What Busyness and Laziness Have in Common
By Michael Kelley
If you’re like most people, the answer to the question, “How are you doing?” at this time of year is one word:
Busy.
You probably wouldn’t respond with, “Lazy.” Nobody would. Not with all the activities, work priorities, family responsibilities, and a host of other things. In fact, if we opened up our calendars, we would likely see appointments, meetings, and errands clogging each and every day. Perhaps we would even think ourselves so busy that the idea of being lazy is laughable.
That is how we often think about these two things - busyness and laziness - they are at opposite ends of the spectrum. What, then, can these two states have in common? A couple of things, really.
First of all, the Bible warns us against both. The book of Proverbs speaks many times against the danger of laziness, but in particular here:
Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest. How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest— and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man (Prov. 6:6-11).
But the Bible also speaks about the danger of being too busy:
Unless the Lord builds a house,
its builders labor over it in vain;
unless the Lord watches over a city,
the watchman stays alert in vain.
In vain you get up early and stay up late,
working hard to have enough food—
yes, he gives sleep to the one he loves (Ps. 127:1-2).
So the first thing they have in common, it seems, is that neither being busy nor being lazy is God’s will for our lives. But there is another thing they have in common with each other -
Both busyness and laziness mean we have the wrong level of care.
When you find yourself lazy, it means you haven’t cared enough about something. And when you find yourself overly busy, it means you have cared too much about the wrong things. The commonality at the middle is where we are investing ourselves.
That means the solution for both isn’t necessarily the level of effort. That is to say, the solution to busyness isn’t just cutting back on the number of hours you work, just as the solution to laziness isn’t adding a few more. No, if we want to decrease both our level of busyness and our level of laziness, we need a purpose that will simultaneously move us into a greater level of investment and free us from the compulsion to be constantly in motion.
And that is what Jesus offers:
So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you (Matt. 6:31-33).
For the lazy, He holds out a greater purpose - one worth investing everything for. One worth seeking first. And for the busy, He holds out a great promise - that in seeking this one thing, we don’t have to be anxious about seeking anything else.
The solution to both states is found in doing what Jesus says. We seek the kingdom first and foremost, and we don’t worry about everything else. The lazy are uplifted and the busy find rest.
Michael Kelley is a husband, father of three, author, and speaker from Nashville, TN. His latest book is a year-long family devotional guide called The Whole Story for the Whole Family. Find his personal blog at michaelkelley.co.
