"Are you busy?"I've heard that a lot since I arrived in South Carolina on the first of the month. "You must be really busy with wedding planning and doing things with friends" says nearly every person I run into at church or around town.
One thing I've noticed though is that while I wouldn't say I've been super busy, I know that I haven't been very restful. My moments of reflection of any kind are squeezed in between lunch and coffee dates or while sitting in traffic.
Anyway, I can tell that I need to be restful because I've been staying up rather late reading, writing or thinking. I've read over several older journals and all of them kept me up thinking. Good, mostly. And then some conviction thrown in.
There was a time in my life where my life was not busy. Well, maybe it was, but it was prioritized. I got up early, had my quiet time, and started my day. Sometimes I'd work out early in the morning; other times I'd skip it but the thing was, my days started early and were focused from the start.
And then I went to school. Getting up an hour and a half early to spend time in God's Word before a 7:45 class seemed crazy to me so I'd grab a bite of the Word as I did my makeup or drank my morning cup of tea. As the semester progressed, I realized that I wasn't really getting any time in God's Word because I didn't make time first. That's been one of the biggest struggles throughout my time away - getting up before early classes (and staying awake!) to do my quiet time.
That brings me to now. I'm currently taking the semester off, so quiet times aren't a problem, right? Wrong! The bad habit I fed while in school hasn't helped at all. Neither has my lack of discipline. To put it simply, I've been busy. Busy, busy, busy. And then I go to bed to rest, wake up, and go right back to being busy.
I'm not sure of the proper context of this verse but I found it fitting: Man is a mere phantom as he goes to and fro: He bustles about, but only in vain; he heaps up wealth, not knowing who will get it. Psalm 39:6
Life isn't supposed to be empty busyness. It's supposed to be about God. Wedding planning is great - God first. Dates with friends are so wonderful - God first. Family time is great too - God first. There really aren't any exceptions I can see anywhere in Scripture. Sure, do stuff! Have fun! But never let yourself get to the place where you'll get to God later. NEVER. What a dangerous and sad position to be in! Yes, it's a big deal. Yes, we need that time.
*picture of a rather "busy" paper time in my life last semester, taken by my friend Emily from school.