We should all be more “ruthless” about this.
Hello! I hope you’re enjoying this warm Fall weather while it lasts!
Recently, Drew and I started reading a book called The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer. In light of this, I wanted to review the classic Bible passage about Martha and Mary that immediately came to my mind, and share some challenging and convicting quotes and excerpts from this book so far.
She [Martha] had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. [40] But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.” [41] But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; [42] but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:39-42
‘If the devil can’t make you sin, he’ll make you busy.’ -Corrie ten Boom
‘Hurry kills relationships. Love takes time; hurry doesn’t have it.’ -John Mark Comer
‘But love is painfully time consuming.’ -John Mark Comer
‘If there’s a secret to happiness, it’s simple—presence in the moment. The more present we are to the now, the more joy we tap into.’ -John Mark Comer
‘We are more busy than bad, more distracted than nonspiritual, and more interested in the movie theatre, the sports stadium, and the shopping mall and the fantasy life they produce in us than we are in church. Pathological busyness, distraction, and restlessness are major blocks today within our spiritual lives.’ – Ronald Rolheiser
‘For many of us the great danger is not that we will renounce our faith. It is that we will become so distracted and rushed and preoccupied that we will just settle for a mediocre version of it. We will skim our lives instead of actually living them.’ -John Ortberg
‘Attention is the beginning of devotion.’ – Mary Oliver
‘Worship and joy start with the capacity to turn our minds’ attention toward the God who is always with us in the now.’ – John Mark Comer
‘Attention leads to awareness [of God]’ – John Mark Comer
‘So many people live without a sense of God’s presence through the day… We sit around sucked into our phones or TV or to-do lists, oblivious to the God who is around us, with us, in us, even more desirous than we are for relationship.’ -John Mark Comer
Obviously, these thoughts are probably convicting for us all, so let’s be “ruthless” to carve out some time to slow down this week, open our Bibles, sit at the Lord’s feet (seeking to be aware of His presence), and listen to what He might impress upon our hearts or minds.