Slow Down

Don’t know about you, but often I feel the “need” for speed.  Problem is that “need” seems to crop up when I sit down to spend time with the Lord in either a devotional time or Bible study.  As soon as I open my journal (devotional) or word processor (Bible study), my thoughts are flooded with things that have to be done, and I mean right now!  Important things!  Did I forget to roll the garden hose after I watered the lawn?  Will there be enough picante sauce to watch the bowl game tomorrow night?  Should I go to Sam’s and get some guacamole and blueberries?  Did I forget to pay a bill?  Or did I call the pastor back from that church I have been talking to about a “Fathers to Sons Workshop?”  What men should I schedule to meet with this week?  What am I going to write about in the blog?

The flood oftentimes shuts me down.  Pushes me away from the time with the Lord or at least distracts me to the point that the depth and quality of the time is diminished.  That can happen when I sit down to talk with Jenny, or one of the kids, or one of the men who I meet with.

Psalm 46:10 tells us to be still.  Our schedules are full.  We are inundated with data.  I get over 300 emails a day, around 150 tweets, hundreds of updates on facebook, multiple requests on LinkedIN, all that goes to my iPhone, iPad, and computer.  I am guilty of producing some of that for other’s consumption.  When I start to pray, there is a strong pull to go and do something productive, like watch “Lost” on Netflix.

Philippians 4:6 – 7, tells me I am to be anxious for nothing; 1 Peter 5:7, tells me to cast all my anxiety on Christ.  I have to continually remind myself that there is nothing more important than my time with the Lord.  I have to consciously slow down, take a deep breath, force myself to be still, cast all of the “important” stuff on the Lord and trust Him to remind me of what needs to be done or remembered.

It is a daily struggle.  But I find that if I do not pay attention to that foundation, the really crucial stuff, like having something to share with my family or the men with whom I meet, does not go well.