"Be still and know that I am God"
-Psalm 46:10
inhale... exhale...
In the children's movie "Cars" the older, seasoned, and more experienced character known as Doc Hudson tells the young rookie race car that "sometimes, in order to go left, you have to turn right." I think there is a deeper truth within that statement.
One of the English authors I enjoy reading is G.K. Chesterton. He is notorious for being the "Prince of Paradox". He has written quite a bit about paradoxes in our world. I think this example helps us understand the truth that our world is full of paradoxes. One of them is this: Sometimes in order to go faster, you have to slow down.
In our culture, we often pride ourselves on being busy. We feel that when we are busy; we're being useful, or that people need us, and that makes us feel good. And this is very true in a lot of cases. But I will venture to say that my worth or usefulness has got little to do with how busy I am. In fact, I'm sure with enough pause, and reflection, a number of us could recall a time when we were too busy to make a valuable impact in a given situation, or in someone else's life. A time when we failed to stop, and with love in our hearts ...paused to 'do the right thing', for the right reason, and failed because we were too busy.
This paradox I have witnessed, and have to apply when I'm reading. Particularly when I'm reading Holy Scripture. In order for me to really have a chance at grasping what it is that I am reading, I do well to read slowly. Not because I am unable to read quickly, that is indeed my problem, I often read too quickly, and miss a many splendored thing. Not only that, but even before I start, I must stop. And I think many of us would say there is much to gain from stopping ...before you start a thing. There are many examples that could be brought to bare that reveal this natural rhythm. The Lord says in scripture that the land needs to lay fallow for one whole year, every seventh year. And we see the scientific evidence of the benefit of that period of rest for the soil. I know with painful awareness that when I attempt to write fine calligraphy, I must attempt to do so very slowly, and almost pause for every word, every letter if it is going to end up legible, let alone beautiful.
I believe it is apparent in life, that we often need to slow down, in order to be faster. Then we may realize that 'faster' is not the goal we ought to have. For it is better to be' set wright' or more efficacious than simply 'faster'. If we are rushing off to do this, or that, we often find ourselves having finished something that we could have done better, or gleaned a deeper truth from, or have helped another more fully. I could say I've read a hundred books, and not gotten as much as out of it as my older, and wiser neighbor, who read one paragraph, and was changed because of it.
The Lord beckons us by saying "come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest, ...lay down beside the still water, ...be still and know..." And that He has "seated us with Him, in the heavenly places" Scripture says of those who are in Christ, that they are "seated with Him".
My encouragement to you, dear reader, is to stop, to pause everyday as often as you can get away with it. Take the time to sit with Him, in the heavenly places, as you open His Word.
Sometimes in the most unexpected places, a beautiful truth can be found. Sometimes a children's story will reveal a profound truth that is easily overlooked in an adult's daily monotony. Much in the same way, Christ himself, left his majesty, and heavenly home, and came to earth with a simple humble mission to "seek and save that which was lost." The one who was fully divine, in humility, made Himself fully human. Encoding Himself into this world through a quite, and small beginning to do the most powerful thing in the universe. The thing, that only God Himself could do.
