Three mile an hour God

The Three mile an hour God

One of the things I miss about my work as a minister is visiting people in their homes.  For me each visit was like a gift of time and hospitality which enriched me greatly…many thanks!   The gift of hospitality is one of our most precious gifts because it says that we value the other person.  This does not mean always opening our home, but can just by stopping in the street and taking time to slow down enough to listen to each other.   Hospitality is creating a space for another person and in the bible we find a God who also wants to create a space for us.

A Japanese Theologian, Kosuke Koyama once called God the “Three miles an hour God”.   Love has its speed.  It is a spiritual speed.  It is a different kind of speed from the technological speed to which we are accustomed.   It goes in the depth of our life, whether we notice or not, at three miles an hour.  It is the speed we walk and therefore the speed the love of God walks.    I love this quote and it is so appropriate for today when our lives are lived now mostly at three miles an hour

So as our lockdown begins to ease let’s not forget this gift of slowing down and the opportunity to connect with others.   We can offer hospitality by picking up the phone, sending an email, writing a letter…anything which creates space and time for our friend.  It’s such a joy when someone contacts us without a particular purpose  other than to catch up and find out how we are.   

Giving the gift of  hospitality in these ways rarely costs us any money but it does cost us our time, which we are told again and again is very valuable.   This is why receiving a home-made gift from someone is very special as they took time to make it, or a personal poem written for our birthday.

Another way we can honour one another with a gift of hospitality is to pray for them.  Many of us this last week have chosen five particular people to pray for as part of the world wide initiative called Thy Kingdom Come.   As I have stopped what I have been doing each day to consciously recall each of my five friends I have created a space in my heart and stilled my busy mind to ask God to bless them and to meet with them in whichever way they need God to come.   

The closing two verses of a very recent poem by the wonderful Malcolm Guite written during this lockdown season inspires me to learn to live with more space in my life for others and to walk at God’s pace.

And this time with a new humility,                                                                                                            With chastened awe, and mutual courtesy;                                                                                                To re-accept the unearned gift of life                                                                                                         With gratitude, with joy and charity.


Perhaps we’ll learn to live without so much                                                                                           To nurture and to cherish, not to clutch,                                                                                                     And, if I’m spared, I’ll hold the years I’m given                                                                                      With gentle tenure and a lighter touch.