Hurry.

Just yesterday I read about the passing of Eugene Peterson. I was profoundly struck by the countless tributes that have flooded my various  social media timelines by those who knew him personally (and the many more who didn’t but whose lives have been impacted by his work), expressing their deep gratitude and love for this amazing hero of the faith.

It was a few months ago I was directed by a friend of mine to another author, a contemporary of Peterson’s who held many of the same beliefs and practices, an American philosopher, author and Bible teacher, Dallas Willard.

Having read a few volumes of both of their writings, Willard and Peterson seem to be cut from the same cloth; both extremely humble, unassuming, generous, intelligent, wise and over all possessing a deep love and passion for Jesus and his Church – wanting to see the people of God live in the abundant fullness that Jesus promises in John 10:10. There is so much we can learn from men and women like this, not just from reading their material but from watching how they live and have lived. For the next few moments I would love to reflect on something both Willard and Peterson were passionate about – living with peace, serenity and a clear mind, or phrased another way – living an ‘unhurried life’.

I’m currently finishing the book ‘Soul Keeping’ by one of Dallas’ students and mentees, John Ortberg. It is a fantastic read throughout, but I have been particularly struck and challenged by a quote Willard spoke to his protégé. Whilst Ortberg was feeling the pressure and worry of a particularly stressful season Willard looked him in the eye and said:

“Hurry is the greatest enemy of spiritual life in our day. You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life” – Dallas Willard. (as quoted by John Ortberg in ‘Soul Keeping’)

“Hurry is the greatest enemy of spiritual life in our day. You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life” – Dallas Willard. (as quoted by John Ortberg in ‘Soul Keeping’) Click To Tweet

Although just one sentence, these words have been playing themselves out, ruminating in my mind for the past week or so, so much so, I have printed them out and stuck them up on the noticeboard that sits over my desk. The truth and weight that single sentence has brought has caused me to introspectively look at how I operate and do things in my day to day. I have come to the conclusion that I am a “serial hurrier” as I am sure that many of us in this day and age would be.

Society applauds speed, and often I feel wrongly confuses it with efficiency. We’re told that time is money, and money is everything – this is drummed into us repeatedly both consciously and subconsciously. Subsequently, everything we then do is assessed by the clock; our commute time is planned out, and the gaps we have in our day are ruthlessly erased to maximise productivity…a break is a waste of time, work can be done at the same time as eating lunch, I’ll get the train rather than drive as I can send emails and start on my next task…

All this of course is not wrong in itself, but when it comes at the cost of a peaceful soul, there’s a problem. Hurry is encouraged, celebrated and applauded, but it is a cancer to the unrushed, unhurried spiritual life that God calls us in to.

Hurry is encouraged, celebrated and applauded, but it is a cancer to the unrushed, unhurried spiritual life that God calls us in to. Click To Tweet

I often evaluate the successfulness of my day in terms of output and completion of tasks, and even if I’m mentally exhausted, I equate it as a good day if I have gotten through a massive tick list of tasks. This is such wrong thinking, but one I think we have been conditioned too in the 21^st century. Please don’t hear what I am not saying, I am not saying it’s a bad thing to get through you to do list…I am saying that it is bad if it leaves you feeling breathless, hurried and run-ragged at the end of the day, leaving you going home to your family feeling irritable and short tempered, giving those who are the most important to you, the dregs and fumes of your depleted energy tank.

We have lost the art of living unhurried, of living and working, leading  and ministering out of a peaceful soul. We want to plug every gap in our day converting it into productivity, missing the fact that actually one of the most productive things we can, and are called to do is replenish ourselves in the stillness, quietness and peace of the presence of God. When we get into a healthy of rhythm of doing this it naturally translates into every area of our life; our work, family, ministry and all the busyness and hurriedness that is attached to that.

We have lost the art of living unhurried, of living and working, leading and ministering out of a peaceful soul. We plug every gap in our day converting it into productivity, missing the fact that actually one of the most… Click To Tweet

Something that has been said of both Willard and Peterson (and something I have really taken note to begin to try and emulate), is that when asked a question you were never quite sure if they heard you, because they took so long to give  their answers –  why the awkward silences? Because they didn’t feel the pressure of having to give an instantaneous answer or to live hurried. According to those who knew them, no matter who you were, whether hugely acclaimed or absolutely unknown they were present, and cared about you, they never had a pressing engagement to get to, but were completely present in the moment. We have all been in conversations where we have felt like we were a nuisance to those we were talking too, watching the pair of eyes in front of us look through or beyond us – indeed I have been the culprit, trying to rush a conversation on, to get to the next one subconsciously communicating my time was too precious to speak with the person giving me theirs. Not so with those who live unhurried. Every moment matters, as does every person.

Willard’s and Peterson’s silences weren’t to create dramatic effect, or to give the notion they were wise old sages (which of course they were!) –  they were silences of wisdom. In those moments they each took time to think, chew over and frame their words in a way that wasn’t just a tweet worthy catchphrase, but an answer that had weight, substance and transformative quality. They respected their audiences (sometimes just one totally unknown person) enough to want to give them their best, and that meant taking time to really think and mull over what that could be.

For me there is so much to learn here. I want to move quickly all of the time, quick tasks, quick answers, quick emails, quick in my mind has for a long time equaled productivity. I now realise that quickness of thought, tongue or task isn’t necessarily successful but more than not (certainly for me) it is shallow, lacking substance and depth.

The great Israelite liberator Moses writes this, recorded in the book of Psalms chapter 90:12

“Teach us to realise the brevity of life, that we may grow in wisdom”.

I think when we begin to meditate on these words, hurry loses all it’s appeal, the things that seemed so important a moment ago fade into the mist of the insignificant. You like me, have probably looked into the lined and wizened face of a ninety- plus year old man or woman and been confused when they have implored us  “life is short, and can pass in the blink of an eye.” It seems almost laughable because it feels as if we have years in front of us, but I would hazard a guess in the years to come we will all utter that same phrase, and chortle at our own ignorance that old age will never catch up with us!

So, let us savour every breath we are blessed to take, not missing the beauty of the day to day hurrying around in a frenzy, tricked into the mind-set that quantity of tasks is of utmost importance. The reality is, we can never re-live a day we have lived, let’s not waste them…I wonder how much I have missed in my days because I have been hurrying between one appointment and the next, trying to squeeze in one more task, totally failing to take in some remarkable thing because I am so blinkered and focused trying to get on to the next thing.

I have recently been praying that sentence of Moses tucked away in the Psalms – that I would realise the brevity of life and grasp every moment of it, so that I would grow in wisdom. I wonder if this is something that would benefit you too? Life is too short to hurry through, to be bogged down with stresses and imagined complications that won’t matter this time next year, next week or even tomorrow.

So, take a deep breath… slow down, think a while before you speak, don’t be a slave to a deadline, be wise in your approach to life, give your best and strive to centre your soul in the peace that Jesus gives to us, that is unrushed, unhurried and always at ease no matter the circumstance.

Take a deep breath… slow down, think a while before you speak, don’t be a slave to a deadline. Be wise in your approach to life, give your best and strive to centre your soul in the peace that Jesus offers. Click To Tweet