On Busy-ness
Scripture for the overloaded, overcommitted, extra...
Recently I was asked to do about 17 things over and above my normal responsibilities. Now you might think, “He’s a pastor so he probably handled it with grace and compassion. I mean he only works on Sundays.” You would be wrong. I got a little defensive about my calendar commitments.
After reflecting on my reaction a while I decided that I actually responded well - minus the sarcasm that likely leaked out. You see a passage in proverbs came to mind, Proverbs 30:15-16
15 The leech has two daughters:
“Give” and “Give.”
There are three things that will not be satisfied,
Four that will not say, “Enough”:
16 Sheol, the infertile womb,
Earth that is never satisfied with water,
And fire that never says, “Enough.” (NASB)
(a picture of a leech)
I have perhaps found something else that never says “enough” - busyness. I’m an achievement motivated person (yes I know that isn’t always good, and sometimes I have to fight that battle). So when the opportunity to achieve 171 new things is presented to me, my default reaction is to say YES.
Thankfully this time I remembered my commitments to my other jobs, my family, etc. This time, when asked to do an additional 17871 things, I emphatically said, “no thank you I’m quite busy.” Why? We all have 167 hours each week. If God is the main priority in our life, our calendar should prove it. If family is important - our calendar should reflect that value. If work is important, by all means work all 167 hours. But if health is important, you better schedule some workouts (today was back and biceps).
I did not apologize for turning down the 1.7823 million extra things. I didn’t need to apologize. Now, I’ve had to do plenty of apologizing when I’m wrong or when I need to make amends, but this wasn’t one of those times. This was a time to worship God with my calendar by drawing a line in the sand and proclaiming that He Has Priority.
Now if you know me, you know I’m not really one to talk about work-life balance, because I like to work more than most people. My point here isn’t about balance, it’s about priorities. Don’t waste ANY of your 167 hours on something that you don’t value. I mean that. If you value feeding and clothing yourself (and your family) then yes you need to do something that pays enough to do those things. But by the time you’re middle aged like me, hopefully even that work is something that you value.
Let Stephen Curtis Chapman make my point in song:
If you like this post, you might also like some of my other posts. I recommend this one:
