Fasting From Busyness: Choosing Holy Slowness

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This has been a busy week. I've had lots of appointments to keep, meetings to attend, and writing to do.  I've been planning sermons, working on projects that seem to never quite finish when I want them to, and having lots of conversations with church members, colleagues, and friends. 

Truth be told, I've enjoyed it all, even when it's been challenging.  I love what I do for a living. This strange and wonderful calling that I've spent nearly half of my life following gives me purpose, joy, and has also turned my beard quite gray.  

But even when you love what you do, it's possible to grow weary in doing it.  I struggle with feelings of guilt and restlessness when I stop for a breather.  I tell others to rest, rejuvenate, and recharge, but I have a hard time taking my own advice.  

Busyness often masquerades as importance. We fill our schedules and wear exhaustion as a badge of honor. Yet Scripture consistently calls God’s people to rest. “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).

Fasting from busyness is not laziness; it is resistance. It resists the belief that worth equals productivity. Jesus himself withdraws from crowds to pray (Mark 1:35). He does not heal everyone immediately. He lives at the pace of obedience, not urgency.

Busyness can become a distraction from deeper questions. When we slow down, we may encounter restlessness or discomfort. Yet stillness reveals what activity hides.

Sabbath rhythms remind us that God sustains the world without our constant effort. Rest becomes trust. Slowness becomes faith.

During Lent, fasting from busyness might mean protecting margin, declining unnecessary commitments, or resisting the urge to multitask. It may mean doing fewer things with greater presence.

When we step off the treadmill of urgency, we discover that God is never in a hurry.  We begin to see the wisdom of Sabbath rest.  We slow down enough to pay attention to our own needs and the needs of others.  We find ourselves once more in the quiet, the stillness, and freedom from the tyranny of the urgent.    

Prayer
God of holy rest, teach us to slow down. Free us from striving and anchor us in trust. Amen.

Reflection Questions

  1. Where does busyness dominate your life?

  2. What fears surface when you slow down?

  3. How could holy slowness reshape your Lent?

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