Are You Busy?

What does the Bible have to say about laziness?
Proverbs 13:4 ESV The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied. People “without purpose”, “lazy people” or those that “just don’t care”.

Lazy? Not me. I’m busy. Up early, up late. My schedule is filled from
beginning to end. I love what I do and I love getting stuff done. I
attack a daily to‐do list with the same intensity I play basketball. Me
lazy? I don’t think so!

Or at least I didn’t think so. That is, until I read about the difference
between busyness and fruitfulness, and realized just how often my
busyness was an expression of laziness, not diligence.
I forget now who first brought these points to my attention. But the
realization that I could be simultaneously busy and lazy, that I could
be a hectic sluggard, that my busyness was no immunity from
laziness, became a life‐altering and work‐altering insight. What I
learned is that:

• Busyness does not mean I am diligent
• Busyness does not mean I am faithful
• Busyness does not mean I am fruitful

Recognizing the sin of procrastination, and broadening the definition
to include busyness, has made a significant alteration in my life. The
sluggard can be busy—busy neglecting the most important work, and
busy knocking out a to‐do list filled with tasks of secondary
importance.

When considering our schedules, we have endless options. But there
are a few clear priorities and projects, derived from my God‐assigned
roles, that should occupy the majority of my time during a given
week. And there are a thousand tasks of secondary importance that
tempt us to devote a disproportionate amount of time to completing
an endless to‐do list. And if we are lazy, we will neglect the important
for the urgent.

Our Savior understood priorities. Although his public ministry was
shorter than one presidential term, within that time he completed all
the works give to him by the Father.
The Father evidently called him to heal a limited number of people
from disease, raise a limited number of bodies from the dead, and
preach a limited number of sermons. As Jesus stared into the cup of
God’s wrath, he looked back on his life work as complete because he
understood the calling of the Father. He was not called to heal
everyone, raise everyone, preach copious sermons, or write volumes
of books.

While we must always be extra careful when comparing our
responsibilities with Christ’s messianic priorities, in the incarnation he
entered into the limitations of human life on this earth.
So join me over the next few days as we discover the root and nature
of laziness, so that we might devote ourselves to biblical priorities and
join our Savior in one day praying to the Father, “I glorified you on
earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do”
(John 17:4, ESV). By C.J. Mahaney