Busy Busier Busiest

So, why are you so busy?

Some stay busy because of fear. They fear thinking about either their past sins, their present sorrows, or their future death. Some stay busy because the want things. They want riches or toys and those things come with hard work. I've seen teens work themselves to the bone on top of school all so they can afford a shiny car. Many of them, when questioned, cannot come up with a good reason why they need a car at all. They say something like, "How would I get to work if I didn't have a car?" Seriously. Still others stay busy for status or power. We look up to our workaholics in America. We pride ourselves on our frenzy of activities. We even one-up each other in conversations with friends and acquaintances: "You think you're busy? You should see my schedule!!!"

Ultimately, busy people want happiness. But busyness never delivers. Socrates is famously quoted as saying, "Beware the barrenness of a busy life." As he observed the people around him he noticed that busy people make the world go round, but the world did not go round well. The problem with the fact that the world is run by people burning candles from the north and south is that they seldom slow down enough to really process whether or not things are moving in the right direction.

For the Christian this subject is of even greater importance than for his counterpart. If we look to Jesus as our example we see that he "often withdrew to lonely places to pray."* Clearly, he placed a premium on what has been called soul care. Elsewhere, God called to his people and said, "Be still, and know that I am God."** For a believer to miss this point is to miss the whole point of our faith. Being a Christian is supposed to be about relationship, not activity. For example, what kind of relationships do men or women have with their families if they are constantly working, or out in town doing who knows what? They'll inevitably respond, "But, I'm doing it for them!" or "Lord, I'm doing all this for you!"

Here is the point. If, in our busyness, we cannot be still to just be with God, we miss the point of being in a relationship at all. It is barrenness.

So what can we do? My suggestions may not sound exciting, but they'll work.
1. Schedule time in your planner to be with God. Treat these times as nonnegotiable appointments. You don't have to say, "Sorry, I can't do that 'cuz I have to spend time with God then." Say, "I have an appointment with someone very important to me," instead.
2. Learn to say, "no." If your plate is too full you'll never eat all of it. Even if you can you'll be miserable afterward.
3. Take walks. At WBC we are planning to carve a prayer walk through the woods behind the church. Walking is a great way to get perspective.
4. Start a Bible reading plan. If you don't, the conversation will always be one sided with God.

Let's fight barrenness together.

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*Luke 5:16
**Psalm 46:10