Slow and Easy

There is a line in the movie Nacho Libre where Jack Black finds himself in a situation where things just needed to slow down and so he speaks with his fake (and hilarious) spanish accent "Take it easy!" 

Sometimes we need to be reminded to "take it easy" too.  There is a lot of pressure on people to go fast.  We need to get our groceries fast becuase we need to get kids to soccer soon, and afterward we need to rush home to get supper ready, but eat fast because there is a parent-teacher meeting at school, or a gathering at church.  Yes, sometimes we need to be reminded to "take it easy".

When I think about our life with Jesus, we can be tempted to rush things too.  We know that Jesus sacrificed so much for us and He calls us to obey him in all things.  We look at ourselves and recognize that our sin prevents us from living as we should and so we try really hard to speed up the sanctification (becoming more like Jesus) process.  And so we start to try and rush our growing into holiness.  If we are trying to rush this process, we are likely doing so in our own strength and effort--and this can only lead to frustration.  Have you ever felt frustrated in your walk as a follower of Jesus?  Then maybe you need to "take it easy".

Philippians 2:12 tells us that living out our Christian faith (active trust) will bring times of fear and trembling.  We won't always know which direction to go.  We will be faced with giants in our lives that need to be slain.  We will confront many things that need to be removed but each one can be painful to lose.  And we can really struggle with all of this--especially when we are trying to rush it on our own!  BUT (Christians should have big buts!) the next verse (13) reminds us of something incredibly important.  It says "for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose."

What?!  Are you trying to tell me that God is taking the responsibility for growing me into the man or woman he wants me to become?  And says to you "yes".  He doesn't want you to rush your growth, becuase he doesn't want you to do it on your own.  The fear and trembling you experience when growing through self-effort, He wants to change into fear and trembling in awe and humility when you see Him doing His thing in you and through you!

As a child of God you are not alone.  You are not required to "fix" yourself.  You are only asked to trust Him and He will do the rest.

But you might need to "take it easy."

BT