I still remember reading the counsel that Dallas Willard gave John Ortberg after he’d moved to Chicago to join the staff of a large church there. (John writes about this the chapter titled “An Unhurried Life” in The Life You’ve Always Wanted. He doesn’t mention Dallas by name there, but instead talks about a “wise friend.”) What was John’s question? 

“What do I need to do to be spiritually healthy?” 

After a long pause,...

Two years ago, I made a new friend. We had lunch together here in Orange County, myself, him and his wife. I heard some of his story about his ministry as a pastor in Portland, Oregon, but then I found out something really encouraging. He was working on a book on the theme of hurry. That friend is John Mark Comer and the book, which came out last October, is titled The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry.

There have been a few books written on the subject of hurry, both before and...

Rick Warren once said that life is like the parallel rails of a train track. Just like the two tracks, the good and the hard parts of life often occur at the same time. 

Around the same time as the release of Rick’s Purpose Driven Life, his wife, Kay, was diagnosed with cancer. Two rails in action: the exploding popularity of a book alongside a devastating diagnosis.

You’ve probably noticed this over the course of your own life--the disorientation of incredible grace...

Welcome to the Unhurried Living Podcast. Alan is sharing another Inhaling Grace audiobook episode. We pray these might be a few moments of remembering God’s grace that is with you, here and now, as you listen.

A little over a dozen years ago, an experiment was launched. I don’t think anyone called it an experiment, but it turns out to have become one. The smartphone was introduced: The iPhone. 

In one way, it was an experiment in human omnipresence. At any moment now, I can check in on just about anyone or anything. The increase in information access does not appear to have been met with an increase in wisdom. 

A while back, I decided that my iPhone was a little too omnipresent, so...

Last Fall, Alan was grateful to make an eight-day retreat after a very full season of ministry. In the course of that retreat, he learned a lot about his level of engagement with his smartphone. He shares some of those insights with you today on the Unhurried Living Podcast.

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At Unhurried Living, we give a lot of thought and care to the idea of being spiritually formed. We encourage people to be cooperative responders to the transformational process of God.

Over the course of our lives we are actually being formed in many ways, some conscious and some unconscious. One such formation can occur when we watch TV shows or movies. We can be “formed” by the creative choices that are used to tell these stories.

For example, I just saw a movie in which a man...

Welcome to the Unhurried Living Podcast. Today, Alan Fadling is sharing another Inhaling Grace audiobook episode. We pray it might be a few moments of remembering God’s grace that is with you, here and now, as you listen.

Last week, I said goodbye to an old friend. We’ve been friends for nearly twenty years. It was hard to see him go. 

On my fortieth birthday, my family pitched in and bought me what was then the largest recliner La-Z-Boy makes. It was called the “Grand Canyon.” It’s been a very good friend. 

I’d often come home from a long, stressful day, lean back, kick out the footrest and, as tall as I am, I wouldn’t hang off the end. Over the years, I’ve...

There are numerous reasons for us to be tired, stressed or overwhelmed on any given day. However, that stress is often brought on by our own thoughts or behaviors. We've learned to stop being the one that adds pressure to our lives unnecessarily.

In the book, What Does Your Soul Love?, Gem shared an exercise that helped ease some of this pressure. She's developed an expanded version of that exercise so you can practice unpacking your worries or fears any time you want. 

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