The Faster I Go the Behinder I Get

I love certain adages as there is so much wisdom you can glean from them.  Lewis Carroll wrote a great one that I based the title of this blog on, The hurrier I go, the behinder I get.  This is one that I wish I could get myself to not only hear and say, but to put into practice.

If only I would catch myself at the very first thought of I feel the need for speed and slow myself down.  Instead I allow my gait, my movements, and my mind to speed up to a breakneck momentum that drains all of my peaceful resources and doesn’t get me any further ahead.  In fact, once hurriedness depletes my restful spirit, I’m never able to refill without coming to a complete standstill.  

If only I could sit myself down and have a chat before I become like Speedy Gonzales from the Looney Tunes cartoons.  “Faith, I know that I sound like a broken record, but you do not have to increase your speed in response to the stressful traffic in your life.  You can say no.  You can delegate.  There is only one you and you can only do so much.  Other peoples lack of preparedness or procrastination isn’t your emergency.  Don’t be so quick to jump and engage immediately.  Listen, take time to process, and then respond from a place of grace and rest, not from an empty vessel.”    

Since sitting myself down for a coffee and the above conversation isn’t an option, I will have to choose to be diligent to notice the triggers that cause my feet to accelerate so quickly.  I will need to heed these warning signs by seeking out pauses, peaceful streams, and quiet reflection.  I will then choose worship over motion.  I will allow God to be my shield against the stresses of this life by seeking refuge in Him first.  

But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.  Psalm 3:3 (ESV)

I cried to the Lord with my voice, And He heard me from His holy hill.  -Selah-  Psalm 3:4 (NKJV)

I love the word, Selah because it is a call to stop and reflect, to pause and think, to ponder and heed.  And when I reflect on the above verse, I’m amazed that He (the God of all Gods) (the King of all Kings) hears my voice when I call.  Me, insignificant little Faithie Foo-Foo as I used to be called.  What an awesome King I serve that He would incline His ear to me (to us).   

I love the Lord, because He has heard my voice and my supplications.  Because He has inclined His ear to me, Therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live.  Return to your rest, O my soul, For the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.  For you have delivered my soul from death, My eyes from tears, And my feet from falling.  Psalm 116: 1-2, 7-9 (NKJV)  

But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Matthew 6:33 (NIV)

So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries.  Today’s trouble is enough for today.  Matthew 6:34 (NLT)

Whatever my lot Thou hast taught me to say, “It is well, it is well with my soul.” -It is Well

We have the choice in whom we take refuge and in whom our soul responds to.  We can respond to the every day stresses by resorting to busyness or we can seek and allow our spirit to find refuge in God.  I hope that you will join me in taking refuge in the King of All instead of giving in to a hurried and harried spirit.