Most mornings I walk our dog, Lex, up and down our neighborhood street. A while back I noticed that one of our neighbors was getting rid of some shrubs in front of her home.

As time progressed I saw the dirt being prepared as dark plastic went down and bark chips went on. Then one day small plants were laid in a couple of nice rows. It was the start of something lovely.

However, soon after the flowers were planted, we had an unseasonable cold snap and more than half of the flowers wilted and...

This is the fourth in a five-part series sharing answers to the question: “What is the biggest challenge you face right now in living a more unhurried life?” Here are the questions on priorities that arose from our community:

1. I want to be able to serve without overdoing it.
2. How do we deal with the impulse to procrastinate as it relates to priorities?
3. How do I deal with urgent things that aren’t all that important?
4. What about my relationship with time - managing time and...

Thanks for joining us today. I’m glad your listening to this episode. You’re really going to enjoy what our guest, JK Jones, has to share about what he’s learned from the Monks. He wrote a book a while back titled: What the Monks Can Teach Us. We enjoyed sharing some of the ways that monastic writings, monastic communities and monastic practices have been a source of grace and wisdom for us in our journey with Jesus. You’ll also appreciate his gracious, humble,...

Today is number three in a series where we are sharing answers to our survey question: “What is the biggest challenge you face right now in living a more unhurried life?”

This week, we’re talking about “Distractions and Soul Busyness.” Let’s take a look a look at five of the questions that came up within this theme to see if we can find a little more freedom in our everyday lives.

#1 - The internet and social media can eat up my time so quickly. How do I...

When we gather as the church, we have sometimes placed more value on speaking the words of our heart to God than we have on cultivating an attentive, listening heart before God. Many struggle with any silence in church. We might do well to let the wisdom of James guide us when we gather as God’s people: “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak… (Jms 1:19).”

For the first couple of decades of my life in the church, I was part of fairly typical Evangelical...

Over the course of our first few episode of the new year, we are sharing answers to our poll question: “What is the biggest challenge you face right now in living a more unhurried life?” Dealing with Workplace Stress is the second podcast in that series.

Last week, we talked about “Nine Practical Challenges to Living Less Hurried.” This week, we’re talking about “Dealing with Workplace Stress.”

Your primary workplace may be a corporate office, a home...

Last year we polled our community and asked them a key question: “What is the biggest challenge you face right now in living a more unhurried life?” Living less hurried can be a challenge. We got some great responses.

We arranged the responses into five categories which will be the theme of some of our upcoming episodes. Those themes are:

• Practical Challenges to Living Less Hurried
• Dealing with Workplace Stress
• Inner Distractions & Soul Busyness
• Keeping First Things First
• ...

I caught the flu on Christmas day. That was not one of my year-end goals. That sentence sounds like a novelty holiday song like “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus,” but I can tell you it wasn’t nearly as fun. We had family over and I just wasn’t at my best. Even now, a week later, I’m still feeling the last little bit of stuffy nose, tight chest and sore throat. Yuck!

Gem and I also took the Christmas week off from our usual Unhurried Living activities. We try to...

The Welcoming Prayer is a process that you can use on the go. It is useful for times when something comes up that makes you feel sad, hurt, or stressed. Sometimes, in the middle of a busy day, we don’t have time to address all of the emotions that come up. But we may notice here and there that an emotion is quite loud. We need a way to deal with it and continue on in our tasks or work.

In just a few minutes, you can let the emotion come up and at the same time become aware of...

Great news - I have found a way to reduce much of the stress in my life. Actually, let me re-phrase that: A way to reduce much of the stress in my life found me. I wasn’t looking for this stress reducer, but it hit me like an 18-wheeler and set me on a new path.

Much of the stress in my life is caused by my expectations, as well as my trying to control situations so they turn out the way I think they should. This happens consciously and unconsciously. Lovely.

I want to address just one...