Learning how to follow the way of Jesus in a world that is in too much of a hurry.

I suspect that too many of us, too much of the time, are ‘skimming the surface of life.’ We feel the call to live deeply and deliberately, but our busy lives and hurried souls seem to make this an impossible dream.

In this popular book, John Mark Comer analyses the ‘hurry sickness’ in our society and in our souls. He examines some of the contributing cultural factors to this, reflecting on the very real pressures of our frenetic age and how they have come about. He points out that such a way of living is incompatible with following the way of Jesus. The challenge is very real. And he does not pull his punches. We cannot say we are following Jesus and yet live in this hurried way of the world. Learning to live differently from the world in these areas is a major way we can demonstrate God’s countercultural, different kingdom.  

But the author doesn’t leave us just feeling guilty or bad about ourselves. He offers biblical and practical solutions in the form of the ancient tradition of a ‘rule of life’, a schedule and set of practices that help us to live our lives around the priority of following Jesus. Drawing on the meaning of the word ‘rule’, he helpfully compares it to a trellis holding up a vine. The rule is not an end in itself, but a means of helping us to live a life of abiding in Jesus.   

Comer writes in an easy, winsome, informal style and it is written from the perspective of a millennial pastor in Portland, Oregon (so some of his examples are difficult to relate to and not everyone will connect with his style). But it is filled with practical, healthy principles for our emotional and spiritual life that we can all apply to our own situations. If you are familiar with the writings of Dallas Willard, Richard Foster and John Ortberg (all of whom I recommend) some of it will not be new. But this younger writer is expressing it all in a fresh and contemporary way. I found myself reminded and re-challenged to pursue the kind of life that makes for a healthy soul, enabling us to live well from the inside out as we follow the way of Jesus.

I especially liked his material on simplicity. (I say liked…I actually mean, felt challenged to the core and provoked to make some changes to my mindset and practice!) He points out that minimalism is the secular version of this ancient discipline of simplicity, just as mindfulness is the secular modern version of the disciplines of silence and meditation. The world is longing and looking for ways of living that the church has available in its ancients traditions. We must rediscover and apply these so we can genuinely show the world a better way to live. This is surely to be preferred to just telling the world we have the answer and then living just as badly as everyone else (ouch, I know!)

I would recommend you read this book for yourself (see the links below) but I have written a LifeWord Summary of this book and you can find it here. If you want to find out more about the book before you decide to read, try the chapter summary as a taster. If you have already read it but some time ago, read the summary as a refresher. If you are going to struggle to read the book for whatever reason, then at least gain some of its insights through this summary. There will be an audio version if the summary to follow soon.

Find The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry:

On Amazon

On Audible

On Goodreads

Find out more about the work of John Mark Comer at johnmarkcomer.com and Practicing the Way.