1 00:00:02,720 --> 00:00:07,800 Speaker 1: Life Audio. There comes a moment when your body and 2 00:00:07,840 --> 00:00:11,760 Speaker 1: your soul agree. They stop negotiating and they stop tolerating, 3 00:00:11,760 --> 00:00:15,200 Speaker 1: and they say to you, clearly and without apology, enough 4 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:18,280 Speaker 1: you need a new way of moving through your life, 5 00:00:18,760 --> 00:00:23,119 Speaker 1: one that doesn't lead to anxiety, dread, or discontent. And 6 00:00:23,160 --> 00:00:26,000 Speaker 1: when that moment comes, you can either override it or 7 00:00:26,440 --> 00:00:29,880 Speaker 1: you can listen. Well, hi friends, I'm Jem Faddling and 8 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:32,800 Speaker 1: this is the Unhurried Living Podcast where we inspire you 9 00:00:32,880 --> 00:00:36,960 Speaker 1: to rest deeper, live fuller, and lead better. Today we're 10 00:00:36,960 --> 00:00:40,519 Speaker 1: talking about our chosen quality of life. How do I 11 00:00:40,560 --> 00:00:43,480 Speaker 1: want to live and how might I take steps toward 12 00:00:43,600 --> 00:00:47,519 Speaker 1: my truest desires. After a word from our sponsor, will 13 00:00:47,560 --> 00:00:59,560 Speaker 1: dive into our conversation for today. As you're listening to 14 00:00:59,600 --> 00:01:02,120 Speaker 1: this podcast, I'd love for you to follow us. It's 15 00:01:02,200 --> 00:01:06,880 Speaker 1: free and it helps Unhurried Living be discovered by more people. Well, 16 00:01:06,920 --> 00:01:09,120 Speaker 1: a few years ago, I found myself in a season 17 00:01:09,520 --> 00:01:12,720 Speaker 1: of reset. Prior to that, I had been rumbling along 18 00:01:12,800 --> 00:01:15,560 Speaker 1: at an accelerated speed, and I came to realize it 19 00:01:15,600 --> 00:01:18,760 Speaker 1: was too much for me. My body and soul spoke 20 00:01:18,959 --> 00:01:23,560 Speaker 1: loudly at the same time and said enough It wasn't dramatic. 21 00:01:23,840 --> 00:01:27,200 Speaker 1: It wasn't a breakdown. It was more like a holy interruption, 22 00:01:27,959 --> 00:01:32,240 Speaker 1: a gentle but firm invitation to realign. While back, I 23 00:01:32,280 --> 00:01:34,920 Speaker 1: shared with my spiritual director about this reset and how 24 00:01:34,920 --> 00:01:37,800 Speaker 1: I felt a big shift occurring as I entered my sixties. 25 00:01:38,520 --> 00:01:41,560 Speaker 1: I still feel young and vibrant inside, and I know 26 00:01:41,600 --> 00:01:44,960 Speaker 1: that age is just a number, and yet there is 27 00:01:45,000 --> 00:01:48,320 Speaker 1: no doubt about it. I am entering the final third 28 00:01:48,520 --> 00:01:52,120 Speaker 1: of my life. That language may sound strong to some, 29 00:01:52,320 --> 00:01:55,320 Speaker 1: but I don't think I'm being overly dramatic. It's good 30 00:01:55,320 --> 00:01:59,440 Speaker 1: to pause in big life shift seasons. In fact, I 31 00:01:59,440 --> 00:02:02,520 Speaker 1: think it's why over the course of my life, I've 32 00:02:02,560 --> 00:02:05,720 Speaker 1: spent a lot of time looking back, reflecting, and turning 33 00:02:05,720 --> 00:02:09,200 Speaker 1: those reflections into discernment and then hope. And this is 34 00:02:09,240 --> 00:02:13,720 Speaker 1: a wonderful practice that I highly recommend. Reflection becomes discernment, 35 00:02:14,040 --> 00:02:19,399 Speaker 1: Discernment becomes intention, and intention becomes action and a new 36 00:02:19,400 --> 00:02:23,080 Speaker 1: way of moving forward. But this time, my spiritual director 37 00:02:23,160 --> 00:02:26,800 Speaker 1: turned toward me and said, let's look at the future 38 00:02:26,919 --> 00:02:29,360 Speaker 1: instead of the past. And he asked a question that 39 00:02:29,480 --> 00:02:33,880 Speaker 1: landed deeply. What is the quality of life you want 40 00:02:34,040 --> 00:02:38,320 Speaker 1: in your sixties? Well, without hesitating. Four words just came 41 00:02:38,360 --> 00:02:41,000 Speaker 1: to mind, and these are the qualities of life that 42 00:02:41,200 --> 00:02:48,600 Speaker 1: I desire in my next season. First, free, meaningful, rested, 43 00:02:49,240 --> 00:02:52,480 Speaker 1: and fruitful. So those are my four Let's unpack them 44 00:02:52,520 --> 00:02:54,360 Speaker 1: and see what I mean by each of these words 45 00:02:54,600 --> 00:02:56,400 Speaker 1: and what I hope and pray God will do in 46 00:02:56,960 --> 00:03:01,560 Speaker 1: and through me. Let's start with the word free. I've 47 00:03:01,600 --> 00:03:04,600 Speaker 1: come to learn that true freedom is not doing whatever 48 00:03:04,639 --> 00:03:07,920 Speaker 1: I want whenever I want. That kind of freedom is 49 00:03:07,960 --> 00:03:11,920 Speaker 1: actually a kind of captivity. It has no healthy boundaries. 50 00:03:11,919 --> 00:03:17,360 Speaker 1: It can be driven, reactive, and often anxious. Kind of 51 00:03:17,360 --> 00:03:20,560 Speaker 1: freedom I'm talking about is the freedom to choose good, 52 00:03:21,080 --> 00:03:25,320 Speaker 1: the freedom to be released from other people's perceptions, expectations, 53 00:03:25,320 --> 00:03:29,720 Speaker 1: and opinions. The freedom to rise above my own unhealthy patterns, 54 00:03:30,160 --> 00:03:33,160 Speaker 1: to respond rather than react, and to live from love 55 00:03:33,960 --> 00:03:38,520 Speaker 1: rather than fear. All of my apprenticeship to Jesus, spiritual 56 00:03:38,560 --> 00:03:42,040 Speaker 1: formation and therapy have brought healing and open new doors 57 00:03:42,040 --> 00:03:45,840 Speaker 1: for me. While I walk in the freedom granted me. 58 00:03:46,480 --> 00:03:50,200 Speaker 1: Freedom is available and I can cooperate with it. My 59 00:03:50,360 --> 00:03:54,320 Speaker 1: answer in this next decade is a resounding yes to 60 00:03:54,400 --> 00:03:59,520 Speaker 1: that freedom. Second word is meaningful, the desire to engage 61 00:03:59,560 --> 00:04:02,240 Speaker 1: in a meaning existence is that the heart of most people. 62 00:04:02,680 --> 00:04:06,160 Speaker 1: As we age, I think that desire sharpens. We begin 63 00:04:06,240 --> 00:04:09,920 Speaker 1: to ask different questions, not how much can I accomplish, 64 00:04:10,320 --> 00:04:14,320 Speaker 1: but what truly matters. I want to engage meaningful work, 65 00:04:14,560 --> 00:04:16,560 Speaker 1: and I desire the love of God within me to 66 00:04:16,600 --> 00:04:20,640 Speaker 1: express itself in ways that make a difference. A spiritually 67 00:04:20,680 --> 00:04:25,520 Speaker 1: formed life is not self focused. It looks outward. Contemplation 68 00:04:25,680 --> 00:04:30,440 Speaker 1: and action are inseparable siblings. Time with God fuels love 69 00:04:30,520 --> 00:04:34,919 Speaker 1: toward others, and love toward others deepens our experience of God. 70 00:04:36,040 --> 00:04:39,280 Speaker 1: Meaning is not found in busyness. It is found in alignment. 71 00:04:39,640 --> 00:04:45,200 Speaker 1: When my inner and outer world are aligned, meaning naturally flows. 72 00:04:45,839 --> 00:04:48,560 Speaker 1: This is the hard work of spiritual formation. How do 73 00:04:48,640 --> 00:04:52,400 Speaker 1: I keep in step with the invitations of God? It's 74 00:04:52,400 --> 00:04:55,840 Speaker 1: not a puzzle to solve, but a loving relationship to nurture. 75 00:04:56,480 --> 00:04:59,600 Speaker 1: God is always present, leaning in, and I can learn 76 00:04:59,640 --> 00:05:02,880 Speaker 1: over time time to receive God's love and extend that 77 00:05:02,960 --> 00:05:06,560 Speaker 1: same love to other people. A meaningful life is an 78 00:05:06,560 --> 00:05:10,440 Speaker 1: intentional life. I don't earn love, I receive it and 79 00:05:10,560 --> 00:05:16,320 Speaker 1: move from it into the world. Third rested, Now, this 80 00:05:16,400 --> 00:05:18,880 Speaker 1: one is no surprise coming from someone who heads an 81 00:05:18,960 --> 00:05:23,240 Speaker 1: organization called unhurried living. But remember, it is one thing 82 00:05:23,279 --> 00:05:26,240 Speaker 1: to teach about an unhurried life, it's another thing to 83 00:05:26,400 --> 00:05:30,480 Speaker 1: live it consistently. Life around us is moving fast. I 84 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:34,480 Speaker 1: often feel like I'm swimming upstream in an ever growing current. 85 00:05:34,680 --> 00:05:38,000 Speaker 1: And yet whatever I engage, whether my inner life or 86 00:05:38,040 --> 00:05:41,640 Speaker 1: outer life, I want to do it from an unhurried heart. 87 00:05:42,000 --> 00:05:45,760 Speaker 1: And that means I must rest, refill, and replenish in 88 00:05:45,880 --> 00:05:50,400 Speaker 1: all the ways that make that possible. Sleep, sabbath days, 89 00:05:50,680 --> 00:05:56,680 Speaker 1: family play, friendship, solitude and silence, and just a more 90 00:05:56,720 --> 00:06:01,560 Speaker 1: sustainable pace. Rest isn't laziness. Yes, rest is a kind 91 00:06:01,560 --> 00:06:04,320 Speaker 1: of resistance. It resists a culture that tells us our 92 00:06:04,400 --> 00:06:08,080 Speaker 1: worth is tied to productivity. Rest comes in many forms, 93 00:06:08,080 --> 00:06:11,240 Speaker 1: and I intend to live and lead from a rested 94 00:06:11,560 --> 00:06:17,520 Speaker 1: center and then finally fruitful. In John fifteen sixteen, Jesus says, 95 00:06:17,560 --> 00:06:19,839 Speaker 1: you did not choose me, but I chose you and 96 00:06:19,880 --> 00:06:22,440 Speaker 1: appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit, 97 00:06:22,800 --> 00:06:27,520 Speaker 1: fruit that will last. This is the kind of fruitfulness. 98 00:06:27,560 --> 00:06:31,480 Speaker 1: I long for fruit that will last, fruit that remains, 99 00:06:32,040 --> 00:06:34,960 Speaker 1: and I am convinced this fruit emerges from the spirit within, 100 00:06:35,040 --> 00:06:37,400 Speaker 1: which means I step out of the way as often 101 00:06:37,440 --> 00:06:41,680 Speaker 1: as possible, I cooperate more than I initiate. The more 102 00:06:41,720 --> 00:06:44,400 Speaker 1: I rely on God and God's movements within me, and 103 00:06:44,440 --> 00:06:46,440 Speaker 1: the more I allow all of this to be expressed 104 00:06:46,440 --> 00:06:49,680 Speaker 1: in my life, the more fruitful I am. This is 105 00:06:49,720 --> 00:06:53,280 Speaker 1: the organic way of abiding. Jesus is the vine. I 106 00:06:53,320 --> 00:06:56,960 Speaker 1: am the branch. My job is to remain. Fruit only 107 00:06:57,000 --> 00:07:00,880 Speaker 1: emerges on the branch if it stays attached to the vine, 108 00:07:00,960 --> 00:07:04,839 Speaker 1: and this is gardening one on one. Now, all of 109 00:07:04,880 --> 00:07:07,760 Speaker 1: this musing on the final third of life brings to 110 00:07:07,839 --> 00:07:12,640 Speaker 1: mind Second Corinthians four. Therefore we do not lose heart. 111 00:07:12,920 --> 00:07:16,360 Speaker 1: Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are 112 00:07:16,440 --> 00:07:19,800 Speaker 1: being renewed day by day, for our light and momentary 113 00:07:19,800 --> 00:07:22,600 Speaker 1: troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far 114 00:07:22,800 --> 00:07:25,880 Speaker 1: outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on 115 00:07:25,880 --> 00:07:29,600 Speaker 1: what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what 116 00:07:29,760 --> 00:07:35,480 Speaker 1: is seen as temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. Inwardly, 117 00:07:35,560 --> 00:07:40,400 Speaker 1: we are being renewed every day. This is the quiet 118 00:07:40,440 --> 00:07:44,760 Speaker 1: miracle of aging. The outer self changes, slows, and wastes 119 00:07:44,760 --> 00:07:48,640 Speaker 1: away over time, but inwardly there is freshness and renewal 120 00:07:48,760 --> 00:07:53,880 Speaker 1: available every single day. The question isn't whether renewal is happening. 121 00:07:53,920 --> 00:07:56,800 Speaker 1: The question is whether we'll notice and respond to it. 122 00:07:57,640 --> 00:08:02,720 Speaker 1: What freedom, meaning, rest, and fruitfulness will emerge from this renewal. 123 00:08:03,480 --> 00:08:06,160 Speaker 1: These aren't just questions to think about. There are actually 124 00:08:06,240 --> 00:08:09,520 Speaker 1: invitations to pray. So I'd like to leave you with 125 00:08:09,600 --> 00:08:13,760 Speaker 1: three simple ways you could begin cooperating with your own 126 00:08:13,960 --> 00:08:18,680 Speaker 1: next season. First, name your own four words, or three 127 00:08:18,800 --> 00:08:21,600 Speaker 1: or five, however many it takes, and ask yourself, what 128 00:08:21,680 --> 00:08:24,680 Speaker 1: is the quality of life I want in my next decade. 129 00:08:25,400 --> 00:08:27,880 Speaker 1: You don't have to overthink it. You can just let 130 00:08:27,960 --> 00:08:31,280 Speaker 1: your own four or three or five words rise to 131 00:08:31,360 --> 00:08:33,960 Speaker 1: the surface and write them down. Sit with them for 132 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:39,240 Speaker 1: a while, pray with them. Notice what happens next. You 133 00:08:39,280 --> 00:08:43,840 Speaker 1: could identify one obstacle for each word that you wrote down. Gently, 134 00:08:43,880 --> 00:08:46,720 Speaker 1: ask yourself what tends to get in the way of 135 00:08:46,760 --> 00:08:52,720 Speaker 1: this Fear, hurry, people, pleasing, fatigue, so many things, But 136 00:08:52,760 --> 00:08:56,200 Speaker 1: awareness will help you. You can notice your resistance and 137 00:08:56,280 --> 00:09:00,960 Speaker 1: decide if you want it calling the shots. Finally, just 138 00:09:01,040 --> 00:09:05,520 Speaker 1: choose one small pivot. Pick one small concrete action this 139 00:09:05,600 --> 00:09:09,240 Speaker 1: week that aligns with one of your words. One sabbath hour, 140 00:09:09,760 --> 00:09:16,000 Speaker 1: one boundary, one good conversation, one act of service. Renewal 141 00:09:16,040 --> 00:09:20,440 Speaker 1: grows through small faithfulness. Now, the final third of life 142 00:09:20,480 --> 00:09:24,839 Speaker 1: is not a decline into irrelevance. It is an invitation 143 00:09:25,240 --> 00:09:30,760 Speaker 1: into depth. It is an invitation to live a free, meaningful, rested, 144 00:09:31,080 --> 00:09:36,240 Speaker 1: and fruitful life. Outwardly we may be changing. Inwardly, we 145 00:09:36,280 --> 00:09:41,520 Speaker 1: are being renewed day after day. May we just cooperate 146 00:09:41,559 --> 00:09:46,240 Speaker 1: with that renewal. May we remain abide, and may fruit 147 00:09:46,280 --> 00:09:51,120 Speaker 1: that lasts grow quietly from our lives. Blessings to you 148 00:09:51,400 --> 00:09:56,200 Speaker 1: as you make your way. Thank you for joining me 149 00:09:56,240 --> 00:09:59,479 Speaker 1: on the Unread Living podcast. You can download free resources 150 00:09:59,520 --> 00:10:02,520 Speaker 1: and learn more or about us at Unhurried Living dot com, 151 00:10:02,559 --> 00:10:05,120 Speaker 1: and please subscribe and share this podcast with your friends 152 00:10:05,360 --> 00:10:08,600 Speaker 1: and colleagues. We'd also like to thank our partner Life Audio. 153 00:10:08,760 --> 00:10:12,240 Speaker 1: Check out their other faith centered podcasts at lifeaudio dot com. 154 00:10:12,480 --> 00:10:14,320 Speaker 1: Blessings to you as you make your way.