Friends
What’s life like for you this week? Are you moving at a healthy pace, or do you find yourself caught up in a rat-race?
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“I will offer you a sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the Lord.”
Psalm 116:17 – NLT
“Faster, faster,” two-year-old Clark cried from his comfy perch inside my little red wagon. My cousin and I were entertaining ourselves on the sidewalk in front of our Army quarters. Clark and his parents had driven from South Carolina north to Fort Dix, New Jersey to visit us. Since my cousin and I were only two months apart in age, we always made great playmates. He was like a little brother to me, and I had been so excited about his visit. Until now.
“Faster, faster!” Clark squealed as I tugged on the black metal handle pulling my houseguest down the sidewalk on his no-extra-cost wagon ride. I tugged on for a few more steps, but Clark wasn’t satisfied with the speed of this free carnival ride. Apparently, his incessant calls touched a nerve. I whirled around to face him, narrowed brown eyes staring him down. In one fluid motion, I yanked upward on the wagon handle, lifting the front of the little red wagon in the air, and unceremoniously dumped my ungrateful load out onto the gleaming white concrete!
I know. I know. That wasn’t nice. But you have to admit he was asking for it, and apparently, two-year-old Anita had had enough. As far as I was concerned, I was sick and tired of being pushed to move faster and faster, and Clark got what he deserved. His repeated cat-calls had gotten on my last nerve, and I decided to do something about it!
Are you sick and tired of being pushed to go faster and faster, to accomplish more with less, to spend your days running from one crisis to another? In my working years, I felt like that often, and the stress it caused was far from healthy. Even in these retirement years, I can fall prey to too many commitments and too little time. While some of my busyness is my own doing, it often feels like the pace of life just gets faster and faster.
Years ago, in my role as a community health educator, I cautioned my clients on the ill effects stress can have on the heart. I recall an excellent article I found that described how we live in a “margin-less society.” The author discussed how we over-plan, over-commit, and over-consume to the point that we have no reserves left to draw on. There is no downtime, no time in our schedules to rest, reflect, or regroup. We run from one activity to another, constantly craving instant gratification. We are overly burdened by the sense that we have to be everything to everyone. No way can we slow down because all the china plates we’ve been juggling will come crashing to the floor.
The author proposed that we need to build margins into our lives. We need to create open space between our daily activities and find a more reasonable pace for living. We need to grant ourselves permission to sit quietly and enjoy a sunset or decompress with a good book in a comfy chair. It’s time to call a halt to the rat race we have created.
Easier said than done, right? Yet, as I reflect on my one word “release,” I realize that the only one that can build margins into my schedule is me. When I fail to do so, I find myself frazzled and frustrated. It’s great to have goals, a purpose for our days, but it’s easy to over-commit.
When there is too much on our plates, there is little room for God. We focus on our agendas instead of being vessels for His work and His glory.
Let’s take a note from the poignant lyrics of the praise song, “Hurry.”
“I don’t want to be in a hurry, I don’t want to miss what you have to say, I just want to give you the space to move in this place.”*
these words remind me that we can’t hear what God has to say if we are moving too fast to notice. We have to create some space in our schedules to allow God to speak. We need to offer the sacrifice of our time if we want to grow and thrive.
Two-year-old Anita grew tired of the push to move faster and faster. She took action, even though Clark probably didn’t much appreciate her efforts. Still, you have to admit that my little childhood drama was pretty cute, and don’t worry, Clark got me back plenty of times over the years! While up-ending our lives may not be an achievable goal, we can all make the choice to create some healthy margins in our lives, and when we do, let’s make sure God gets some of that open space.
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“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”
Ephesians 2:10 – NLT
PRAYER
O Gracious Lord, help us to slow down and create some healthy margins in our lives. Help us get our priorities in order and create some space for You. We know that we are Your handiwork and that You created us for the good work You planned for us long ago. Help us to embrace that good work in healthy, life-affirming ways.
In the Holy Name of Jesus, we pray,
Amen
Blessings,
Anita
*Lyrics from the praise song “hurry” by Kim Walker Smith, 2021
-APS 3/3/2025
Faith Beyond Sight 