Busyness, a far cry from godliness

I was looking back over the past couple of posts and realized I fell into a trap I have criticized pretty profusely in the past...the tendency among those of us in ministry, and maybe especially missionaries, to somehow equate activity with spirituality or hectic-ness with godliness...which is about like focusing on pass attempts instead of completions...or yards gained instead of points scored.

What missionaries don't mention in their prayerletters or blogs (I don't either!) are the down days when next to nothing happens, or the extented times of relative indiscipline. We tend not to mention the week or two or month long trips to the States, or to the beach. (By the way, how can you maintain an effective local ministry when you're gone so much, but alas, I digress).

So being busy is often our drug of choice, to deceive ourselves into thinking we are being effective, or worse yet, we trick ourselves into thinking we are right with God...when we know that a closer inspection that a little silence would provide would expose us as shallow. Busyness is our mask of choice...we must be doing God's work if we are so active. Of course, the more revealing questions expose us: how many disciples am I making, how many people have helped move closer to a commitment to Christ, how pure is my heart, how much love is there flowing from me to God and others, and vice-versa.