Companions of haste

Our busy lives seem to drain a lot of energy from us and often leave us feeling too tired for the things of God. Reading through his book of devotions I came across these thoughts from Edward Bounds:

"Calmness and strength are never the companions of haste. Short devotional time drains spiritual vigour and the root and bloom of the spiritual life." - E.M. Bounds

It is true of my own life, that when I find I rush my devotions, in order to do the 'real' work of God, I find myself more unsettled and at dis-ease. Can you relate to this at all?

What do you make of the thought that calmness and strength are NOT companions of haste?

"Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray." - James 5:13

Living in Grace

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Haste versus Hurry - is there a difference?

"Though I am always in haste, I am never in a hurry because I never undertake more work than I can go through with calmness of spirit." - John Wesley

I confess that Mr Wesley's words had me scurrying for the dictionary to try and see if there is a difference between 'haste' and 'hurry.' In most of the dictionaries there is very little difference between the two terms, although if I were to try unpack what John Wesley's intention, it could be something like this:

• To be in haste (urgency of movement) may relate to sharing the Gospel with those in need, fully aware of the time constraints and the urgency of this task. There is no time to waste.

Whereas, when my life is in a hurry, there is a sense of being out of control and perhaps being a little side-tracked by the myriad of tasks on my plate. To hurry is "to do things quicker than normal" - thus implying less focus.

What do you think? If you know a better definition, please let me know. Maybe there is no difference between the 2!?

Anyway .....

My point is this: "We should be in tune with the Holy Spirit as we go about our tasks. He will lead us and give us capacity to complete all the important things in our lives."

Psalm 38:21-22 - Don’t dump me, God; my God, don’t stand me up. Hurry and help me;

Living in Grace

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God, make haste!

"God, come to my assistance. 
Lord, make haste to help me.
Assist me in my quest to find you, God, in the midst of the noisiness of life. 
Make haste to help me find silence, Lord, so that, like Elijah on the mountain, 
I may discern your still small voice therein." -

John Cassian

How often do we find ourselves praying - "Lord, hurry up!?" We want the Lord to make haste because we feel that our prayers aren't being answered or that God is taking to long to respond to our needs.

I am not the most patient of people (as my family will tell you), but often God expects me to wait for things - it is in the waiting that God reveals more of who He is and God reminds me of who I am.

So next time you are praying to the Lord this prayer: "Lord, make haste!" perhaps you may need to rather be praying, "Lord, show me your plan and will in this time of waiting!"

The two prayers are very different, but we have to rely on the wisdom of God.

Psalm 70:1 - Hasten, O God, to save me; come quickly, Lord, to help me.

"Most men pursue pleasure with such breathless haste that they hurry past it." -Soren Kierkegaard

Living in Grace
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