Like you, I’m a busy person. But as my husband and our FYI team would tell you, this seems to be an even more busy season than normal. Maybe that’s why this Christianity Today article on how our busyness is actually laziness really hit me. Our spinning around makes us seem busy but we’re missing out on the most important work. In the article, Carolyn Arends quotes Eugene Peterson’s comparison between slothfulness and busyness.

Peterson: Sloth is most often evidenced in busyness in frantic running around, trying to be everything to everyone, and then having no time to listen or pray, no time to become the person who is doing these things.

A little later in this short article, Arends points out the most important job for humankind:

The mandate can be stated even more succinctly regarding my task as a human: Pay attention to God. If I don’t, I’m guilty of spiritual sloth, no matter how hard I’m working. In truth, there is an inverse relationship between how overwhelmed I am doing things and how much energy I can give to being attentive.

Even as I write this blog, it’s tempting to think that I’ll slow down during my actual vacation time this summer. That’s when I’ll be able to pay attention to God.

I don’t want to give into that lie that it’s only on “vacation” that we can slow down. For one thing, those of us who are parents know that “vacations” are not quite as relaxing as they were sans kids. For another thing, I spent the vast majority of my life not on vacation.

I hope you are as encouraged and nudged by this reminder as I have been.