Too many of us are so busy doing that we aren’t being.
Being intentional. Being present. Being healthy. Being alone and comfortable with your own thoughts. Being loved. Being available. Being a child of God.
Being at peace. Being a friend. Being worshipful. Being faithful. Being honest. Being happy. Being generous and kind in your attitude about others.
Being in nature soaking in God’s wondrous work. Being in prayer. Being at rest. Being yourself. Being humble. Being centered. Being healed. Being unplugged from a screen. Being intimate with Jesus and inviting him to be himself with you—no scripted agenda that limits where he wants to go with you.
If you read the above descriptions and think “that’s a lot of work!” it’s a sign you don’t get what being is all about.
If you read the above descriptions and think “I like that” it’s a sign you are stepping closer to the fulfillment of being, different than the activity of doing.
If you read the above descriptions and nod, thinking “ahhh, yes, I love those things” it’s a sign you are being filled enough so that you can pour out to others without getting frustrated, irritable and self-absorbed in the process.
You will not drift toward being, no, you will naturally gravitate toward doing. Toward proving you are important because you are so overbusy. You’ll wear it like a badge of honor, without realizing it is idolatry. You are trusting in your performance and pretending more than the sabbath of salvation from Jesus.
Let him do the doing more than you do. And just be. Be his.
“Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive” (2 Peter 1:5-8).
What makes you more effective and productive? Let me challenge you to lean a bit more into qualities of being, and less into the outcomes of doing. When you do, you’ll find that the outcomes tend to follow as God blesses.
PRAYER: Jesus, I’m too busy, and it keeps me from just being. Being at peace. Being with you. Being in the moment. Being centered. Being alone with my own thoughts. Be gentle with me as I let go of doing so much. I want to slow down enough so that you can pour much more into me. I need you, Lord. Amen.
QUESTION: Look again at the “being” descriptions above. Pick one that attracts you and you can practice it just a little more: 4 minutes for 4 days in a row. After 4 days, evaluate in prayer whether you will continue it, adjust it, or try something else.