“Hey, how’s it going?” We know the usual answer to this is simply “Fine,” but I have noticed more and more that people use this question as an opportunity to boast about how busy they are. I’ve also noticed that those that say that they are busy usually fall into two categories: Either they are genuinely busy and loaded down with work, or I know for certain they are not busy but for some reason they tell me they are because busyness has become a social norm.

Our culture has started to value busyness to the point that it is one of the major ways that people find value in life. We live in an increasingly fast paced world, where rest and waiting are not options, and so it has become easy to be tangled in busyness, whether real or imagined.  Busyness can prevent us from experiencing the peace that God desires for us. When catching up with someone you haven’t seen in a while it is easy to start comparing yourselves based on how busy you can make yourself sound. God does not approve of how busyness has become a source of pride and self-worth.

God wants us to be productive and God wants us to do the best we can with what he has given us; that is called stewardship. Work is a good thing that God invented and intended for us as image bearers, but it is not the ultimate thing we were created for. God also wants us to be still, pray, enjoy the company of others, have meaningful conversations, and to love being in the presence of God. To God, your value is not based on what you produce or how busy you are.  When you start getting your value from what you’re doing, you are falling into a pride trap that says “I can make God love me by my works,” thus distancing yourself from God’s grace and believing you can control God. Your value comes from God and the facts that he made you and loves you; no amount of busyness can make him value you more.

If you find yourself in a busy season of life, or if you feel like you are constantly overcommitted, I encourage you to seek God and then take action by clearing your schedule of unnecessary things that are weighing you down. Don’t use this busy season as a chance to boast with pride and try to make yourself look a certain way to those around you or to attempt to win God’s love. God wants you to break free from busyness and to experience God’s shalom that transcends all understanding (Philippians 4:7).

Keep the Faith