{"id":13314,"date":"2025-01-16T15:03:04","date_gmt":"2025-01-16T21:03:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/?p=13314"},"modified":"2025-02-06T13:25:40","modified_gmt":"2025-02-06T19:25:40","slug":"choose-the-opportunity-to-slow-down","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2025\/01\/choose-the-opportunity-to-slow-down\/","title":{"rendered":"Choose the Opportunity to Slow Down"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

This is the last post in a six-part series, 6 Barriers to Sharing Your Faith\u2014And How to Overcome Them<\/strong>, taken from the book, Lit Up with Love: Becoming Good-News People in a Gospel-Starved World<\/a> <\/em>by Derwin L. Gray. It\u2019s based on Lifeway Research and a framework created by Ken Boa as featured in his book, Conformed to His Image<\/em> (with a change in Barrier #5 from A Barrier of Isolation to Derwin Gray\u2019s A Barrier of Shame, which we dive into in this post). Click here<\/a> to start reading at the beginning. (Don\u2019t worry, each post takes about 2-3 minutes to read.)<\/mark><\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Gray, these barriers aren\u2019t walls; they\u2019re invitations.<\/strong> When you\u2019re lit up with love, you know that barriers are opportunities to press deeper into Christ and rely on the Holy Spirit\u2019s power.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Barrier of Time<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Many of us feel we barely have the energy or margin to get through our busy days, much less prioritize relationships and conversations with people who don\u2019t know Jesus. I\u2019ve heard it said that \u201cBUSY is an acronym for Being Under Satan\u2019s Yoke.\u201d<\/strong> Our modern age is designed to make us busy and tired. As one writer warns<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being busy is not a badge of honor and we must reverse this dangerous cultural phenomenon by resisting the urge to brag about how busy we are. The busy brag is pervasive.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

But we are not doomed to an endlessly busy life. We can choose to slow down, to be more present to Jesus, ourselves, and other people. When we prioritize Jesus and his Kingdom, we increasingly find our time shaped by what matters most.<\/strong> We notice what is unnecessary\u2014what is about our pressures rather than God\u2019s priorities\u2014and we began to cut out those things. For example, I\u2019ve chosen to limit my time on social media. I\u2019m happier. I have less anxiety. I\u2019m more present to my wife and children. And I have more time to read and engage with lost people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If being worn down by busyness is sabotaging you from joining Jesus on mission, I encourage you to choose the opportunity to slow down. What would it look like if you let Jesus shape your priorities? I have found that the more I immerse myself in Jesus through prayer, Scripture meditation and study, and the more time I spend in community with other followers of Jesus, the more my life aligns with Jesus\u2019 heart. When you\u2019re lit up with love, you align your life with Jesus\u2019 priorities so you can see where he is working and have the energy to join him.<\/strong> One day the Lord will ask us, \u201cWhat did you do with the precious time I gave you on earth?\u201d May we say, \u201cLord, we followed you. And you led us to your lost sheep.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Barriers like method, fear, inadequacy, indifference, shame, and time will always tempt us to stay silent rather than engage with people who don\u2019t know Jesus. But we can choose to see those barriers and turn them into opportunities to look to Christ, call out to Christ, and trust in the power of Christ.<\/strong> And when we do, the perfect love of Jesus will shine through the darkness of shame and cast out all fear. (Read 1 John 4:18.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Barriers to sharing the gospel will always be present. The dark powers of evil do not want lost people be found. However, just like the stone that enclosed the tomb of Christ was rolled away by the love of God, barriers to sharing our faith will be rolled away the God who lights his people up with love<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We hope you enjoyed this six-part series by Pastor Derwin Gray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Derwin L. Gray<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Derwin L. Gray <\/strong>is the co-founding and lead pastor of Transformation Church (TC), one of the fastest growing churches in America. TC is a multiethnic, multigenerational, mission-shaped community near Charlotte, NC. Pastor Derwin and his wife, Vicki, have been married since 1992 and have two children: daughter, Presley, and son, Jeremiah. He is a bestselling author of several books including The Good Life<\/em>, Limitless Life<\/em>, God, Do You Hear Me?<\/em>, Building a Multiethnic Church<\/em>, and How to Heal Our Racial Divide<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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DERWIN GRAY<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

According to Gray, these barriers aren\u2019t walls; they\u2019re invitations. When you\u2019re lit up with love, you know that barriers are opportunities to press deeper into Christ and rely on the Holy Spirit\u2019s power. The Barrier of Time Many of us … <\/p>\n

Read moreChoose the Opportunity to Slow Down<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":13446,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_caption":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_nocaption":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_hide":""},"categories":[613,617,3,7],"tags":[711,709,190,710],"yoast_head":"\nChoose the Opportunity to Slow Down - The Disciplemaker<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2025\/01\/choose-the-opportunity-to-slow-down\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Choose the Opportunity to Slow Down - The Disciplemaker\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"According to Gray, these barriers aren\u2019t walls; they\u2019re invitations. 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