You have surely asked someone how they are doing, only to hear the common refrain: “I’m busy.”
Perhaps you have noticed that many Americans glorify busyness. Maybe you agree that being busy means being productive and valuable. Or maybe you align with minimalist ideals about simplicity, handing out books about slower-paced living to everyone you know. I’m certainly the latter.
We are a self-employed, homeschooling family that loves free play and time in nature. I love empty spaces on my calendar and spontaneity. Why then, have all the blank spaces disappeared?
I recently posted on social media that I idealize living life like a babbling brook—with long, slow, rambling days. Yet I find myself living like a rushing river lately.
The disconnect bothered me. I fought against it, frustrated by the circumstances and commitments that led to this frantic pace. But every time I looked for an area to cut back, I found valuable community, ministry convictions, and family duties; many of them with temporary deadlines and responsibilities that happened to all hit at once.
Believing that each of these "busying" things had an appropriate place in my life, I found myself evaluating my values, trying to accept this current pace. Is it possible I have overvalued simplicity? What if "busy" isn't the enemy I made it out to be? Maybe, in this stage of life, "busy" is my calling. Rather than cutting back, I have to wonder if I rather need to work on expanding. Do I need to let my babbling brook banks wear away and a few reeds tumble out of the way for this rushing river?
We should always take questions about values back to the Bible. So let's take a quick dive into what the Bible has to say about our schedules.
September Reflections:
Modeling Our Schedules After Christ's Life
Have you seen some version of this meme comparing hustle culture to “Frog and Toad" culture from the classic children’s book by Arnold Lobel? It makes me smile every time.
It seems these are our only two options. You are either hustling or living that "Frog and Toad" lifestyle. There is no in-between.
Yet we see balance in the life of Christ. In Christ, we see what it looked like to have both long, full days, and quiet retreat. He poured himself out to others, speaking and healing, and needing to retreat and refuel. While I have moments of hiding in the bathroom from pudgy hands reaching under the door, I remember that Jesus had to catch a boat ride to get a little rest. But he did rest. He retreated to pray. Then, he returned to the rush.
And perhaps our goal should be similar. Not to “hustle” ourselves to exhaustion, but not to isolate ourselves in a self-centered pursuit of peace either.
Most Christians are not called to a quiet, monastic sort of life. We are called to parenting, to community. to ministry, to work, and they are wonderful things that fill our days, sometimes to bursting.
Yet that doesn’t mean God wants us rushing around and burning out either. He equally asks us to rest in him, to be still, to seek peace. He reminds us that all our work is in vain if we are not rooted in him.
How do we hold both of these truths at once? How do we say yes to opportunities while holding space to for resting in Christ? It's a question we'll have to answer in various ways throughout life, but here are a few examples of what this looks like for me.
1. Rest is a mental state
In Matthew 6, during the Sermon on the Mount, we see that time is not ours to control. “Who can add one moment to his life by worrying?” (Mt. 6:27). I find "busy" can be as much a state of mind as an actual calendar issue. It's a distractedness and worry that leads to feeling flustered. Remaining in the moment and trusting God to provide helps me to find rest, no matter what I'm physically doing.
2. Do today's work, in today's grace
I remember the Israelites in the wilderness. God sent manna and told them to gather only enough for the day, without fear of the future. If they tried to gather more, grasping for control. it would sour. Because God's grace is sufficient for today, and he hasn't yet given us tomorrow's grace, but he will.
3. Trust God for tomorrow
Of course I prepare for tomorrow, but I do so without fear. We are not to worry about tomorrow (Mt 6:34), for tomorrow will have enough worries of it's own. When I grasp control over tomorrow, I am like Eve in the garden, grasping at a knowledge that belongs to God alone.
4. Put God first
I know that when I seek first the things of the Lord, I am aligning my life to its proper center and everything else is more likely to spin in the right direction. When I bring my loaves and fishes and 24 hours to Jesus, he is faithful to multiply them. And the rushing river will not overwhelm me.
5. Look to Christ in any stage
Some of you may be in a season of slowness, perhaps even too slow. Maybe the hours drag, seemingly pointless and unfulfilling. I've been there. And Christ is in those seasons as well, in the thirty years of waiting before beginning his ministry. In any stage—babbling brook or rushing river—his ultimate goal is our reliance on him.
What stage are you in right now? Whatever it is, I pray you find the God over all of time there, walking alongside you through it.
Latest Reads:
Remember how I said things were a bit busy lately? August was an abysmal month for reading for me. However, I did have the wonderful opportunity to meet Robert Ruesch. author of three books including this one, about a place I absolutely love—the YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park. Ruesch grew up here and shares everything from the mischief he created to heartwarming stories of community and heartbreaking moments of loss. I've only just started it, but I'm really enjoying it so far.
Author Life:
Reaching for Grace has officially launched! It's hung out in the top ten in various categories for its first week, reaching number 3 for contemporary Christian fiction in the Kindle store! I'm thrilled and praying this story blesses others.
Exciting announcement: Book Three is under contract! I'm currently asking for prayers over this manuscript as I struggle with revisions in the midst of this busy season of life. That deadline is looming and I'm daily choosing faith over fear.
Finally, save the date for the Word Wrangler Festival in Giddings, Texas at the end of September! On September 27 and 28, I'll be joined by a curated list of 25 Texas authors for book readings, talks, sales, and all things bookish. It's just about an hour outside of Austin, I hope to see some familiar faces there!
Thank you for joining me this month! I'd love to hear from you. How are you finding pockets of peace in this back-to-school season?
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