HURRY, HURRY, HURRY!

Recommended Reading:  Exodus 23:20-33 

We live in an era where our lives move very fast.  We tend to want what we want when we want it – and that is usually NOW!

I have noticed that the virtue of patience seems to have dimmed substantially in most people these days.  Think about it…we get in our cars and the traffic around us never seems to move fast enough for us – people dart in and out of traffic to get one or two car lengths ahead of where they were, speeding through intersections as a light is changing to red, many times only to end up at the next light just in front of us or beside us.  Fast food drive thrus are never fast enough.  The cashier does not scan the items quickly enough.  The store clerk is too slow in coming to assist us when we need help.  We go on a vacation for the purpose of rest and relaxation yet try to pack so many activities into the time that we become impatient with everyone and everything around us.  Even the pastor dares to go over his time by preaching 5 or 10 minutes extra – then we get to the restaurant late, only to then have a server be too slow to take our order and/or serve us our food.  Then…we find ourselves impatient and stressed to the max.  

Hurry, hurry, hurry.    Rush, rush, rush.  Where does all that hurrying and rushing and loss of patience really get us?  Unfortunately it tends to show up as anger, anxiety, nervous stomachs, ulcers, headaches, etc.  In general this tends to lead to an overly stressed, less healthy and less than happy society.  As our impatience rises we then tend to say and do things we would not normally do, sometimes offending and/or hurting others – especially the ones we love most.

I believe that if we would only discipline ourselves to take a deep breath, relax and allow a bit of extra time to accomplish what we need to do, we would be so much more gratified and happy with life.  We would likely be healthier and more fulfilled with our lives and even more successful in the end.

In the Bible story when God is preparing the Israelites to enter into the promised land, He tells them that His angel will go ahead of them to be a guide, a protector and a commander of the armies.  They are warned that they need to pay attention, listen carefully, obey and stand firm in their faithfulness.  But most of all, they need to be patient.  They are told that victory will not only be theirs, but it will be easy.  However, it is not going to be instantaneous – it is going to take time, so pack your patience folks.    

In Exodus 23:29-30 (NLT) we see why there is a need for patience in order to experience full success.  God said regarding their enemies:  “‘But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals would multiply and threaten you.  I will drive them out a little at a time until your population has increased enough to take possession of the land.’”  Did you catch that?  “A little at a time.”  Total success does not happen all at once, it takes time – it takes patience.

I believe that if we will take those verses and apply them in our lives, learning to move through our life with more patience, God will guide and protect us as we experience real successes.  

So do yourself – your spirit, your mind, your body – a favor and take that deep breath, slow down, show patience to all around you and live a happier, more successful life.

Written by Karran Martin – January 25, 2020