of our existence when we resist it, or the blessing of a lifetime when we surrender to it. In fact I’m here to tell you that as you surrender and let the fruit of patience develop in your life it will only bring you benefits… great benefits; not the least of which is learning to stand firm in the person and character of God. But in order to practically give patience a chance in our daily life, we need to address the possibilities of why we’ve become a culture of hurry-up-and-wait-for-nothing impatient people.
I enjoyed the discussion in the small group I participated in Tuesday night as we considered the following:
• Was your parents’ and grandparents’ generation busier than yours? Were they more/less patient because of it?
• Has all the technology you’ve become used to really simplified your life… or complicated it? How so?
• Has the increase of communication in your life made you more anxious or more content?
This morning, Dr. Jim Denison’s “Denison Forum on Truth and Culture” he addressed “The iPad and our Souls” and the busy, noisy culture we find ourselves in today. You can read about it here: Denison Forum.
A good word. Timely. And as I read it I thought of my own life and the constant state of motion I tend to exist in and the silent scream of my soul that cries out, “Enough, already! Quiet!” I most definitely think that there is a strong connection between advanced communication technology, busy-ness and impatience. I’m not suggesting that technology is a bad thing at all. I’m simply pointing out that with the increase of communication and technology came the increase of a great many things that we simply did not know we couldn’t live without but had been living perfectly fine without for decades. All of a sudden we are concerned, burdened, and tempted with great matters and wonderful things. I think of King David’s words~
My heart is not proud, O LORD, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me. (Psalm 131:1-2)
So, I offer a few suggestions for a Spring Break for your Soul:
• Take a day to be intentional in all you do by doing one thing at a time. As an exercise, stop multi-tasking for just 24 hours and see how much MORE you get done. If you’re on a phone call- just be on the phone call. Don’t unload the dishwasher and type an email at the same time.
• Take a technology fast over the weekend. If you can’t do without it (cell phone, iPad, computer, etc.) for 3 days, it’s probably an addiction. Alright, then start with 1 or 2 days. 🙂
• Cultivate an ear for God’s voice by learning to “Be still”. Stillness is the main ingredient in the recipe for knowing God. Have you noticed that He never speaks in a hurried, busy or blaring voice? Our culture values busy-ness. But stillness (which means to “cease striving”)… is still very much in fashion in God’s economy. Try it… you just might like it.
Happy spring “soul” break!
…you are greatly and dearly loved by the King!
PS: If you missed the lesson, be sure to listen online!