TITLE: SLOW DOWN
SCRIPTURE: EPHESIANS 5:15-16
I came across an article about a real problem that is afflicting most people in the 21st century. It is called “Hurry Sickness.” Hurry Sickness, first diagnosed in the late 1950s, has reached epidemic proportions. So, I thought this would be a good topic for this week’s sermon. It was a Dallas Internist by the name of Dr. Larry Dossey who first coined the term that describes this problem plaguing our society.
Hurry Sickness is defined as -
• A modern malady caused by rushing about
• A compulsion to do everything quickly
• A chronic feeling of being short of time
• It is attributed to the fast pace of modern life and causing symptoms such as Anxiety and Insomnia
People who hate to wait suffer from what he calls “Hurry Sickness,” which he defines as “an increased sensitivity to the passage of time.” I am not sure about you, but I am afraid to admit, I know more about this problem than I would like to admit. I find that I have been in a hurry for so long that I can’t remember when I wasn’t. I am sure I am not the only one who lives this way.
• People talk about having their plates too full
• About living in the fast lane
• About not having enough hours in the day
There are some symptoms of “Hurry Sickness” that are quite interesting? Here are a few.
• We are constantly looking at our watches and saying, “Just look at the time! I’m going to be late”
• We hate waiting
• At the Post Office we sigh impatiently as a customer up front is taking forever
• We hate waiting at traffic lights – as we approach the red light we look to see what kind of vehicles are already stopped – if there is a truck or an older looking car in one lane we pull into the other because we want a quick get a-way
• At the supermarket, if you have a choice between two check-out lines, you note the number of people in each line and multiply this number by the number of items per cart
• If you are still standing waiting to be served and the people in the other lane get away before you do, you feel annoyed
Evidence of “Hurry Sickness” is seen whenever you are traveling by air. As soon as the plane lands and the seat belt sign is turned off people stand, get their hand luggage, and crowd in the aisle – all the time knowing full well that it will be another 10 minutes before they will start moving toward the exit. Some in the back of the plane will almost run you over to get a few feet closer to the exit door.
We want to Slow Down, but we are afraid the world will fall apart if we do. The reality is, one day we all slow down — permanently. And the world will go right on without us. Hurry Sickness is especially prevalent among highly motivated, achievement-oriented people. It often sets in around age 30 and gets worse with the passing years.
When it comes down to it, we must agree -- time is an interesting concept. Before God created the heavens and the earth there was no time. God is eternal, and therefore he is outside of time. This is why Peter wrote in II PETER 3:8 “BUT, BELOVED, BE NOT IGNORANT OF THIS ONE THING, THAT ONE DAY IS WITH THE LORD AS A THOUSAND YEARS, AND A THOUSAND YEARS AS ONE DAY.” And yet God entered time when Jesus Christ took on human flesh and was born into our world as a baby in Bethlehem.
Some like to think they are masters of time. We even have atomic clocks these days to measure time out precisely to the nano-second.
• But we don’t really understand time
• There are moments when time seems to go rushing by
• Other times when the clock seems to stand still
• There are moments when we are very much aware of time, such as when we are working on a project with a deadline, racing the clock, fighting against time
• And then there are those wonderful times when we let go of our watches and clocks and enjoy a day of leisure and rest and hardly notice the time passing at all
I lift up such a simple thought this morning for us – Slow Down. I often hear those around me proclaim - “my, how time flies!”
• Time doesn’t really fly
• The clock ticks away at the same speed every day, day in and day out
• The days of the week, the years pass by at the same speed as they have since the dawn of time
• We keep blaming the time for our need to rush about
The fault doesn’t lie with time itself. We do have the time. God gives us all the time that we need to do everything that is important. Time is a gift from God. He gives us the time to enjoy ourselves. God gives us time to -
• Work
• Worship
• Pray
• Spend with our families
• Serve and help others
• Witness to others about Jesus before time runs out
As the OT book of ECCLESIASTES 3:1 says, “FOR EVERYTHING THERE IS A SEASON, AND A TIME FOR EVERY PURPOSE UNDER HEAVEN.” God gives us adequate time to do everything that is important. God didn’t make a mistake at creation by making the days too short. In EPHESIANS 2:10 we read that “WE ARE HIS WORKMANSHIP, CREATED IN CHRIST JESUS FOR GOOD WORKS” and you can bet that He has also provided the time we need to do them. When we don’t have time for the important things, then you can be sure that we haven’t managed the time God has given us very well.
So, the Apostle Paul gives advice to his Ephesian readers in our text this morning. He knows well that there are so many attractions and people in the world that will take control of our lives and lead us to misusing the time God has given us. He writes, “THEREFORE WATCH CAREFULLY HOW YOU WALK, NOT AS UNWISE, BUT AS WISE; REDEEMING THE TIME, BECAUSE THE DAYS ARE EVIL.”
I often hear, especially during times of bereavement people say - “life is too short.” Paul would agree the time God has given to us is a precious gift and not to be wasted doing things that are harmful to ourselves, to our families, to our friends and in fact, anyone.
• Who knows, except God, how much time we have?
• As James says -- “COME NOW, YOU WHO SAY, “TODAY OR TOMORROW LET’S GO INTO THIS CITY, AND SPEND A YEAR THERE, TRADE, AND MAKE A PROFIT WHEREAS YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOUR LIFE WILL BE LIKE TOMORROW FOR WHAT IS YOUR LIFE? FOR YOU ARE A VAPOR, THAT APPEARS FOR A LITTLE TIME, AND THEN VANISHES AWAY”
• James is saying that we shouldn’t presume that we would have a tomorrow to do the good we had intended to do today
This is still difficult for many of us to just – Slow Down – because slowing down means we must learn how to wait every now and then. Most of us would rather do anything than wait. Some of us would rather do the wrong thing than wait. Truth be told, most of life is waiting.
• Waiting for an appointment to see the doctor
• Waiting to graduate
• Waiting to be accepted in college
• Waiting for your first job offer
• Waiting for the repairs to be finished on your vehicle
• Waiting to see if the bank will give you a loan
• Waiting at the airport because your flight has been delayed
• Waiting for the right time to start a family
• Waiting for your test scores
• Waiting for Summer to be over so your child can get your house and back to college
• Waiting for your loved ones to come to Christ
• Waiting for the Lord to bring the right man or the right woman into your life
• Waiting to find out what God wants you to do
• Waiting for someone to buy your house
• Waiting for your prayers to be answered
• Waiting for your spouse to come home from a business trip
• Waiting for your child to come back to the Lord
There are only so many hours in the day. Last time I checked there were twenty-four. That is by God’s design.
• When God created the world, he created the EARTH - the SUN - THE MOON - THE STARS
• He created the earth to spin as it revolves around the sun, and very early on we learned to trace the movements of the sun across the sky to measure time throughout the day
• And so we have twenty-four hours each day to WORK - SLEEP - REST - PLAY - TO WORSHIP - PRAY - TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS - TO ENJOY FAMILY AND FRIENDS - AND TO PURSUE OUR PERSONAL PROJECTS
What is fascinating to consider is that each of us gets the same amount of time each day.
• It doesn’t matter how Rich or Poor you are
• It doesn’t matter how Young or Old you are
• It doesn’t matter what continent you live on or whether you live in the City or the Country
• Each person on planet earth gets the exact same amount of time each day
• It’s what we do with our time that differs
• And isn’t it amazing that two different people can make such different use of the same amount of time
Ben Franklin said, “LOST TIME IS NEVER FOUND AGAIN.” And it’s true.
• The earth spins round, and when the day is done, the day is gone
• You never get it back
• There are only so many hours in the day
If you would like a fascinating Bible study, take your concordance this week and look up the word “wait.” Over and over again God’s people were told to wait.
• PSALM 27:14 -- “WAIT FOR THE LORD; BE STRONG AND TAKE HEART AND WAIT FOR THE LORD”
• PSALM 37:7 -- “BE STILL BEFORE THE LORD AND WAIT PATIENTLY FOR HIM”
• PROVERBS 20:22 -- “DO NOT SAY, ‘’I’LL PAY YOU BACK FOR THIS WRONG!’ WAIT FOR THE LORD, AND HE WILL DELIVER YOU”
• ISAIAH 30:18 -- “FOR THE LORD IS A GOD OF JUSTICE. BLESSED ARE ALL WHO WAIT FOR HIM!”
• Perhaps the most famous—and most beloved—verse on waiting in all the Bible is ISAIAH 40:31 -- “THEY THAT WAIT UPON THE LORD SHALL RENEW THEIR STRENGTH; THEY SHALL MOUNT UP WITH WINGS AS EAGLES; THEY SHALL RUN, AND NOT BE WEARY; AND THEY SHALL WALK, AND NOT FAINT”
My brothers and sisters, sometimes we need to just – Slow Down. There is a time for everything, and so you need to manage your time well. This begins with Prayer and the Word of God and making sure your priorities line up with God’s priorities. Some people spend their whole life climbing the ladder and then they get to the top only to discover it was leaning against the wrong wall. You need to make God’s priorities your priorities. As Jesus said in ST. MATTHEW 6:33 - “SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD AND HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, AND ALL THESE THINGS WILL BE GIVEN TO YOU AS WELL.” You need to make sure the tasks on your calendar line up with God’s overall purpose for your life.
• Are you loving God and serving others?
• Are you working hard to provide for your family?
• Are you getting adequate rest and exercise?
• Do you make personal time each day for the word of God and prayer?
• Do you worship regularly with your church family on a weekly basis?
Slow Down and learn to live in the present.
• Don’t waste time worrying about the future or regretting the past
• You only have each moment as it comes, so make the most of each one
• When you worry about the future or regret the past, you are wasting the present
• There’s an old Family Circle comic strip which says -- “YESTERDAY’S THE PAST, TOMORROW’S THE FUTURE, BUT TODAY IS A GIFT. THAT’S WHY IT’S CALLED THE PRESENT”
Let me move toward a close and prepare to share this 10th Communion of the year together. Do you know that most Hotels – Office Buildings have a button in the elevator ordinarily below the buttons you press to indicate the floor your want go. The button reads “Close Door” – most of us have never realized they actually don’t do anything at all.
• Pressing the button gives impatient executives and impatient people the feeling that they are in control of how much time they spend in the elevator
Just a simple message this morning – Slow Down.
• How many times have we looked back over our lives and seen the missed opportunities that were waiting to be taken?
• How many times have we missed the move of God because we were just too busy to see and understand what God was doing?
• I am guilty of this as I dare say everyone here has been at some point in our lives
--That’s why He sent us a Savior
--That’s why Jesus died on a cross
--All of our misspent hours were nailed with Jesus on the cross
--All of the hurt we have caused others because we have been too busy
--All of harm we have done to ourselves because we have failed to slow down
--Let go of some of the less important things and tried to cram too much into our daily lives
--All the times we have given other things priority over spending time with God and doing the work Jesus has given us to do in the church and in our personal lives
--All these were nailed with Jesus onto the cross
--Jesus is the great Healer of our Hurry Sickness
--He says to us - “COME TO ME, ALL YOU WHO LABOR AND ARE HEAVILY BURDENED, AND I WILL GIVE YOU REST. TAKE MY YOKE UPON YOU, AND LEARN FROM ME, FOR I AM GENTLE AND LOWLY IN HEART; AND YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. FOR MY YOKE IS EASY, AND MY BURDEN IS LIGHT”
