↩ Looking Back
Last week I read A Long Obedience in the Same Direction by Eugene Peterson. The book was first published in 1980, but the wisdom rings even more true today:
One aspect of the world that I have been able to identify as harmful to Christians is the assumption that anything worthwhile can be acquired at once. We assume that if something can be done at all, it can be done quickly and efficiently. Our attention spans have been conditioned by thirty-second commercials. Our sense of reality has been flattened by thirty-page abridgments.
That was over four decades ago.
Now, thirty-second commercials seem long. Thirty-page abridgments have become one-minute videos. Everything is moving faster, content is getting shorter, and we’re all becoming more impatient—with God, with others, and with ourselves.
Maybe it’s time to ask:
Why am I in such a rush? And what am I trying to save all this time for?
↑ Looking Up
I'm going to suggest something radical coming from a committed follower of Jesus.
I want you to stop praying for people.
And start praying with them.
What I'm suggesting might just change your relationship with everyone around you.
Here's how I got to that point:
Two and a half years ago, some friends from Finland introduced me to a new way of interacting with people through prayer. They encouraged me to not just pray for other people who share the same faith, but to start praying with people—even people who don't pray, don't share my same faith, or aren't spiritual at all.
Since then, I've prayed with countless people—a Kobe Bryant lookalike in the Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, a French atheist on a plane, multiple restaurant workers, neighbors, agnostic friends, and lots of others in between.
Some people have said no. Others have ignored me. A few have allowed me to pray but asked that I do it later, on my own. But the majority—yes, the majority!—have said yes to being prayed with.
You don't want to miss the story of a restaurant worker and what he told me a year after I prayed for him—and how you can start praying with people too.
👉 Read the full post with all the details: Stop Praying for People
↪ Looking Forward
My wife and I were talking about how nothing good comes from what’s fast or processed—not in our food, our relationships, or any part of life.
Technology often promises speed and efficiency, but the good stuff is way more crockpot than microwave.
In light of Eugene Peterson's insight and my post about praying with people, here are some questions for your consideration:
- In what areas of my life do I need to purposefully slow down?
- Where am I rushing something that can only be built over time?
- What do I need to eliminate in my life to make things feel less chaotic and rushed?
I'm still answering these questions, and I'm doing my best to get off the ever-speeding-up treadmill of life, because all the good stuff takes time.
🔧 One Useful Thing
I usually share timeless tools and tips here, but occasionally a short-term offer is too useful to ignore.
I’m no fan of debt, but if you use credit cards responsibly and pay them off in full each month, the Chase Sapphire Preferred is offering a best-ever bonus: 100,000 points, worth around $1,000 in travel rewards if you hit the spending threshold.
The real win for travelers and expats: No foreign transaction fees.
Here’s a referral link if you’re curious—it gives me some points as a kickback.
Wrapping Up
Hit reply—what’s one area where you need to choose the slow, steady path?
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Until next week.
Slow down, say a prayer, and settle in for the long haul,
