There are some people in my life that simply amaze me; they have a very full and rich life, but are able to take their time and enjoy it.
For example, one guy I know has an amazing family with a few young children, he holds a political position and also owns a quickly growing company. However, he always seems to have time to chat and is always fully engaged in whatever he’s doing at the moment.
Of course, I’ve seen plenty of the opposite where people are always hurrying from one thing to the next, and they never seem to be able to focus on the task at hand because they’re distracted by notifications and upcoming meetings. I think we’ve all been there, as I know that I certainly have.
A recent episode of the “How to Take Over the World” podcast focused on the life of Jesus, largely from a historical perspective. There were a lot of great insights in the episode, and I encourage you to give it a listen, but one concept really stood out to me: Jesus was never busy.
The host Ben Wilson shared a bit from Paul Johnson’s book “Jesus: A Biography from a Believer” where Johnson shared:
“Jesus was not thus overburdened by a program of specific appointments to teach. While always at work, he gives the impression of finding time to chat, albeit not about trivialities. There is never a sense of hurry.”
This shows up over and over again in scripture. Like other people in my life, Jesus got a lot of things done. He wasn’t “busy”, but he certainly wasn’t lazy. Finding that magic middle ground is an amazing place to be.
I think a big key to this is having a “mind like water“, where we’re able to respond appropriately to things as they come up throughout the day. If your inbox is clear and you know your priorities, it makes it easier to stay in the moment. It’s kind of like how I used Uber for many of my meetings back when we were in the office, because it allowed me to stay on top of things and prioritize effectively.
The other key is simply being in the right stage of life. I have some friends that are super organized and on top of things, and simply have chaotic lives right now with multiple children wrapping up their school year. At times, a bit of organized chaos simply can’t be avoided.
All of that said, it’s a great lesson to take from Jesus — you can accomplish a lot without having to be “busy” all the time.
I encourage you to check out Ben’s full episode for more.
That’s powerful thinking. Somewhat overlaps Richard Swenson’s “Margin.” So, how about you — are you anywhere close to ‘never busy?’
I’m not familiar with Swenson’s work, so I’ll go check it out.
As for me, I’m getting there. There are more days lately where it’s feeling less “busy”, but still more than I’d like. It’s a journey, for sure!