As 2023 draws to a close, one of the things that I improved this year was my time management.
I was much better organized with my work schedule in terms of outside writing projects, and I provided additional time to give my students more constructive feedback on their research essays. I was also more diligent in overseeing my responsibilities in my church’s music ministry, and I plan to write and compose more worship songs in 2024.
However, as I was pleased that my required duties were completed in an appropriate manner, I sometimes struggled with phases of stress due to being so busy. It seemed in many instances that it was difficult just to carve out some personal downtime even though I was meeting my deadlines, and I was trying my best to avoid what psychologists call a “culture of busyness.”
Often, the culture of busyness is linked to the challenges that many people have managing a healthy work-life balance. The Pew Research Center found in a 2018 survey that 60% of Americans “at least sometimes felt too busy to enjoy life,” but only 12% stated that they “felt this way all or most of the time.” The Nei-Turner Media Group reported this year that 60% of U.S. adults from a sample size of 2,000 also felt swamped with work and other tasks and were overwhelmed because there was never “enough time in the day.”
In recent years, researchers have found that the culture of busyness has become an esteemed status symbol in our society. A psychology study was published in a 2016 Harvard Business Review article that highlighted how people admired those who had packed calendars and very little leisure time.
The findings also pointed out that products are marketed to us based on our hectic schedules, such as online grocery shopping and Bluetooth headsets that allow us to multitask. The technology that we have now makes life busier as well as easier, and this busy culture that we’re in is not going to slow down.
I am grateful to be busy and have a work agenda since it is a blessing to be employed, but in 2024, I am determined not to let busyness consume my life.
As a person of faith, when it comes to work overload, I always think about the story of sisters Martha and Mary told in Luke 10:38–42. Martha was too busy to hear what Jesus had to say during a visit to her family’s home with His disciples, and from a Biblical perspective, our culture of busyness can be equated to what ministers call the Martha syndrome.
If Martha lived in our present time, I imagine she would probably be an event planner tethered to her iPhone with numerous travel itineraries and frequent Zoom meetings with clients. She would be a perfectionist with keen attention to detail and demand excellent performance from her staff.
In this story in Luke’s gospel, Martha is very concerned with the hospitality and meal preparation for Jesus. Luke 10:40 says that Martha was “cumbered about much serving” and complained to the Lord that Mary was not helping her. The Greek translation for “cumbered” is “distracted,” that is Martha was missing the significant reason for Jesus stopping by. Jesus gently corrects Martha by telling her that she is “careful and troubled about many things,” but Mary had chosen “that good part,” making time to sit and listen to His teachings.
Busyness often makes us attempt to be too careful when we have a lot of things going on as Martha did, and in turn, we habitually become troubled because we are stressed that nothing is being accomplished. Mary sitting at Jesus’ feet indicates that she prioritized what she desired to hear for her spiritual growth.
I also view this as the downtime she needed to step away from the daily grind of domestic chores she and Martha did that characterized the role of women during this period.
As 2024 approaches, I am focusing on setting aside downtime as Mary did, or what can also be called “God-time,” because I do not want to be chronically busy. My God-time will consist of more study and meditation of Scripture for physical and mental well-being, encouragement and direction. Work and deadlines will always be there, and I will always find a way to get things done. Happy New Year!
Dr. Jessica A. Johnson is a lecturer in the English department at The Ohio State University-Lima. Reach her at [email protected] or on Twitter @JjSmojc. Her opinion does not necessarily represent the views of The Lima News or its owner, AIM Media.
