Unhurried Living | Helping Christians Rest Deeper & Lead Better

Join us on our podcast today as we talk about our "normal condition" and about living from within the source of it all...God Himself. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Spiritual friendship is a life-giving gift we give ourselves and others. There are likely people in your life who are struggling with self-doubt, fear or other issues. You can be a loving, listening ear and a quiet voice of encouragement. A simple sentence or two, shared at just the right time, may have a huge payoff in that person’s life. Don’t ever think that what you have to offer is too small. Small things matter. Quiet goodness offered often is a very good thing. So, we thought would share a bit about what spiritual friendship can look like. We have a few friends that we meet with in different ways. Sometimes as couples, others in one-to-one conversations. We’d like to share the dynamcis of these friendships and how we benefit from this level of friendship. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

In these weeks following Easter, our church community has been focusing on “Resurrection: A New Life of Love.” The essence of the risen life is love. Living a risen life is living in Jesus’ way of love. We live in Southern California, and it can be a very hurried place. I have a little made up word to describe one way I experience the chronic hurry of our region. The word is “gronk.” “It is a contraction of green and honk, and it represents the nanosecond of time between the fresh green light in front of us and the angry horn blasting behind us. It is an inflammation of impatience. It is an utter lack of simple kindness. It is chronic and epidemic. And, bottom line, it is unloving.” In so many people there is an absolutely epidemic lack of patience and kindness—a lack of what Francis de Sales called “the little virtues.” Virtues like patience, humility, gentleness, simplicity, honesty, and hospitality lived out in your ordinary, daily life. They are little virtues because they aren’t the ones that tend to make headlines. They don’t seem impressive or heroic. But these little virtues are the virtues of love. They are the ordinary ways that we live a life of love in our simple, everyday lives. In our gospel text, Jesus gets at the essence of this at the very beginning of our reading: “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you (12-14).” Jesus is saying, “Love is at the center of who I am. Love is the essence of our friendship. Love is how my friends live. Love is the greatest life there is. Love is the great commandment.” And in his letter, John tells us this: “Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. (1 Jn 2:7-8).” It’s not a new commandment in that it is as old as Moses. It’s really as old as creation, even as ancient at the very Being of God . But John wants us to realize that it is new in Jesus. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

I recently re-read Tina Fey’s Bossypants which is a really fun read. I was reminded about the four rules of Improv. It sent me on an online search for the rules and I stumbled upon the 11 Commandments of Improv by Del Close. Del Close was a coach to many of the Saturday Night Live greats like Dan Aykroyd, Mike Myers, Tina Fey, Gilda Radner and dozens more. It’s amazing how these simple rules can help actors keep a flow of conversation and story going in their improvisational scenes. We’ve thought before that these guidelines could be beneficial in relationship and in our conversations. We’ve tried these out in our own friendship personally and as we do our work together. These rules of improv have helped us to get unstuck on more than on occasion. I’ll start by sharing Tina Fey’s 4 Rules of Improv and then we’ll describe a bit how each one works relationally: Agree…say YES Say yes…AND Make statements (as opposed to questions) There are no mistakes (only opportunities) Listen to the podcast to see how we unpack each of these in the context of relationships and conversations. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

We’re talking about “Addiction” today. This isn’t so much about the substances, or relationships, or activities to which we find ourselves addicted. It’s more of a conversation about how the dynamics of addiction impact us. When we act on addictive impulses, it is like borrowing against future emotional resources. Having a few too many drinks to feel lighthearted or relaxed is like borrowing peace or joy from our future. Overeating as a source of comfort is like borrowing comfort from our future (leaving inevitable discomfort in my future). There is a physical reality that substance or behavior addictions stimulate or imitate certain brain chemicals in a way that results in less effective functioning of those parts of the brain next time. If I distract myself to avoid unpleasant feelings, I am borrowing concentration or focus from my future. If you resonate with the dynamics of addiction in some part of your life, this is an invitation to enter into the freedom of grace and our response of repentance. Let's freshen the meaning of this sometimes abused word: Repentance is simply a turning away from what is draining and damaging us and turning towards the One Who is Life. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

What's it like to be a reservoir kind of person? Wouldn’t you like to live, relate and serve from a place of fullness, rather than continuing to pour out the last drop from your ever-emptying cup? We can learn how to treasure the goodness God is always pouring out to us, storing it up like a reservoir of abundance out of which we might bless and serve others without becoming empty. We can make space to let God fill our souls to the brim in relationship to him. This is how Jesus was able to accomplish all that he did. He often withdrew to receive love from the Father, to learn from him. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Engage with us as we talk about a dynamic that some will face in their spiritual journey, what John of the Cross called “The Dark Night of the Soul." It sounds kind of ominous and scary, but it’s actually just a place where our faith is given an opportunity for testing and refining. That doesn’t mean it feels good to us, but it is a good place. A while back, Alan wrote an article about the dark night for our blog. It’s one of our most visited posts. That’s because when you find yourself in a place like this, there’s a great thirst for insight and help. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Right now, we find ourselves in the season of Lent, and a few weeks ago, Alan wrote a blog post titled “Lent: An Invitation to True Satisfaction.” He said that, "In Lent, rather than aiming at acquisition, we aim for some form of openness or even empty space. Fasting results in empty stomachs. Self-denial can quiet our selfish ambition." But the “empty” here isn’t a vacuum. It is a welcoming of God’s presence. We open up space for God to be active in and through us. We seek to become quiet so that we can hear whatever He might wish to say. It’s a season of noticing our thirsts, and then bringing our thirsts into the presence of God. A passage in the Bible that brings this into focus for us is Psalm 42. It’s a passage we want to talk about as we address our thirsts. We will also pray through Psalm 63 at the end of the episode and we invite you to join in the prayer from your own heart. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

We made our way through quite a few rooms of the Hermitage. The interiors were jaw dropping, the paintings gorgeous. And, as Alan said, he had been there before, so he knew when we were nearing the original painting we were most looking forward to seeing, which was Rembrandt's Prodigal Son. He gave me a brief warning as we turned the corner, "Get ready." We rounded the corner and entered the room completely devoted to Rembrandt's paintings. There it was, on its own wall, as we walked through the doorway. The original. Breathtaking. I waited a bit for the crowd to clear so I could get a close-up view for myself. A masterful work of art, depicting essential truths: The Father is waiting. He never gives up. He loves me. He is generous. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

In this mini-sode, we want to share eight simple ways you can bless people. These are actually drawn from a resource we produced a year ago, called "Take Five: 17 Simple Ways to Serve Others." That was before we launched this podcast, so I wanted to share some of the helpful ideas with you all. These little "five minute" ideas aren't complex. That's actually the point. You could easily add plenty of other creative ways to bless another. We simply encourage you to do the good that God has put in your heart for the benefit of another. These mini-ministries can be done as you live your real, day-to-day life, including emailing, grocery shopping, driving, doing laundry and washing dishes. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.