How pausing is the key to unlocking prosperity

There is beauty in the gradual.

Delays. Long-Suffering. Waiting. Pausing. Restarting. All of these experiences are all indicators that you are on a path that leads to prosperity +  longevity. 

It seems lackluster and counterproductive as the world has painted a narrative that all the paths to success are paved with quickness. It’s the comeback story. The part in the movie when all the things work together in a few short scenes. Yet, when we even examine our expectations of where we should be and try to apply this narrative, we see that our timelines are slower in comparison. 

“I should be here by now” or “ I’m behind” are phrases we use to sum up our progress over the years as life has apparently thrown so many obstacles in the way that we are now in second to last place. 

It has been instilled in us to look at someone else and use that observation to gain information on ourselves and it comes with a cost.

The notion of lateness isn’t a unique thought. Since grade school, we have been weighed and measured against our peers, physically and scholastically so what would make us think any different?  From infancy, it’s milestones. In adulthood, it’s the joneses. The comparative yet arbitrary family we admire shows us that we are on the right path and that we are indeed maintaining the right pace of acquiring + successes.

It has been instilled in us to look at someone else and use that observation to gain information on ourselves and it comes with a cost.

When we measure ourselves by the measure of another, we will always come up short.  This perceived shortness tells us to move quickly, gain quickly, and gather quickly. It lights a fire in us to excel at an unreasonable speed. This speed leads to burnout, life dissatisfaction, and the perception that we have failed, but did we?

I beg to differ.

A faithful man shall abound with blessings, but he who makes haste to be rich [at any cost] shall not go unpunished. Proverbs 28:20 AMPC

It is your faithfulness that will produce for you, not your speed. It is your patience that moves you in the right direction, not your quickness. If you want to follow the path that leads to prosperity, you will have to grow comfortable with the pauses. 

Wealth [not earned but] won in haste or unjustly or from the production of things for vain or detrimental use [such riches] will dwindle away, but he who gathers little by little will increase [his riches]. Proverbs 13:11 AMPC

Little by little is okay. God is strategic that way. He uses the time to teach you and those lessons lead to exponential growth. You may not be where you want at this time in your life, but you are exactly where you need to be.