July 17th, 2024

Happy Humpish Day:) The "summer scramble" is a real thing. This is coming from the guy who is just getting around to my first newsletter of July! With changes to our schedules, travel, and general life responsibilities it can feel busy or...full. We get to choose.

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1 big thing: Eliminate Hurry

Hurry is the great enemy of our spiritual life. What if we structured our lives to eliminate hurry? Perhaps we would model Jesus' lifestyle of simplicity and slowness. This is the premise of The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry which was recommended to me by several of my current CL Thomas Fellowship participants. I enjoyed listening to the audio version on my long summer runs. Somewhat ironic listening to slowing down while running :)

• Why it matters: Eliminating hurry creates a life that is full of meaning and presence, rather than just being busy.
• Jesus' lifestyle modeled simplicity and slowness. This book challenged me to look at Jesus' life. Did he seem in a rush? Behind schedule? I don't see that version of Jesus. Perhaps that is part of why he came—to model a life of getting away to quiet places.
• Provider next step: What is 1 thing you can do to reduce the "hurry" in your life? Some ideas: practicing silence or solitude, sabbath-keeping, or leaving a little earlier to arrive at meetings early.

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2. 🎙️ New Podcast Episode!

Alan Briggs, episode #131 is live. Keeping on the theme of eliminating hurry, my last podcast guest is a leadership and sabbatical coach! Our culture glorifies hustle and exhaustion, Alan's message is a breath of fresh air.

About Alan. Alan Briggs is a leadership coach, speaker and author. You can connect with him at Stay Forth Leadership & Sabbatical coaching and check-out his latest book Anti-Burnout.

Listen or watch the video of this episode! Be sure to follow our podcast on your favorite app, and now you can also watch the interview on our CL Thomas Fellowship® YouTube channel.

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3. 📺 A Video Clip That Provides

"Come to me who are weary". This clip is from The Chosen TV series. We watched it during a fellowship meeting to help bring this famous line to life in a new way. We all have the invitation to enjoy rest for our souls. If you have 90 seconds this is worth your time.

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4. 🎙️ Bonus Guest Podcast!

I had the opportunity to be a guest on The Kingdom Life Coaching podcast with my new friend and podcast host, Megan Nilsen. She is hosting a series on hearing God's voice. It was fun to reflect on the "God nudges" in my life and career.

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I'm just a guy trying to balance being a solid husband, dad, business professional, mentor and ultra runner. My life feels full. The provider journey continues. I'll be back with more next week.

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Bless & Protect,

Justin Thomas

p.s.

Want to become a "Friend to the Fellowship" by donating to our non-profit? You can! Just donate to the non-profit here and we will put the money towards keeping this newsletter, podcast, and small groups completely free! Thanks!