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This past Sunday I preached on our cultural view of time and how that pulls us away from God and a life of flourishing with him. If you missed Sunday, you can listen to it here. But as a reminder, my overall theme was that time is not a resource to exploit but a sacred gift to share.

I talked about the three cultural undertows and the biblical realities to stand on:

  • Time is Scarce vs. God is Eternal and Abundantly Generous
  • Significance is Earned vs. Jesus Accomplished All Things
  • Commodifying People and Idolizing Tasks vs. Time is Meant for Love

I hope that the message was paradigm-shifting in how you view time and gives you something to chew on in how you live your everyday life. Think of this as a follow-up conversation to unpack it further. The following may be some thoughts and questions you have; read what interests you and skip or skim the rest.

What will happen to the work if I slow down?

This is one topic I wanted to explore more in my sermon but didn’t have time. Ironically, a week earlier I gave a devotional at the Men’s BBQ saying that our work is important. I don’t think I contradicted myself between the two topics, although it may seem that way.

While sometimes we may idolize time and work, that doesn’t mean they aren’t good. Good things can often become idols to us. They need to be in the right place.

Our MB confession talks a lot about stewardship of our work. Doing the best we can honours God. But we need to check our hearts on why we are doing the best we can. Is it for selfish gains of pride, vanity, or popularity? Sometimes it is hard to tell, and sometimes our motives can be mixed.

We can work for the glory of God. 1 Peter 4:11b says: "If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen."

So when you work, put your full self into it, for God’s glory.

In my message, I referenced Martha who invited Jesus into her home and then got distracted and worried about many things. Jesus was glad that Martha did the work of hosting, or else he wouldn’t have gone to her house. But it was regarding how she got consumed with all the details that Jesus challenged. It wasn’t her work that Jesus challenged, but her heart. I don’t know what would have been best for her to do: stopping doing the work and sitting with Jesus or just continuing her work, but with an attitude to serve. I think either would honour Jesus. Our invitation is to have a heart like Mary, even when our to-do list looks like Martha's.

I think a fear of mine, and maybe you, is that we will be lazy or seen as lazy. There is a difference between laziness and rest. Just because you rest doesn’t mean you are lazy. It means you are stewarding your energy to what is most important.

The speed of love is slow, but we tend to equate the best use of time as “being efficient.” Just yesterday I heard a mom repeatedly telling their toddler “efficiency, efficiency, efficiency.” Like that is the best use of our time. But sometimes when we are being “efficient,” it causes us to miss out on what is most important. Are we willing to slow down enough to love the people in front of us, or are we just working to clear our to-do list?

Jesus does not call his followers to sit in an empty room and pray all day. He invites them to bring good to the world. Even Paul, who preached all over the Roman Empire, also made tents to support himself and his ministry. He got work done like Martha but also would have spent time being with Jesus like Mary.

While we are invited to bring value to the world through our work, that doesn’t impact our value. Our identity does not come from what we accomplish in a day but that we are God’s children.

But I don’t have enough time!

You may be wondering, I don't have time to be with Jesus. I have too much to do.

I also struggle with this. From picking up kids, to trying to stay in shape, to loving my wife, building friendships, doing chores, etc. So know that what I say here doesn’t come from a place where I have figured this out, but that I am living in the tension. But while I still have a long way to grow, I have also grown a lot in this area over the last number of years. I am not where I want to be, but I am a long way from where I used to be.

I see a great similarity between our culture and the culture Jesus was in regarding the feeling of having to do so much, more than we can. Jews had a long list of rules regarding sabbath, tithing, work, and religious festivals; they felt an overwhelming guilt that pushed them to exhaustion. Our culture also pushes us to exhaustion with all the things you should do. Recently, I felt guilty because I didn’t watch any FIFA games; like I was less patriotic. If you are a parent, you may especially feel this pressure for your kids to eat nutritious food, be involved in sports, music, play-dates, be involved in PAC, etc., etc., etc.

It is impossible as a human to do it all.

Thankfully, we are not building our life on our own ability to “do it all.” The message of the gospel is that Jesus has accomplished all things for us. We can rest in his ability to do far more than we can imagine. For instance, even if your kids aren’t in a sport, they can still learn self-discipline. We can learn to rely on him, not on the activities or things you do.

Even Jesus said no multiple times; people wanted him to do something or be somewhere, and he decided to leave to another region. In his embodied form, he knew he couldn’t do everything, and so he said no sometimes.

If Jesus said no, so can you.

Often people talk about “finding a balance,” which has good intentions, and I understand the thought behind it, but I think it is a bad way to look at it. Because balance makes it seem like you are trying to do all the things. That comes with the added pressure of when we do something, we have to do it well, or we feel like a failure.

You are human; you are not able to do everything well. Every yes you give means you are saying no to 1000 other things. And you CAN’T find balance if that is what it means. Rather than finding balance, be faithful. What does God have for you today? And better yet, what is God permitting you to NOT do today? If you aren’t sure, ask. He loves to lead us in life everlasting.

As John Mark Comer states, “Following Jesus is not bout doing more, but doing less.” That can only happen when we start to trust him more than we trust ourselves.

Where do I begin?

This is a much better question than “where should I be.” Sometimes we can learn about a topic like this and think that our life is so far from where we “should be” that we feel demoralized and don’t even start.

Rather than feeling guilty and thinking of all the things you “could do” or “should do,” start with one thing you can do today. What one thing can you say no to today to enter God’s time zone? Can you say no to cleaning that room, put off that chore, or make Kraft dinner instead of a healthy meal?

This is where I would start. Each day, ask yourself what one or two things you can say no to today.

If you want to add something, start with something small, even microscopic.

Try breathing.

Before you go from one activity to the next, take a few deep breaths and invite God to show you how you can be present to what he has for you.

Without whatever you choose, when you fail (notice I said: “when,” not “if”), know that his grace is sufficient. Try again.

You can make small changes each day that over time make a big difference. But one other way to step into God’s timing is with a larger portion of time each week.

The gift of Sabbath

This is the biggest factor for me to learn God’s time zone. Why? Because Sabbath, very intentionally, gets out of the cultural undertow of getting things done and wanting more and is intentional about slowing down and being grateful for what we have. Sabbath is like putting my body through a “drill” so that I can more naturally do this the rest of the week.

For me, it is a 24-hour period on Saturday when I stay away from my phone, usually turning it off and putting it in a different room for most of the day. My family feasts together, where I don’t worry about my diet or what is “healthy.” We don’t watch screens or do major chores (I still do things like put the dishes away, but the house is always messier at the end of Saturday than the start). I also intentionally spend an hour in solitude.

Now, that is what I try to do, but if something changes, I don’t feel guilty about not doing it because I know that my salvation is not based on “keeping the sabbath.” But I do miss my Sabbath. I know my body and my soul long for it, as it is a way for me to connect with God and others rather than being “distracted by many things” like Martha.

I need to be intentional to protect my sabbath; cleaning the house the day before and saying no to certain requests so our day isn’t too full.

For you, Sabbath may not be a 24-hour period. But what is a way that you can set some time away each week to not live according to the “tyranny of the clock?” To live not getting to the next thing but to focus on being present to God, present to others, and being grateful for the moment? What is one way you can make time with God that is a GIFT, not a rule?

You don’t have to get swept away by our cultural undertow of time but stand on God’s grace to you.

The ultimate goal: becoming love.

This is all to become people of love, which is the main goal of spiritual maturity and disciplines. A mature disciple is not defined by someone who reads their Bible, spends time praying, or even performs miracles. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13, if you do anything without love, it is just annoying (a loud gong).

How do you think slowing down would affect how you love others? If you were less hurried, how does it change the way you interact with your co-workers? How would it help you be present with your family? How would it help you love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength?

Because if it helps you become a person of love, even if it means saying no to some good things, it is worth it.

So, this week, what is one 'good' thing you can say 'no' to, simply so you can say 'yes' to love?

Further Reading:

  • On the Theology of Time: Becoming Friends of Time (John Swinton)
  • On Sabbath & Rest: The Rest of God (Mark Buchanan), Ruthless Elimination of Hurry (John Mark Comer)
  • On Parenting & Presence: Liturgy of the Ordinary (Tish Harrison Warren), Domestic Monastery (Ronald Rolheiser)
  • Trust & Provision: Ordering Your Private World (Gordon MacDonald), Life without Lack (Dallas Willard), Boundaries (Henry Cloud and John Townsend)