Free Grace Women

Busy, Busy, Busy

It’s one of those seasons of life again: I don’t seem to have any free time.  While sometimes my life is busy because I need to say “no” to potential commitments, and sometimes I can leave certain tasks for later, right now I have legitimate responsibilities filling my day from the moment I wake until late at night.  If I address each task as it comes up, I can just manage to get everything done.  However, I am not managing to fit Bible study into this schedule.  Occasionally I manage to listen to a few chapters of an audio Bible, but if I try to do deep study at the end of the day, exhaustion numbs my mind; and if I study the Bible in the middle of the day, I get distracted and end up pushing other tasks too late to finish, which causes problems for that day and adds more tasks to the next day.  In addition to simply feeling tired from all the work, I feel defeated: if God is really the most important thing in my life, wouldn’t I be able to find time for Him?  Is my inability to study the Bible a sign that my priorities in life are not right?

Trying to Stop and Think

Well, no.  For one thing, the Bible doesn’t guarantee us times of rest and study.  In fact, some of the things the Bible calls people to do take up large amounts of time, such as working a job to financially support your family or caring for very young, handicapped, sick, or elderly individuals (1 Timothy 5:4, 8, 14, 16; 2 Thessalonians 3:8-10, 12).  Additionally, faithfully following Christ may make it harder to get a good job, or reduce the number of people who will encourage you or come by to help when life feels overwhelming (Matthew 10:35-36; John 15:18, 16:2; 1 Peter 1:6-8, 2:12).

Another reason to not assume that a long to-do list necessarily means I am neglecting my walk with God, is realizing that spiritual growth requires work.  While receiving eternal life is simply through being convinced that Jesus did all the work to give you eternal life and He gives it to you for free (John 11:25-27, 1 Timothy 1:16), many uses of the word “save” or “salvation” in the Bible—such as living a victorious life for God, or being rescued from or triumphing over enemies—is a salvation that requires the person to put in effort[1].  Studying the Bible, reading it, memorizing it, and listening to and evaluating teaching on it are very important—I wouldn’t know what God has said otherwise.  But it is one thing to know that the Bible says,

Rejoice always;

Pray without ceasing;

In everything give thanks

for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus

–1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NASB 1995

and quite another thing to obey that.  And that’s certainly not the only command I have difficulty obeying.  When I want to follow God, but don’t have the time to read and study the Bible the way I would like to, it is a forceful reminder that I can’t control everything in my life, but I can work on obeying the Lord to the best of my ability by practicing what I already have learned about His commands.

Appreciating Not Having Extra Time

Finally, if this hectic season of life is the time I have been given now, then it is the time I have to serve the Lord.  Occasionally, a deep study into a certain topic of Scripture can make it easier to lose focus on God’s love, grace, and desire for me to live victoriously in this life simply because I become so focused on situations that I am not facing that I forget to do my best and ask for His help where I am.  Studying the Bible is important because it clarifies what is in the Bible.  God gave us His Word so we could know about things, understand things, and know what things to do.  In the Bible, there is enough information to convince me that Jesus is the only life-giver, and that He gives eternal life freely to those who believe in Him for it.  There are also commands given that enable me to live in such a way that glorifies Him, even without knowing everything that could or does happen in the world related to my past, present, and future.

In a busy time, my focus is redirected from my study schedule back to asking Him for help, doing the best I know how, and trusting Him to take care of me.  Generally, unbelievably busy times don’t last.  Circumstances change.  When that happens, I will be happy to again read, study, and memorize Scripture.  But until then, I’m not going to beat myself up because I don’t have time to study about having a victorious life by serving God in hard times—I want to live it!

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[1] e.g., James 2:14-16, Matthew 24:13, Mark 13:13, Mark 3:4, Hebrews 5:7, James 1:21, Acts 2:40, Psalm 37:39, Luke 1:71, Romans 13:11, 1 Timothy 4:16, Hebrews 9:28, Hebrews 11:7, 1 Peter 2:2, Revelation 7:10, Revelation 12:10

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