Best Way to Avoid an Overwhelming Life

Walk Slowly Enough to Experience Jesus Fully

Scripture References

• Matthew 11
• Mark 2:14

Overview

Life can fill so quickly—jobs, debt, diapers, deadlines—until one morning we wake up frantic and empty. Craig Groeschel argues that “the greatest enemy to the life you want may be the life you’re living.” Looking at the Gospels, he notices that Jesus was busy yet never rushed. Jesus always “walked along,” offering unhurried love and attentive presence. The message invites believers to exchange frantic hurry for the unforced rhythms of grace by praying one simple daily prayer and re-ordering life around what matters most.

Main Points

Always Running, Never Arriving

• Modern life piles on incrementally: career, loans, spouse, kids, activities, debt, second job—until we feel chronically rushed, anxious, and disappointed.
• Efficiency tricks (scanning grocery lines, racing stoplights, multitasking even in the bathroom) reveal an inner hurry sickness.
• Repeated refrain:

  “What if I told you that the greatest enemy to the life you want may be the life that you’re living?”

Jesus Was Busy but Never Rushed

• Three short years of ministry: trained disciples, healed the sick, resisted temptation, fulfilled 351 prophecies—yet the Gospels never show Him sprinting.
• Mark 2:14 pattern: “As Jesus walked along…”—He changed lives at walking pace.
• Examples:
  • Story: Jairus’s dying daughter—Jesus still stops for the woman with the 12-year illness, heals her first, then raises the girl.
  • Observation: Even His transportation (a donkey) embodied unhurried humility.
• Conclusion: If we follow an unrushed Jesus, our souls should not live in chronic hurry.

Why We Keep Sprinting

• Most people are either running from something (failure, insecurity, insignificance) or running to something (success, acceptance, image).
• Yet chasing more rarely satisfies; the sought-after life often leaves us empty on arrival.

You Have Time for What You Choose to Have Time For

• The issue isn’t a lack of hours but wasted hours on what doesn’t matter.
  • Average annual social-media use: 706 hours (≈4½ work-months).
  • Average annual TV viewing: 2,700+ hours.
  • Story/Statistic: By age 21, the average male logs ~10,000 hours of video games—enough time to earn $100K, read 2,000 books, or restore a marriage.
• Solution: more of what matters, not more time.

The Prayer of Slowing

• Daily seven-day challenge prayer:

  “God, help me walk slowly enough to experience Jesus fully and love people deeply.”

• What this prayer is producing in the pastor:
  • Being present in the moment—phone aside, full attention on people.
  • Choosing what’s important; eliminating what’s not (“no for now” isn’t “no forever”).
  • Greater sensitivity to God’s voice—extra questions, impromptu prayers, seeing needs.

Walking with Jesus Means Walking Toward the Cross

• Every step Jesus took moved Him toward the cross—ultimate love through self-sacrifice.
• Following Him means daily laying down hurry, ego, and self-interest for what truly matters: loving God and loving people.

Key Truths

• Love is incompatible with hurry; “love is patient,” so hurry sabotages love.
• Jesus models a pace of life that allows for presence, interruptions, and compassion.
• Time is not the problem; priorities are.
• Saying “yes” to what matters requires saying “no” (or “not now”) to many good but lesser things.
• Praying for a slower walk aligns us with Christ’s rhythm and shapes us into His likeness.

Response

• Pray the slowing prayer every morning for the next seven days.
• Audit your schedule; cut one mindless activity and replace it with intentional presence with God or people.
• When interacting, put the phone away and make eye contact.
• Welcome interruptions as potential divine appointments.
• Regularly ask, “Am I running from something, running to something, or walking with Jesus?”

Closing

Jesus invites the worn-out and over-scheduled to recover real life in Him. When we walk at His pace, we notice people, hear God’s whispers, and find rest for our souls. The better way is not achieving more in less time, but moving slowly enough to live and love like Jesus.

“God, help me walk slowly enough to experience Jesus fully and love people deeply.”

Prayer

The congregation prayed for forgiveness and new life in Christ, then committed to walk in His ways and live at His pace, trusting the Holy Spirit to empower daily obedience.

Resources

• John Mark Comer, “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry” (concept referenced: love is incompatible with hurry).