Move at God’s pace

Efficiency is the enemy. Yes, I ripped that sentence from Ego is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday, one of my all time favorite books. I always thought that ego was the greatest enemy, but I have now found a rival.

This morning, I read that Thomas Merton was asked to diagnose the leading spiritual disease of our time. His answer stopped me. Efficiency.

Everywhere I turn in the Bible, the opposite of efficiency is true. The Bible seems to teach inefficiency. The people in God’s Word seem inefficient.

Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. Ephesians 5:1,2

Walk in the way of love. As my pastor shared, “you can’t love while you run.” Nope. You have to slow down.

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:38-42

Mary had things in perspective. She slowed down. She moved at God’s pace.

The same speed is mirrored in the life of Jesus. Imagine this situation as a dad.

Then a man named Jairus, a synagogue leader, came and fell at Jesus’ feet, pleading with him to come to his house because his only daughter, a girl of about twelve, was dying. Luke 8:41-42

The dad was desperate. Hurry, Jesus. Come save my daughter. Jesus went with the man.

As Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her. She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.

Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. Then he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.” Luke 8:42-44, 47-48

In the life or death situation of the little girl, Jesus stopped in the midst of the crowd, ministered to the woman, changed her life, commended her faith. And, he arrived at the sick girl’s house seemingly too late as she had died. But, Jesus healed, as the 12-year-old little girl rose from life to death.

Jesus walked everywhere. Never running. Never in a hurry.

David wrote, “Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10

When God was directing the life of Paul, He promised that he would be going to Rome. Well, 7 years later, after jail, a shipwreck, fighting for his life through 6 court defenses, he arrives. What happens when he arrives? Acts 28 tells us that the people flock to him to hear his message, “day and night.” Over that 7 years, through all those events, Paul sprinkled the message of Jesus to different people. Then, in Rome, he is given audience after audience. God’s pace.

Those are just a few examples, but we could go on-and-on. In fact, I would go as far as saying that time is irrelevant in the Bible. The Bible says that, “with the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.” 2 Peter 3:8.

This may be the greatest news that some of us could hear today.

Maybe you are in the 4th quarter of life. God works in that quarter. God came to Paul in the 4th quarter of his life to go to Rome to deliver the message of Christ. God wasn’t worried about his age, He just knew he had an obedient warrior. Same could be said of Moses, as he was called to save the Jewish slaves at age 80. He was obedient.

Maybe you are in the 1st quarter, wondering what to do with your life.

Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. 1 Timothy 4:12

David was about 13 when he was uniquely selected by God to fight Goliath. Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a teenager when she was selected.

Time (and age) are irrelevant to God.

Exemplifying God’s pace impacts others.

A mentee of Adrian Rogers shared a story once about this incredible man of faith. Although Dr. Rogers passed away in 2005, his ministry is still reaching people today. The mentee was asked the most remarkable thing about Dr. Rogers. Surprisingly, his response was nothing about his ministry, but, rather, he talked about how he moved slowly through the room. He shared a story about Dr. Rogers and him being at an event, trying to leave, as they were late for another appointment. Well, as they walked through the crowd, people constantly stopped Dr. Rogers, came up to shake his hand, and say a few words. As the mentee looked at his watch, with every person, Pastor Rogers stopped, looked them in the eye, made a new friend, and loved. He could have cared less about time. God’s pace.

I was once in southern Colombia, in the Amazon Jungle. Life was slow here. Conversations were long, lunches were longer, and dinners, well, pack a lunch. I have a picture engrained in my mind of an elderly man with his Bible on the front screened porch at the hotel where I stayed. Mid-morning, every day, the man would sit with his Bible spread before him and a cup of coffee. Day after day, this was the man’s life. It was hot, humid, muggy, and, midday each day, the man was hunched over, digging in to Scripture. This man was there, focused, at the throne of grace, every day. Time had stopped for him. Time was irrelevant. He was living his best life.

He impacted my life. As I rush, efficiently through each day, I want to be a bit like this man. Attentive, obedient, moving at God’s pace. I want my kids to see me moving at this pace.

But, I can’t, because technology has made me more efficient. I have everything, every bit of information, every person I need to get in contact with, at the tip of my finger. I can make things happen quick. I can activate.

But, there is a voice in the wilderness.

Be still and know that I am God.

Move at God’s pace.

Impact others. Live generously.

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