By Sandra Bost
I got my hair done this week. It was long past due. I needed one of those complete overhauls that gave me plenty of time to settle in and enjoy the warm sun through the window and the happy conversation around me.
The room was filled with friendly banter – friends catching up on their kids’ lives, someone asking a teacher for advice, and another offering to make a Chick-fil-A run.
But one phrase seemed to be on repeat: “We’re just too busy!”
A momma said it regarding her son’s middle school schedule that keeps them running between homework, church, and extracurricular activities. A grandmother mentioned it while trying to balance caring for aging parents, working full-time, and sprinkling in as much time with her grandkids as humanly possible.
It’s a phrase that, sadly, has pervaded our modern existence. Life seems to be spinning at warp speed. Everywhere I turn, there’s another story of how busyness is quietly pulling us apart, draining our energy, and leaving us perpetually exhausted.
As a result, meaningful connections are often replaced with hurried check-ins and haphazard meetings. Worse yet, we end up reacting – like passive passengers trapped on a runaway train – rather than conductors of the sacred lives we have been entrusted with.
Some of us treat busyness like a virtue – a status symbol we wear to prove our worth. While others of us desperately long to get off of the train.
I was talking with my daughter about it. She is in the “jump off the train” camp. As a Mom of 3 under 6, she made the decision to stop extracurricular activities for a season in an effort to slow down a little. I applaud her efforts, but it is only a fraction of the busyness of her day-to-day life, and certainly won’t last as her children continue to grow and develop interests that will surely take them in different directions.
What’s the answer then? The things filling most of our schedules are good, necessary – even noble – yet the current pace of our lives is simply not sustainable.
Scripture offers us a profound shift in perspective. In Ephesians 5:15-16, Paul writes,
“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (ESV).
Circumspectly is not a word we use tons in our modern lives, but it’s synonymous with: carefully, attentively, faithfully. Certainly words we know. Words that describe a life well-lived – not completely out of our realm of possibility as people. But, then we get to the whole “redeeming the time” rhetoric. What does that even mean?
According to dictionary.com, to redeem something means “to recover possession or ownership of by payment of a price.” And, with a quick look at the commentary, you see that Paul chooses the Greek work kairos for “time” instead of chronos. So, in this passage, Paul is referring to time as “opportune, divine moments” rather than the relentless ticking of the clock.
Obviously, we can’t recover moments of time that have passed, so we focus on what we can recover – opportune moments with The Divine.
In his article “Urgency and Gratitude,” John Piper discusses the importance of vigilance over empty busyness. The world naturally distracts and squanders our days, so to combat it, we have to shift the way we approach the days. Piper says we must move away from a frantic attempt to control every hour and step into a Spirit-led, intentional rhythm.
Our currency to “recover the possession” of “opportune” moments with The Divine are intentional acts of wisdom and praise to God.
Simply put, when it comes to the majority of the things that fill our days, there’s not much flexibility. But what we do have are opportunities to reclaim ordinary seconds and turn them into sacred presence.
We do this by staying grounded in God’s presence through reading His Word, singing praises to Him, listing all of the reasons we have to be grateful to Him for this life that He has given us. All of these activities “pay” the price of admission for an audience with God – which is kairos. He inhabits the praise of His people, and His presence fills us with Joy and Peace that strengthens and sustains us – right in the middle of our busy lives.
Inviting God’s presence stops the anxiety of busyness in its tracks. Redeeming the time doesn’t require a total life overhaul – though it may mean setting a clear boundary or offering a loving “no.” More often, it starts in the quiet space of a single moment. You can practice redeeming kairos right where you are.
This week, when you feel the pull to say, “I’m so busy,” pause for a breath. Recite a Psalm. Sing a hymn. Offer a Hallelujah for (literally) anything and everything. Then watch Him turn your havoc into Holy ground.
Now! Go redeem some time! (And maybe say, “No,” a time or two.)
