Busyness; It has become almost a badge of honor in Christian circles today, everyone says they are, and we use it as the excuses to get out of almost anything. This wonderful little word has become a critical part of our vocabulary, on a far too often basis. It seems like everyone is saying they are busy, even the high school drop out who works 14 hours a week at the mall (this is a real story!).

At the root of all this busyness is something more then simply cultural lingo, there is a heart issue. In Tim Chester’s book, A Meal with Jesus,  he talks about how meals are enacting the mission of Jesus. When we eat with people we are able to share the gospel with them in a deeper way than simply handing them a tract, or knocking on their door and telling them about Jesus. Yet one of the excuses we often make for not living on mission is, yeah you guessed it; busyness!  Chester offers this helpful examination;

Above all examine your heart. God did not make a mistake when he spun the world into being, making twenty-four-hour days instead of twenty-five-hour ones. He expects you to serve him and glorify him in those twenty-four hours. But he doesn’t expect you to do twenty-five hours’ work in a day. The person responsible for your busyness is you. We’re too busy because we’re trying to do more than God expects.

• You may be too busy because you’re insecure and need to control life. But God is great and cares for you as a sovereign heavenly Father.
• You may be too busy because you fear other people, and so you can’t say no. Bot God is glorious, and his opinion is the one that matters.
• You may be too busy because you’re filling your life with activity in a desperate attempt to find satisfaction. But God is good, and the true source  of joy.
• You may be too busy because you’re trying to prove yourself through your work or ministry. But God is gracious and justifies you freely through Christ’s finished work.

You’ll never create time for people until you address the issues in your heart and find rest in God’s greatness, glory, goodness and grace.

When we dig deep, we quickly understand we are busy, because there is a lack of trust in God. So think through the four above points that Chester makes and see where your heart is. If not you may just end up spending your whole life busy, but doing nothing much for the Kingdom of Jesus!

I find myself saying, “I’m sorry.” a lot it seems. Whether it be as a husband to my wife because I have said something I should not have, or as a father to my kids when my selfishness rears its ugly head. This is not to mention the numerous times I say sorry to people I work with, minister to, or interact with. There is something about asking for forgiveness and admitting we are wrong that our human nature hates. Yet this aversion to coming clean with our sins is nothing more than a lack of belief in the gospel.

As a redeemed believer in Jesus’ death and resurrection for my sins, I can have the confidence to know that I can apologize knowing that my value and worth are not found in my right or wrong performance and actions. No, the gospel says I can apologize because my value and worth are found in the one who never had to apologize.

Jesus never had to say, “I’m sorry.” (NOTE: Jesus may have said, “I’m sorry,” but it was not because of any sin or wrong that He did.) He never had those thoughts after a conversation (like the ones I so often do) wishing He did not say that, or say it in a particular way. He always spoke in just the right way. He never would have thought, “I’m such an idiot! I knew better than that!” No, Jesus never had to worry about this, yet neither do we. Not because we have a new magical power to not do sinful things, or hurt people, but because Jesus never did those things. Since Jesus never had to say, “I’m Sorry”, we can live in the confidence that even if we have to apologize many times a day, to many people, our value, worth and righteousness is found in the one who never spoke those words.

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We have a saying in our youth group which goes like this, “Eat the salad, not the pizza.” The reason behind this saying is, pizza is way better than salad in taste, yet salad is way better than pizza in the health factor. Although this statement is true, it does not make it any easier to eat a salad when both are sitting in front of you. Truth is great, but it does not always lead you to the right decision. The reason we have this saying is because it takes a conscious decision and many times outside help to choose the right things to do in life, not just in what you eat. We do not use this statement because we always have pizza and salad at all our events. No, we use it because this is a picture of our spiritual life.

Conscious Decision:

We can know the truth about sin and the power we have over it because of Jesus. We know that Satan is waiting to trip us up. We can know that there is a battle for our affections and soul, yet so often this truth does not lead us to change. Many times change comes only when we trust in Jesus and His promises. When we trust in the truth and when we act upon it, even if it is not the fun thing to do.

To loose weight you must work. To deepen Spiritually, you must work. Cultivating a daily Bible time and prayer does not come by merely reciting the manta, “Bible better than _____.” No, it happens when you turn off the computer and study the Bible. It is when you stop playing video games and start spending time in silence praying to God. It is when you eat the salad, not the pizza.

Outside Help:

I am not saying try harder I am saying trust deeper. Believe the promise that Jesus is better than anything and everything this world has to offer. Believe, with everything in you, that Jesus desires to work through you to overcome sins. To do this you must trust that Jesus has sent you a helper, (Jn. 14.26, 15.26, 16.7). We need to trust that in choosing to read or pray, these things will be empowered by the Holy Spirit even if we cannot see Him working. Just like the salad we have to have trust in the Holy Spirit to cause us to desire to be with Him and study Jesus. We have to trust the salad will keep the love-handles off, even though in the moment it may seem like it is doing nothing but causing us pain -the pain of passing up the pizza!

Yeah, you will stumble and we all will this side of Heaven, but make the conscious decision to eat the salad, not the pizza. 

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This week I am preaching my third message out of my series in 1 & 2 Timothy entitled Single-Mindedness. The passage I will turn to tonight is found in Chapter 1 vs. 8-20. Of this passage I have been dwelling much on vs. 15-17, one of the most beautiful movements from pointing out our despair to deep exhalation is found here. In 15 Paul says that he is the worst of all sinners in the world. Which is not a mere overstatement by him, but it is truly his heart. He understands his sinfulness in the eyes of God. However what we quickly see in verse 16, is that he also knows how he has received great mercy from the God he sinned against. Paul’s heart is overwhelmed by the grace of Jesus in verse 17, where we find his heart crescendo in these words, “To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.”

John Calvin writes about Paul’s heart in recounting the surpassing grace of Jesus to a wretched sinner as himself,

“His enthusiasm breaks out into this exclamation, since he could find no words to express His gratitude. These sudden outbursts of Paul’s come mainly when the vastness of the subject overpowers him and make him break off what he is saying. For what could be more wonderful than Paul’s conversion? At the same time he admonishes us all by his example, that we should never think of the grace shown in God’s calling without being lost in wondering admiration. This sublime praise of God’s grace swallows up all the memory of his former life. How great a deep is the glory of God!”

Oh that our souls would so deeply know our own sinfulness, and quickly turn to the grace we have in Jesus. May we be broken so much by our sin that the only reaction left is to rejoice in the one who heals.