VIVA

by Ryan Richardson

Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? - Matthew 6:27

"When you've had enough of the faster stuff just, Slowdown.
When you're sick from stress, bust up in a mess, Slowdown."

Morcheeba, Slowdown

GOD SPEAKS TO ME.

This article is all about revolution, right? Why not start with a revolutionary statement like that one?

I don't mean He speaks to me in a Bill Paxton "Frailty" kind of way, or a George Burns/John Denver way or even in a Joan of Arcadia way (although I have never watched the show…maybe it is like that). I just mean when I actually stop and take the time to listen, He speaks to my innermost being, telling me things that always line up with His Word, at exactly the time I need to hear it.

Let me explain my first statement.

I am restless. Restlessly restless. I do not like traffic jams - I could never live in a city like Toronto. I hate to wait, even when I am not in a rush to get somewhere. I am the guy in front of you that changes lines three or four times at McDonald's or the grocery store, because I just KNOW that line will get me out into the parking lot faster.

Why am I so restless? I blame Sesame Street, with their short skits and random assault of numbers and letters - "we did 'L' yesterday, why are we doing 'G' today?" My class action suit against the Children's Television Network for the loss of my attention span is enough for another article. But I digress…

So I am standing in the line at the Automatic Teller the other day, getting frustrated because the guy in front of me is obviously a member of the pre-ATM generation and is taking forever to do his transaction. He was fumbling with his deposit, reading and re-reading the tiny screen, and generally taking longer than he needed to. In my humble opinion.

He was not actually taking FOREVER, but I had places that I needed to be. Sort of.

Maybe it is just me, but I find I am often less than tolerant of people who are still new to the whole computer game. I mean, they've been on our desks for 20 years now, am I right?

As I got ready to verbally express my disdain for the man's lack of computer prowess as he finally finished his transaction and walked past me, I heard this statement very gently:

"I LOVE HIM."

I immediately shut up. Whether I heard or sensed this, I am not sure. But it was very clear to me in that moment. The rush that I was in, disappeared. In that moment, I saw that man that held me up (not literally, of course) as the apple of God's eye, in the same way that I, as a father, look at my own children.

I am convinced that this computer-friendly self-righteous smugness is a sin that our generation needs to repent of. I certainly did.

In recent years, I have learned how to Slow down, as Morcheeba beautifully puts it, with my immediate family. What I still need to learn is how to Slow down, and start to listen, in all the other areas of my life.