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Girls Ministers, Leadership, Rest, Small Group Leaders

Busyness Does Not Equal Godliness

I’m a big-time planner. In fact, I keep my very filled-out planners from college so that I can look back and reminisce about all the fun things I filled my time with. To this day, whenever I make a plan, I have to add it to my calendar to make sure that I don’t forget about it and that nothing will overlap because there’s just so much to do! 

I’m finding myself in a season of busyness again right now. Summers are always busy with fun and traveling and soaking up the sunshine, and with fall and the start of school comes the time when it feels as if somebody presses the “resume” button and everything picks up again all at once. As leaders, it’s often easy to find ourselves stretched thin between leading our girls, trying to lead/be a part of our own community groups, serving, working, and making time to prioritize relationships in our lives. It’s easy for me to feel filled and accomplished because I’m constantly doing something. But what good is that if I’m so busy that I can’t seem to find thirty minutes of my day to sit in silence with the Lord? How can we lead if we’re too busy to spend time with the Creator that we’re spending most of our time encouraging others to turn to?

There is nothing that will make us more Godly apart from humbly allowing the Lord to sanctify us. It all goes back to Ephesians 2:8-9: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”

God won’t love you any more than He always has just because your schedule is filled. Your busyness doesn’t make you a better Christian or make God love you any more than He already does. Yes, we are certainly called to make disciples and to lead others to Christ. But that call doesn’t negate the call to spend time with the Lord and to rest. God loves the woman who spends most of her nights at home alone being still and finding rest in Him just as much as He loves the leader who spends almost every night at the church or in people’s homes. God set forth the example of rest by taking a Sabbath after creating the universe; so, too, should we set an example for our girls by showing them the importance of taking time to slow down. 

Have you ever noticed the verbage in Psalm 23:1-2? “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters.” To me, it sure sounds like God knows that we tend to keep going and not rest. He has to make us do it. It sure is more fun to take the initiative to proactively plan rest before we get so sick or worn out that our bodies literally force us to rest (or God brings something else along to force us to rest). Exhaustion is not God’s best for us. 

What makes you love God more? Appreciating His creation by taking a walk through nature? Playing instruments or singing? Reading a book about Him? Spending time listening to Him while running or exercising? Rest doesn’t have to look like sitting on the couch doing nothing or getting extra hours of sleep. We must be filled so that we can help others be filled. In the midst of the busyness, we must prioritize setting aside time to spend with God. It doesn’t make us any godlier to be so worn out by the end of the weekend that we’re dreading another approaching week. God loves you and He loves your heart for kingdom activities, but He also won’t love you any less for keeping one night a week for yourself.  

Make time for some quietness and calm in your week. Let Him make you lie down and lead you to still waters this week.

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Brooke Hill is a recent Baylor University grad who lives in Nashville, TN. She joined the Lifeway Students team as a content specialist after graduating and is excited to contribute to equipping churches with content to help students love Jesus more. She’s led student small groups since she was a freshman in high school and still loves it today! Brooke enjoys finding ways to serve in her community, reading a good book, marveling at God’s creation through traveling, and a cozy night in with some yummy pizza.