It’s not an easy answer. There are a lot of people who are super busy with every day life but they regularly don’t seem to be able to “find time” to do the basics God desires for them to do. For every way we answer the question about what we should or shouldn’t do for God, we find exceptions, where someone isn’t doing something (or is neglecting doing something) for the wrong reasons. We rationalize what we’re doing or not doing. And as Christians, we often step under the umbrella of “doing good” for God when we haven’t asked God if what we’re doing is actually for him.

Busyness for God isn’t always doing God’s business.

How busy are you for God?

How busy are you because you think you’re doing what God wants you to do, yet you haven’t paused to ask him? Or you asked him years or decades ago, and you just assume he’ll jump in your path and make it obvious if you’re supposed to change?

One of the attributes of many people in the older generations is a commitment and willingness to serve. When problem-solving with women’s ministry leaders, I often hear complaints from the older generation that “the young people just won’t commit.” Just as often, I hear from the younger generation that “the older people just want things their own way and don’t welcome me to get involved unless it’s on their own terms.”

We have more in common than we think. We want to serve. We want to honor God. We get frustrated. We need others to reach out to us. We crave to live with significance. We needs others to walk alongside us in faith. We get discouraged. We wonder what God wants for us, how we can know his will, and what living an obedient life of faith looks like.

Unless we’re willing to ask God every step of the way, “How do you want me to respond in this situation?” on a daily, moment-by-moment basis…unless we’re willing to respond “yes” to God’s “yes” and “no” to God’s “no” even when we don’t understand, we feel ill-equipped, or we’d rather have something our own way in our own timing…unless we stop doing things just because we think they’re good things to do instead of letting God guide us to and through the God-things of life, we’re not going to claim an obedient life of faith.

If you’re going to stand under the Christian umbrella of doing God’s work, you need to do God’s work…not what you assume is God’s work. Being an obedient servant of Jesus Christ isn’t about doing something because no one else will, doing something you’ve always done, doing something because you don’t believe anyone else can do it as well, doing something that was God’s will for someone else, doing something begrudgingly because you “have to,” and the list goes on. You know what you’re doing or not doing that might look good but isn’t in the middle of God’s will.

It’s time to stop. Or start.

It’s time to honor God with your obedience. Are you bold enough to quite hiding under the busyness of ministry?