What’s the Difference between being fruitful versus busy?
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last.
John 15:16 (NIV)
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
We will continue unraveling the mystery of the water well and the lessons learned along the way in January 2023.
But let's use the last post of 2022 to discuss margin because margin can be a game-changer for 2023.
Let's think of margin as giving God enough space to ask and do the unexpected. Few paint a better picture of the power of margin than Bob Goff.
If you've ever read the book, Everybody, Always by Bob Goff, you know Bob is an incredible storyteller and has a knack for sharing amazing adventures. The entire book boils down to one truth, love everybody, always.
God understands that loving people has more to do with experiencing satisfaction than we might realize. Maybe that's why He said, "Love your neighbor as yourself." (Matthew 22:38)
Loving everybody always may sound simple, but you may know a few difficult people. A few people, it might be challenging to love always.
And then we have the whole-time issue. Who has time to love everybody always?
We may not have much control over difficult people, but we do have a lot of control over our schedules.
There is a Veggie Tales movie that depicts the story of the Good Samaritan. Larry the Cucumber plays the part of the man beaten, robbed, and left half-dead by the side of the road. The other vegetables play the role of the Priest and the Levite, who pass by on the other side, never stopping to help. While they passed by the man on the road, they sang.
"I'm busy, busy, dreadfully busy; you have no idea what I have to do."
Joyce Meyer once said, "God calls us to be fruitful, not busy." It's easy to confuse the two because, at times, being fruitful can look a lot like being busy. But in the end, they will produce very different results. Being busy will deplete you. Being fruitful will satisfy you.
Worse, being busy can be a trap that prevents us from fulfilling the Word of God. Too often, being busy stops us from saying yes, Lord.
The secret to being fruitful is abiding. Jesus said we can't bear fruit unless we remain in Him. (John 15:4, NIV) Although this will look a little different for everyone, we need to spend enough time seeking God that He pours out of our spirit and into our lives. When Jesus pours out of your spirit, it will look like loving others.
The fruit He's talking about is the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control. (Galatians 5:22, NIV) The fruit enables us to love others well.
One secret to abiding in Him and loving others well is having margin. We need margin if we're going to walk with Him throughout our day. We need enough margin to be interrupted by God and available for those He brings our way.
We create margin by not harvesting everything from our fields, by leaving some time unaccounted, money unallotted, and energy available for the people God brings our way.
We want to avoid the trap of the Priest or the Levite depicted in the Veggie Tales movie. They were busy, but they missed their opportunity to be fruitful. They missed their opportunity to love everybody always.
Lord, help us be shrewd as a snake but as innocent as a dove as we learn to navigate the tension between fruitful and busy. Teach us how to remain in You and spend enough time seeking You that Your love pours out of our spirits and onto those around us. Help us wisely steward our time, energy, and resources for your kingdom and glory. But also help us to leave margin. Teach us to leave room in our schedules and budgets for the Holy Spirit's promptings. Realizing, You may have other plans for our day.