Do Less and Let Him Be More

Listen to this week’s podcast THE BEST YES: A CONVERSATION WITH LYSA TERKEURST, and enter the giveaway for a free copy of the book by clicking here!

A MESSAGE FROM AMBER:

The Best Yes: Making Wise Decisions in the Midst of Endless Demands… So basically Lysa Terkeurst summed up the BE mantra on the cover of her new book. You don’t even have to open the thing! Reading the cover alone has the potential to fill you with enough wisdom to give Solomon a run for his money!

Monica, Sara, & I believe so strongly in the message of BE. That your doing should always be a result of your being. We’ve known that the Lord is speaking this message into our lives and into the lives of others… But when we heard about Lysa Terkeurst’s The Best Yes the confirmation was undeniable!

(Seriously people… she literally says “Do less, Be more.”)

(If you listen to the interview you can hear us all gasp when she says it.)

(It’s actually kind of hilarious.)

The message is the same.

Do Less.

Be More.

Be Still.

Be Free.

I love the way Lysa describes the doing as the rhythm of rush.

“When you set your life to the rhythm of rush you forsake the sacred moments of actually enjoying your life and enjoying the people that God has entrusted to you.” -Lysa Terkeurst

I’ve been seeing this played out in my own life recently!

Andy (my hunka hunka husband) and I were talking about some recent changes in our life. Specifically the spiritual changes that he’s seen in me since BE.

This is how that conversation went:

Andy: You really seem like you’re embracing this whole Being thing.

Me: Really?

Andy: Yeah. You don’t seem to get your energy from doing any more.

Me: What do you mean?

Andy: Well you used to be a lot like Ms. Pac-Man.

Me: Ms. Pac-Man…

Andy: Yeah, like you had to keep moving…. Going. Going. Going. Constantly chasing after pellets to fuel you. Constantly chasing after the next thing that would fuel you for more.

Me: Wow. At first I thought I would be offended by that… but that was actually a pretty good analogy.

Okay. Maybe I didn’t say that last part. But he was right!

When you set your life to the rhythm of rush, the only thing that could possibly fuel you to keep going is MORE RUSH. It is a viciously endless cycle that never ends well.

And Ladies, I know how difficult it is to break out of this cycle… You’re running through the maze, grasping at whatever is right in front of you to get you around the next corner, the next day, the next project.

Now, hear me when I say that I offer no condemnation in this scenario! It isn’t that the things (the rush) you’re saying Yes to are bad things! They may be wonderful!

You may even to be called to do them…

But remember. We’re talking about the BEST Yes.

Just because what you’re doing is good or holy or is even God’s will…. Doesn’t mean that eventually you won’t be called to say No.

Think about John the Baptist! Here is man distinctly called by God (even prophesied about!). Doing the work that God has called him to do (leading the way for the Messiah).

And yet, when Jesus enters the scene… John the Baptist is called to back off. He’s called out of his calling because it is most beneficial to the Kingdom and God’s ultimate design for the salvation of the world!

Now, imagine this… What if John the Baptist opted out of his BEST Yes.

What if he continued to say Yes to a thing that God was calling him to say No to.

John the Baptist would have been a distraction as opposed to his ultimate purpose: to be a neon arrow pointed straight at the Messiah.

But thankfully, the scriptures tell us that John the Baptist DID chose his BEST yes. Which came in the form of a big, fat, NO.

“They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about—look, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”

To this John replied… ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’  The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.  He must become greater; I must become less.” (John 3:26-30)

This is the essence of choosing your Best Yes.

To “DO LESS and BE MORE” means that I MUST BE LESS and HE MUST BE MORE.

No more rushing and striving and seeking and grasping. The pride we take in this exhausting race only serves to draw attention from the one most deserving of it.

So, I want to encourage you. During this Christmas season when it is so easy to set the tempo of every day to the rhythm of rush…

Don’t be afraid to say no in order to say your very best Yes.

Now it’s your turn!

Write a blog post on what The Best Yes means to you and link up to the blog hop below. Make sure to read the post before yours and leave a comment; we want to encourage each other and expose ourselves to new voices.

Make sure to grab the graphic below to put at the end of your post so others can link up and join, too!

Love you friend! Let’s commit to saying Best Yeses today.

(For more details on the heart behind our link-ups, click here.)