3 Signs God Is Telling You to Slow Down

John 14:27

Is God telling you to slow down in life? Are you trying to get married so fast that you are dating someone new every weekend? Are you working so many hours that you aren’t even able to go to church? Are you beginning to wear yourself out with the speed at which you are living your life?

Here are 3 signs God is telling you to slow down.

If Your Heart Is Full of Panic, God Is Telling You to Slow Down

Emotions are like your sense of touch. When your skin is burning, you don’t just ignore that sensation. You address the reason for the burning and move your skin away from the heat.

Likewise, when your heart is feeling an intense emotion like panic, you don’t just ignore that feeling. Your heart is trying to tell you something. One of the reasons God has given us emotions is to warn us when something is not going right.

People often feel panic because they are rushing. When you put deadlines on yourself, the closer you get to that deadline the more pressure you feel. Eventually this pressure will turn into panic if you believe your time is running out.

Therefore, if you feel panic when you think about still being single at your age, if you feel panic when you are applying for jobs, or if you feel panic as you pursue some other desire you have in life, perhaps God is telling you to slow down.

This doesn’t mean you must stop pursuing these things all together. It doesn’t mean you should be passive and just stop moving forward. But maybe you just need to trust God more and have peace about his timing as you take steps of faith too.

As Jesus said in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

If You Don’t Have Time for the Spiritual Disciplines You Know God Wants You to Do, God Is Telling You to Slow Down

Do you feel like God is asking you to pray more, to read your Bible more, or to be more involved at church, but you continue to ignore his leading in this area because you feel like you are too busy and don’t have enough time or energy?

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If so, God is telling you to slow down in life. We have to budget our time wisely. We have to spend our time on the most important parts of life first and use the remaining time for the other things in life. If you don’t have time to pray, read your Bible, or go to church – you are simply too busy and you need to prioritize these spiritual disciplines in your life. You must spend your time on pursuing God first and then use the rest of your time for other things. As Paul instructed Timothy:

“Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy when the body of elders laid their hands on you.

Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.” (1 Timothy 4:13-16)

If the Speed You Are Living at Is Hurting Yourself and Others, God Is Telling You to Slow Down

If the busyness at which you are living your life is causing damage to yourself or damage to other people, this damage is a sign God is telling you to slow down. In Mark 12:31 Jesus said, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” This famous Bible verse not only implies that we must treat others as we would want to be treated, it also states that we must treat ourselves as we would expect others to be treated.

Sometimes the person we treat the worst is ourselves. Proverbs 4:23 also states, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Notice that above all else, we are responsible for the health of our own heart.

So if you are too busy to live a healthy life, it’s time to slow down. And if you are too busy to really love the people that you love in life, then it’s time to slow down. The way we treat ourselves and the way we treat others is a sign of how healthy our walk with God actually is.