I WILL NOT HURRY

SHEPHERD TO SHEEP 

I WILL NOT HURRY

(Isa 52:12) For you shall not go out with haste, Nor go by flight; For the Lord will go before you, And the God of Israel will be your rear guard.

Okay, so twice today I almost got hit by a car in a parking lot.  The people were so eager to go that they pulled out in front of me.  I was thankful I was not distracted so I could brake in time.  I said a prayer for the drivers in both incidents and also prayed for myself that I would learn to slow down and take it easy.  You say what?  Is it possible to go against the grain of our society as well as our own impatient spirit?  What are we doing to ourselves?  Why do we allow all this pressure to affect us?  Doesn’t God have a better way for us to live and operate?  

I think it all comes down to unrealistic expectations.  Every day we bite off more than we can chew and we end up with mental and emotional indigestion.  America has a great work ethic and we have a lot to show for ourselves but isn’t there a balance somewhere?  What are some things we can do to be more peaceful as we progress throughout the day? 

- PRAY OVER THE DAY – (2 Chr 27:6) So Jotham became mighty, because he prepared his ways before the Lord his God.  In the morning give the Lord the day and all of the details.   Ask the Lord to go before you and make your paths smooth (Pro 3:6).  You will be surprised at how your day will prosper.   

- PLAN YOUR DAY – (Pro 16:9) A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.  It is good to have a general plan for the day.  Write everything out as far as your To Do list goes.  Then prioritize your list with the most important items on the top.  Then work from the top down and check off as you go.  You’ll be surprised how this simple method works and gets things accomplished.   

- HAVE REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS – (Mat 6:10) Your kingdom come. Your will be done…  Avoid over planning your day.  Don’t try to cram in your objectives and making something work that shouldn’t be.  That is striving in the flesh and God will not bless that.  If it works out great but don’t overly push for it.  Let God’s peace rule in your heart (Col 3:15).  The minute it doesn’t it might be an indication of overload and overkill.  It might be more realistic to plan 80% of your day and leave room for the unexpected. 

- BE FLEXIBLE – (Jms 3:17)  But the wisdom that is from above is…willing to yield…  Life is organic but what we try to do is treat it like steel.  If you do that you will be one frustrated puppy and a candidate for chronic anxiety.  God doesn’t always work on our timeline but He does make everything beautiful in its time (Eccl 3:11).  Remember, God’s work done in God’s way will accomplish amazing results for His glory and the peace of His children!     

Louie