I am a first daughter raised in an Igbo household, so I definitely know what it means to constantly be in motion. From serving as the family’s “trial run” to taking on a pseudo-parent role, I completely understand hustle culture.
Irresponsibility is usually a luxury for people like me so for most parts of my life, I played by the rules (saved my behind a bunch if I’m being honest). From an early age, it was clear the expectations laid out before me: go to school, become a doctor (which thank God never happened), get a job, marry a man with complete wires in his head…
In primary school, I’m sure I must have heard talks like, “Those that came first, do they have two heads?” more than a million times. So naturally, I became conditioned to chase.
Now, add that to today’s hustle culture, and you have an adult with a chaotic nervous system. I am ambitious, and I like ambitious people. Whether this is a result of conditioning or not is hardly the question here. The point of this post is that being constantly in motion robs us of the presence of mind that rest brings.
Photo source: Pinterest
Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot more about my processes. I’ve had to press pause on a lot of projects to allow myself to soak fully in the now. I’m learning to rebuild my relationship with time. Pheeew! I’m not behind schedule. I am just right where I need to be at this moment, and if that’s the case, then why can’t I fully savor the scenery around me? Why can’t I pause long enough to feel my heart beat?
I was having a conversation with my partner recently, and he brought up a Bible verse that made me stop for a second. It was such a beautiful reminder.
“But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.” Isaiah 43:18-19 NLT
Gosh! How often we miss out on the now. Ah! God is inviting us to a place of rest in Him. Pause! Feel the floorboard underneath your feet and fill your lungs with plenty of air. Smile! Life is working in your favour. Deep down, you know that the race is not “unto the swift”, so, what exactly is the hassle about?
By the way, let me point out that I have no patience for the gospel of complacency. It irks my spirit. The teaching that you should fold your hands and do nothing and life will just chase you down with a bag full of blessings just because is laughable. Tueh! But the other extreme is equally as dangerous.
So, I’ve been taking more conscious steps to be present with God…with myself…with my loved ones. I’ve been taking time to linger long enough to notice the direction the trees are swaying. I no longer have any desire for a hurried life. My life is meant to be lived second by second, minute by minute, moment by moment. I subtract myself from the rush and the chaos. Rest is my portion, and I bask in it as I concurrently take action. Balance is my forte.
Here’s my prayer for you this week: that you will lean wholly toward rest, the type that God gives. That you will be trusting enough this week to put your burden down at His feet and take up His light yoke. I pray that you will be present enough to notice what God is doing in this season…how the Holy Spirit is moving. Yes! I pray that neither what’s in the past nor ahead will have the power to steal your gaze from what God is doing now.
With loads and loads of love,
Odinakachi Nwonu. 💚
There’s no such thing as the right time or the wrong time. If a moment’s rest makes you miss something then it wasn’t for you in the first place.
This was very needed for me. Thank you, Odinaka. ♥️