The Pace of a Fruitful Life
The other day I was in the grocery store getting things I needed for the week. This has been a part of my weekly routine for quite some time now, but something felt different. It may sound silly, but I felt a sense of delight as I walked the aisles of Trader Joe’s. This chore began to feel like holy work as I thought about how to care for my family and our guests through the groceries I bought.
Upon reflection, I realize the Lord had graciously freed me from the haste I had been living in for the past few months. I didn’t rush in and out as fast as I could while answering my texts, listening to a podcast, and speed-walking home.
Instead of urgency, there was joy. My mind was at peace rather than in a frenzy.
In a world that equalizes busyness with success, it is so easy to get caught up in living a hurried life. Even though there may be a difference in what fills our schedules as Christians, there’s often not much difference in how we live those schedules out.
My focus here is not that we necessarily need to trim down our schedules. Sometimes there is a need to more prayerfully consider our commitments, and Zoe wrote a great blog about that a few months ago.
But I also believe we have work to do. I believe that Christians should give their time, energy, and lives to push back the kingdom of darkness. And I believe that the gospel message we carry is urgent.
What I have been convicted of recently is that hurry quenches the Spirit and what the Spirit wants to produce in us.
The Fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5 (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control) are incompatible with hurry.
In haste, I don’t experience the joys of everyday life, speak gently to those around me, or maintain a peaceful disposition.
Constant hurry does not result in a life that is marked by the fruit of spirit.
Think of faithful people you have known in your life.
Do they rush through time with the Lord each morning or do they find renewal in Him each day as they rest in His presence?
Do they cut people in line at the grocery store to get out faster or do they live with a peaceful heart that acts in kindness towards those around them?
Do they rush conversations with others or do they care for others by giving their time generously out of love?
Jesus worked hard, and His three years of ministry were full.
But, He didn’t hurry past the bleeding woman (Mark 4:25-34), ignore the questions others asked him, or neglect to pray when ministry got busy (Luke 5:16).
It is easy to automatically try to match the pace of the world around us, but I urge you to slow down, and let the Spirit’s work in you blossom in the midst of your daily schedule.
There are enough people hurrying through their lives in this world. What the world needs more of are Christians who live at an intentional pace- allowing the fruit of their lives to nourish those around them.
Let’s live counter culturally in what fills our schedules AND how we live them out!