It is true that many of us are too busy. Our family schedules are jam-packed with activities. A week or a month flies by, and we are left wondering where it went. We find ourselves saying that we are too busy too often. It is easy to see that we can be so busy about all the wrong things. We can miss out on so many opportunities that our full calendar will not allow.
We can miss out on the opportunity to serve others. One of the most visible indicators of a Christian is their love and concern for others. How many of us are too busy to be a good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37)?
We can miss out of the opportunity to develop spiritually. There are precious few things more important than this. Ezra chose wisely, “For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the LORD and to practice it, and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel” (Ezra 7:10).
We miss out on opportunities to exercise our faith. James said, “I will show you my faith by my works” (Jas. 2:18). We must have a working faith (Gal. 5:6). What are we putting ahead of our faith?
We miss out on the opportunity to reach the lost. Are we too busy for the prime directive (Matt. 28:18-20)? Someone made time to teach us. We should be doing the same and always be ready (1 Pet. 3:15).
We miss out on the opportunity to know Christ. Martha is the Biblical poster child of one that is too busy. The Bible says she was “distracted by her preparations” (Luke 10:40). Jesus said, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary” (Luke 10:41-42). It is easy to get distracted and lose sight of the one thing that is most important.
We miss out on the opportunity to be ready for the Lord’s return. When we’ve been left to our own thoughts maybe this came up, “I hope He doesn’t come back when I’m not ready.” We all have that concern. Even more alarming is the parable of the ten virgins (Matt. 25:1-13). They were supposed to wait for the bridegroom, a.k.a. Christ. Five had made preparations and brought more oil, the other five had not. The five wise virgins went to the wedding feast, but the others were left out. We need to make sure that we are preparing for that day also.
While this might be another reminder about priorities and time management, hopefully the fear of missing out might encourage us all to think more soberly about what we are spending our time on. It is a resource that we can’t get back, and we will always want more. Let’s all make the most of it.