Ruthless About Hurry

While on vacation (eight days long to get the maximal refreshment) I finished the latest Christian craze that is John Mark Comer's new book, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry. It is a good book. There is vitally important exhortation to be counter-cultural for spiritual, psychological, and physical health. It is well researched and winsomely written. But what nags at me as I have some space from it is wondering if everything presented is actually accessible.

Now don't get me wrong, this book still keeps its four-star rating on GoodReads, but I think so much of what is suggested is really only available to the affluent.

Comer covers this in the book, he knows the tension and realizes if you can spend $20 on a book you have some level of affluence and we should be okay with that and go on living simple. But I have been mentally wrestling with that as I don't even think some of the practices are accessible to people in my neighborhood much less the resort town where I vacationed where locals lived a far different life.

Essentially the first half of the book, that dives into the trauma of hurry in our society and the Christian invitation to rest, is a goldmine. Well worth the time to read and contemplate. But from there I wonder if we can advocate for sabbath more broadly. I even felt like some of the tips equated to a new, hipster-approved, self-righteousness. Which is the furthest from the author's intention.

There has to be a way to disciple all people into rest and intentional slowness before a holy God. One that includes all those we long to be in the church and our lives.

I want to wrestle with this thinking some more and maybe if you read the book we can talk it over together, slowly.

Even so, I am going to walk slower when I can and rest well to serve well. Living simple not as a result of my affluence but because I get to in Christ.