Skip to main content

“Listen, I have good news for you. Great news, in fact.”

A thought by John Mark Comer from his book, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry (p. 65). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)
I’m ready for some good news, aren't you?

Here it is. John says, “You. Can’t. Do. It. All.  And neither can I.”

He then says, “We’re human. Time, space, one place at a time, all that pesky non-omnipresent stuff.  We have limitations. Lots of them.”

Later he says, “What if these limitations aren’t something to fight but to gratefully accept as a signpost to God’s call on our souls? I love Peter Scazzero’s line: ‘We find God’s will for our lives in our limitations.’

“Don’t misread me: the same is true for our potential. My language here could easily be manipulated or misinterpreted to say something that is at best un-American and at worst unjust.

“But I doubt Jesus’ agenda is to make poor people middle class or middle-class people wealthy. Jesus blessed the ‘poor in spirit’ (Matthew 5:3) by the thousands, gave them the Sermon on the Mount, (Matthew 5-7) and then sent them home, still poor, but blessed. Jesus’ agenda is to make wounded people whole. That often leads to more money or opportunity or influence, and I’m all for it. After all, we were created to rule over the earth; nothing brings me more joy than to see men and women take their rightful place as loving, wise, creative, powerful rulers in society.”

He continues, “All I’m saying is limitations aren’t all bad. They are where we find God’s will for our lives.


“And the main limitation we all share—regardless of where you started in life or how smart or hard-working or type A you are—is time. It doesn’t matter if you’re the CEO of a multinational corporation or a retired school bus driver, if you’re single or raising a family of seven, if you live in the wind tunnel of a global city or on a farm in the middle of Kansas without cell service or Wi-Fi. Nobody has more than twenty-four hours in a day.

“We simply can’t see, read, watch, taste, drink, experience, be, or do it all. Not an option.

“Life is a series of choices. Every yes is a thousand nos. Every activity we give our time to is a thousand other activities we can’t give our time to. Because, duh: we can’t be in two places at once.

“We have to learn to say no. Constantly. As Anne Lamott so humorously pointed out, ‘ “‘No”’ is a complete sentence.’ And it’s one we need to work into our vocabulary.”

And that is the truth, isn’t it? 

Yes, yes
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“We believe it’s important to derive value from everything in our lives.”

A thought by Jon Tyson from his book, The Burden Is Light: Liberating Your Life from the Tyranny of Performance and Success (p. 118). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) But is that all that is important? Jon says, “We want to realize an immediate return from whatever we invest in. I am prone to this way of thinking in so many areas of my life. ‘I paid a lot for that meal, yet the portions were not that big.’ ‘I invested two hours in that movie, and it was just okay.’   ‘I went to church, but the sermon wasn’t that profound.’ We believe it’s important to derive value from everything in our lives. But beauty doesn’t fit within that framework. When Mary anointed Jesus with oil, there was an immediate outcry against her extravagant generosity. ‘It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.’ (Mark 14:5) One gospel depicts the disciples crying, ‘Why this waste?...
Post a Comment
Read more

"Lie 2: The more you worry about it, the better your odds of avoiding it."

A thought by Louie Giglio in his book,   Winning the War on Worry    (p. 5). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) Here is another lie that the Enemy uses with us. And Louie says, "This is a tricky lie. Yes, we often have cause for concern and preparation. But the Enemy wants you to believe that if you worry or fret over a certain outcome long enough, you can keep something bad from happening." But this is so important to realize. He says, "The reality is worrying has never once prevented something negative from happening. Planning might. Prayer has. But worry never will." He continues, "The Enemy tells you that by worrying about a situation (or every situation) you can make your tomorrow better. Really, worry just robs you of today. Jesus implored us: 'I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body mor...
Post a Comment
Read more

“Hurry and love are incompatible.”

A thought by John Mark Comer from his book, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry (p. 23). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) Wow, pretty strong thought isn’t it? John says, “All my worst moments as a father, a husband, and a pastor, even as a human being, are when I’m in a hurry—late for an appointment, behind on my unrealistic to-do list, trying to cram too much into my day. I ooze anger, tension, a critical nagging—the antitheses of love. If you don’t believe me, next time you’re trying to get your type B wife and three young, easily distracted children out of the house and you’re running late (a subject on which I have a wealth of experience), just pay attention to how you relate to them. Does it look and feel like love? Or is it far more in the vein of agitation, anger, a biting comment, a rough glare? Hurry and love are oil and water: they simply do not mix.” He goes on, “Hence, in the apostle P...
Post a Comment
Read more