Slowing to a Crawl

Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him! – Isaiah 30:18

Half-cocked. Now that’s an expression – one that has a unique meaning for me. I’ve always looked at a project and then acted on it full-steam ahead, never really considering any snags or issues that might arise. My grandmother would say, I would go at things “half-cocked” however, 99% of the time my projects turn out very successful.

My thought is simple. Why look for the things that could go wrong with a project, just dive in full-force, and then if you run upon an issue, deal with it. This is how I function and many times, it leaves others standing along the way scratching their head. Still, I have a basic plan. Point A to Point B, but not necessarily by way of the least resistance. In fact, if I planned a bit better, things would probably go faster and easier. I love to take the “nothing is impossible approach” to projects, because it spurs on the creative juices and makes working on a project, loads of fun. However, to the average Joe, my way of planning is “half-cocked.”

Lately God has tied a weight to my heels in an attempt to slow me down. He nods His head and points a finger asking, “Did you see that or did you breeze right past?”

I have to answer by saying, “I caught a glimpse, God.”

He says, “But I wanted you to look.”

Thus, the battle continues. I’m moving ahead and God is running along behind me digging His heels in, in an attempt to slow me down to a walk. Recently, I’m finding out I miss a lot of really nifty things by not enjoying the walk a bit more. Oh, I love sitting on the bluff that overlooks the river. This is where I can soak in so much of the Father, that it hurts, but I’m realizing what I pass on the way to bluff is filled with equally as much beauty.

I’m learning to slow to a crawl. It’s very hard -- habit and impatience often overrun my good intentions, but I am dropping the speed to a putter in an attempt to catch a better view of the things I’ve breezed past. I’m understanding the meaning of doing a “double-take.” It’s so much easier to run, so much faster – but the sacrifice is missing the daisies hidden along the roadside, and I love daisies. So, I make the effort to put a toe down and drag it along the way. I’ve found myself sliding to a halt and then taking a few step backwards to revisit something. I doubt I’ll ever be a big planner simply because my nature is the creative and positive thinking approach. I believe it can be done with effort.

The Father keeps telling me, “You’re right, it can be done with effort, but the view is so much better when you walk.” So, I sigh, tap my fingers impatiently on the table, then smile. God is always right.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, slow me to a crawl that I may absorb all You offer.