Go Slow. Take Your Time!

I was asked a question this past week because as an "older woman of God" (her words) I might have some wisdom to share regarding a personal walk with God.  Her inquiries included wanting to know how much time I personally spent in prayer and studying the Bible.  She had a concern that she wasn't learning fast enough or picking things up like other believers she knew. She was upset because she thought she should be "catching on faster."  My first words to her were to GO SLOW. TAKE YOUR TIME.  I perceived by her reaction that my answer didn't seem very wise because her  response was, "What??"  My answer was and is based on being an older woman of God, and learning patience through the years. Unfortunately, many times the hard way!  There was a time, especially in my formidable years serving Christ I use to want to know it all, to learn as much as I could as fast as I could.  And though my attempts were honorable, my rushing to cram information and knowledge into my brain did not serve me very well.  More knowledge doesn't earn you a higher rung on the spiritual ladder nor a larger karat of gold lined streets in heaven.  When you are saved, you're saved.  More knowledge doesn't make you any better than a saved Bible scholar.  Knowledge and wisdom are good because they guide your life with their instructions, but there is no set time to learn.  In other words, I have learned a better approach to receiving, understanding, walking in and by what I've learned.

I'm not in a hurry to meet a certain goal, check off a box to prove how many chapters I've read in a week, or trying to break a personal record to see if I can read the entire Bible in a year! No, I decided long ago to take as much time as needed.  If I want to spend a week in one chapter or just study and meditate on a few verses, that's what I do.

Learning is never-ending.  You'll never learn everything about God's Word in this lifetime so why push yourself with goals that make you rush to achieve them and most likely forget them anyway. 1 John 2:27 "But the anointing you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and it is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him."  No matter your pace, above all, it is the Holy Spirit that teaches you.  There are preachers, teachers, ministers, counselors, evangelists, Christian radio, and even those like me who share what they've been learning throughout a lifetime.  None of these sources actually enlighten you. They deliver a message.  It is the Holy Spirit who guides you and from whom you learn.  Without HIM you could never understand the scriptures. Remember to make sure you get the low-hanging fruit! Start slow, go slow, and don't miss the easier more simple verses. We sometimes think we please God by learning more.  So we rush along, we read fast, we check the boxes, and we do it at hyper speed because we are busy. We have other things in life to attend to.  Sometimes we don't even think about what we just read.  If there are verses you don't understand or that seem far from your grasp, SLOW DOWN.  Read them again, and again, and again.  Ask the Holy Spirit to expound His knowledge and wisdom.  God wants nothing more than to reveal Himself to you.

Too, there is no rule that you must be on your knees when you pray.  God isn't going to be mad if you stand when you pray, walk around a lake, sit in your car, or ride a bike.  I use to pray as I mowed my lawn.  It was a perfect time.  I never got interrupted and I had more clarity because of it.  Prayer is communication, simply communication between you and God.  He hears your prayers no matter where you might be.  The Christian life is a marathon, not a sprint. Take your time praying, reading, studying.

Go slow so that your prayers are meaningful, and that when you read the Bible, the truth sinks in.  I didn't learn what I've learned in a day, month, year, or even in a decade.  Its been four decades and I'm still learning.  God teaches us and shapes us gradually over time, through all the seasons and years of our lives including times of sorrow, opposition, confusion, discouragement, and joy.  Give God time to do His work in you.  He knows what's best and how to make it all come together. 1 Timothy 4: 15, "Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all."  Listen to this verse from Proverbs 2: 1 "My son, if you receive my words and treasure my commandments,  making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understand; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God" (ESV).  Why should we slow down?  Because, we are pursuing transformation, not information! God's purpose in our learning is that we become Christlike (Romans 8:29).

Others might be impressed by how much information we have stored away, but God is concerned with how much we've been transformed into the image of His Son.  If you want to grow, go slow. Real growth takes a long time.

And finally, if you consider creation itself, redemptive history, and our own spiritual growth, we see a God who is not in a hurry.  We see a God whose patience almost exasperates us at times.  If we look carefully, we see that the most important things take a long time to grow and mature. They cannot be rushed and neither can learning God's Word.  From a seed, a tree is not 30 feet tall in a day.  From a seed, a kernel of corn is not a stalk in a day. From a seed, an embryo is not a human adult in a day. So if you feel you aren't learning fast enough, that verses or parables are beyond your understanding, do what I told the lady ... SLOW DOWN, TAKE YOUR TIME.  You are not being graded by a stop-watch.  In fact, if you are a new Christian and have only been reading for a few months, understand a few concepts, little of the parables, and nothing of Revelation, rejoice for your crown will be the same size as mine.  Again, the key is transformation, not information.  The Holy Spirit will do the work in you because He is not only the author of your faith but the finisher of your faith (Hebrews 12:2).   (Philippians 1:6) "Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." Until next time.
-Pat-