I assumed that in the course of seven days I could substitute-teach at least two full days, teach an adult writing class, have six women over to my home for a book study, do all my online publishing, copy-edit writing submissions, rehearse two hours with an adult choir, attend a discipleship group via Zoom, learn a new computer skill online, and do all my regular texts and phone calls to stay in touch with people I care about. So, so busy; rest was notably absent from the calendar.
WHERE WAS REST, JOY AND TIME WITH JESUS?
I crashed and burned. It makes me exhausted just to write all that down. I missed rest, quiet, joy, and time with Jesus. At the end of the week, I looked at the schedule and realized I was bonkers. Something had to go. “We stay so busy that the truth of our lives can’t catch up” (Brené Brown). In my speed to get ahead, I brushed God’s plans aside.
MISSING THE IMPORTANT THINGS
For personalities like mine, it is easy to miss the important things. Easy to confuse achievement with worth. I’m so glad God doesn’t confuse the two. Each activity on my list was important, but is it God’s plan for all those activities to be on my plate? Isn’t it arrogant to think I am the only person who can do it all? I don’t earn more of God’s love by being busy; He already loves me totally.
WHAT DID GOD HAVE IN MIND?
So, God and I sat on the back porch. The yard was quiet, but my mind kept racing. A chorus of alarm bells had been sounding all week. It took time for my soul to settle down enough to listen. What was on God’s mind?
GOOD QUESTIONS
“All things are lawful, but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful, but not all things build up” (I Corinthians 10:23-24). The activities were lawful, but were they all helpful? Did I sign up because of guilt or because God called me? Did the items on my calendar serve Kingdom Purpose as part of God’s individual plan for my life? Were others called to do the jobs I so quickly inserted myself into? Being so busy, I lost touch with God’s voice. Definitely, not everything on my schedule was helpful.
MOMENT OF DECISION
This stopped me in my tracks. A repentant response followed. I resigned from both the choir and the Zoom group. I promised not to educate myself more on online publishing until it was essential. Also, I vowed not to substitute teach more than two full days/week. Then, I smiled.
God can take care of His own. He already had many wonderful, talented singers in the choir I belonged to; the Zoom conference calls interfered with an individual God had already called me to work with, and by then I had enough notes on the computer skill. Those subtractions freed up at least eight hours per week. Rather than being rushing ahead of God’s truth, His Word finally got in front of me. Hallelujah!
WHAT DOES GOD HAVE IN MIND?
Have you brought your plans before God? Are you ready to obey Him and remove yourself from anything He wants to subtract? “All things are lawful, but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful, but not all things build up.” Look at your schedule and quiet down enough to listen. What does God have in mind? You are His beloved child. Hand Him your calendar.
Read about God’s take on busyness.
