Slack Not Your Riding

Looking at the title for today’s discussion, it begs the question: How serious are we taking the knowledge that Jesus Christ is on His way back for a prepared people? How urgent is the need for us to stay ready to meet Jesus face to face?

For everything we discuss here has to have a spiritual connection. Even if we begin by talking about something in the practical sense so that we get a better understanding, the ultimate goal is for our spiritual edification, nourishment, growth and living, for ourselves and to help others. 

I feel if we want to hear about current affairs, as important as that is, there are other platforms for that. Here at ZJoyVI, I want to know more about Jesus and how He wants me to live. And of course these are definitely things that He wants to know about. Are we on the same page? I hope so.

Yesterday, I was having a discussion with a random man and woman at a restaurant. We spoke about natural disasters, our careers, retirement, taking time to take care of our bodies - our health, growing up in different countries in the Caribbean, marriage and relationships, and how emotionally draining separation and divorce could be for the couple and for the children involved. I interjected at one point,  that with everything going on in this world, we ought to make sure that our hearts are right with God.

I mentioned that because we’ve been talking about being in the world but not of the world and that scenario presented itself where I found myself in that secular discussion. But what is important is how we should always find a way to talk about Jesus and right living.

Indeed, as Christians, we cannot slacken our riding. Everywhere we go, it has to be about Jesus.

So I thought that was a nice segue into our discussion for today.

The phrase "Slack not your riding" comes from the story of the Shunammite woman in the Bible.

The woman is referred to as the "Shunammite woman" because she was from the town of Shunem, a small village in the territory of Issachar in ancient Israel. She is depicted as a hospitable and faithful woman. Whenever the prophet Elisha would pass through Shunem, she would provide a room for him and make sure he was fed. 

In 2 Kings 4:8-37, we read that Elisha wanted to do something special for this lady and found out that she and her elderly husband had no children. He prophesied that they would have a son and they did. 

Sometime later, her son became ill and died and she went looking for Elisha at Mount Carmel. She was ready to say to him: What’s happening here? I told you not to joke with me.

And so she prepared to travel to Mount Carmel to find Elisha.

2 Kings 4:24 and the King James Version has the more popular saying: “Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee.”

So there was this urgency and determination with which the Shunammite woman pursued help for her son. She was resolute in her mission and did not want anything to delay her journey to the prophet, who she believed could bring her son back to life.

And that’s where we want to stick a pin and draw a spiritual analogy. Because we know the story, Elisha prayed to the Lord and the child came back to life.

So this story of the Shunammite woman serves as such a great encouragement for those of us on a mission. It is deeply significant for our spiritual journey.

This woman was persistent, she was determined, she had faith that as she was able to miraculously bear a son, her son could just as miraculously be brought back to life. So she was not about to waste any time in giving credence to her belief. 

Let us bring this home now. Can we think of something that needs an urgent fix in our lives? Let’s go: that relationship with our children, our spouses, our relatives, a friend maybe?

How have we been handling the situation? Is there any urgency in wanting to get it solved, or are we moseying along day by day hoping for a change and if it comes, well, good, it’s about time?

Slack not your riding suggests an urgency that we should have in seeking God's intervention in our lives. God already knows what’s going on with us. We know He already knew what is happening before it even happened before we were even born.

However, God wants us to approach Him with our concerns. We have a need, we should pursue God relentlessly for His intervention.

Psalm 55:22 “Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.”

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

1 Peter 5:7 “casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” 

Don’t slacken up, make haste and take your burdens to the Lord, if you need some answers…

Then there’s another angle we can explore as far as this phrase, slack not your riding, is concerned. 

Each of us as Christians, we are on a mission to tell everyone we meet about Jesus. Correct? The Great Commission was given to us too, not only to the disciples back then.

Matthew 28:18-20 “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

While there was no specific timeline in that command, we can safely deduce that it is a now command, because Jesus spoke of the end of the world. And since we don’t know when that is, we should rightly move with a sense of urgency, to make sure we accomplish the task before the end of the world. Amen?!

So do I have a plan? Do you have a plan? Are we moving to link up with someone who has a plan? What hindrances are we allowing to get in the way of this mission?

Because remember now, when God wants to accomplish something, He’s going to find the right person. So we have to be trust worthy, we have to have faith in Him, we have to obey His Voice and we cannot be distracted.

Family, we are called on today to slack not our riding. We have to have a plan and we should be about executing that plan at this stage of our lives.

And as we are on the path to making sure our lives line up according to the will and the way of Almighty God, we know that it is not going to be an easy road. So we have to stay vigilant, steadfast, and determined in our walk with God. Why? Because there are so many distractions in this world and the enemy will not sit by and allow us to be great! 

So to help us not to slacken our riding, we have to understand the call and persevere.

In 2 Kings 9, we read of Jehu, a man appointed by God to fulfill a divine purpose. Jehu was known for his intense and determined riding, representing his zeal to accomplish God's mission without delay or distraction. In verse 20 it says “And the watchman told, saying, He came even unto them, and cometh not again: and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi; for he driveth furiously.”

We too are called by God to fulfil a divine purpose. Do we have that same urgency as we pursue God's will in our lives? Just how serious are we about our soul salvation and ensuring that we are not misrepresenting our God?

This is what the Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27: “Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: but I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”

We cannot slacken our riding. We have to live on purpose. We cannot be lukewarm. We cannot have one foot in and one foot out. No half-hearted business when it comes to doing business for God.

To "slack not your riding" means to press on with all diligence. Philippians 3:14 “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

What happens if we slack our riding?

Complacency steps in. We stop going to church. We stop studying the Bible. We start to speak any old how. We start to compromise on the principles of right living. We allow distractions to cloud our better judgement. We focus on the cares of the world and we get discouraged.

Jesus warned of this in the Parable of the Sower Matthew 13:1-23, where some seeds fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants.

We cannot slack our riding.

In Hebrews 12:1-2, we are encouraged “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

To slack in our riding is to be weighed down by unnecessary burdens or entangled in sin, hindering our progress toward the goal.

Family, we are encouraged to press on, in spite of how hard it seems. Take heart, for the Lord is our strength. 

There is this beautiful promise in Isaiah 40:31, “but they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

And Zechariah 4:6 “Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.”

Family, God provides the strength we need to push through our struggles, to keep riding with determination and enthusiasm too.

We do not have to slack our riding.

This race is not for the swift, but those who can endure to the end.

Ecclesiastes 9:11 “I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.”

“But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” Matthew 24:13.

So when we feel weary or tempted to slacken our pace, let us draw for the Holy Spirit, who empowers us to continue faithfully in our calling.

aub - 28Aug24

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