Busyness

I acknowledge it isn’t the only reason that drives our busyness, but social media is definitely a reason we can become so busy. With the introduction of social media and websites in general, we have entered a new venue of comparison and pride. It doesn’t help that we can access these, again, from our hand-held or personal devices from just about anywhere we go.  We are granted a glimpse into the lives of those we know well, or mere acquaintances, or even celebrities. We see pictures or updates about their vacations, their perfect children, their accomplishments, inside their homes or yards, or the next project they are working on.

We have no idea that the person shoved a pile of dirty dishes out of the way to take that picture, just got in a huge argument with the same spouse they posted a mushy note about, or took 20 pictures and yelled at their children in order to get that one perfect picture where all the kids smiled like angels and there wasn’t a hair out of place.  We are becoming accustomed to seeing the world through a filter. Because of what we see or read, it can be easy to fall into thes trap of comparison.  Comparison may stir pride that we have more than others or create feeling of dissatisfaction with our own lives.

All we know is that we have a mountain of laundry to do or we must be out of style in our fashion choices or the way we decorate our home.  We feel driven to do more in order to “keep up with the ‘Joneses’.” Ironically we can even find ourselves as the ones only sharing the pretty parts of our lives. This perpetuates the social pressures we may feel to “do it all,” and in turn, for others to feel it too.
Compound this dangerous game of comparison with the expectation of constant communication. Most people keep their phone on their person at all times.  We receive texts, chats, updates, and calls at all hours of the day or night.  And we are expected (or expect ourselves) to immediately respond.  All of the time.  Everywhere we go, we take our devices.  It can be difficult for us to get away from the constant communication.

John Thomas shared the following in an Ensign article. “A national journalist shared the following blunt assessment: ‘A good Mormon is a busy Mormon.’ A historian has also observed that ‘in Mormon culture … action is esteemed over contemplation.’ Noting the Church’s mandate to prepare the world for the Millennium, the author wondered if our sense of ‘urgency, [initially] fed by noble purposefulness, [might] morph into busyness.’

“It is true that we have work enough to do, but when it comes to busyness, we may be taking our cues from the world rather than the Lord and His servants. Elder Neal A. Maxwell (1926–2004) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles cautioned us against a ‘frantic, heedless busyness … [that often] crowds out contemplation and … leaves no room for renewal.’ He likened thoughtful ‘intervals between [our] tasks’ to ‘the green belts of grass, trees, and water that … interrupt the asphalt,’ and he said that when we ‘plan some time for contemplation and renewal,’ we will feel drawn to our work instead of driven to it.

“Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin (1917–2008) of the Quorum of the Twelve observed how easily we fill our lives with ‘appointments, meetings, and tasks’ and then act frightened at the prospect of some quiet time. Why would that be? He feared that we might ‘feel that the busier we are, the more important we are—as though our busyness defines our worth.’ On another occasion, he reminded us that ‘being busy is not necessarily being spiritual’—for in fact, noise and busyness can actually crowd out the still, small voice of the Spirit.’”

In a similar vein, President Uchtdorft said, “Isn’t it true that we often get so busy? And, sad to say, we even wear our busyness as a badge of honor, as though being busy, by itself, was an accomplishment or sign of a superior life.

Is it?”

What a profound question.  Is it a superior life? Do we have to be busy in order to be productive? Why would we think that it is?!  Chew on that if it bothers you and save it for when we have more tools to chip away at this. We will come back and look at this from a different perspective together later in another chapter.

But what about church work?  Surely we must be busy with that? Shouldn’t we busy ourselves with doing all the good we can? Listen to what Jay E. Jensen shared at a BYU Devotional, “In many of our General Authority training meetings, presidents of the Church and apostles have reminded us to not be so busy doing the Lord’s work that spiritual impressions cannot get through to us.”

Back to John Thomas’s article, “We live in a world of fast food, rapid transit, instant messaging, and constant claims about how to get rich quicker, get fit faster, and succeed now. Despite the proliferation of supposed time-saving tools, we often feel pressed and stressed by the demands on our time.

“Perhaps this is one meaning of the prophecy that ‘all things shall be in commotion’ in the latter days. If so, it is troubling that the scriptures link that ‘commotion’ with men’s hearts failing them (D&C 45:26; 88:91). As President James E. Faust (1920–2007) observed, ‘Our hurry to meet the relentless demands of the clock tears away at our inner peace.’”  Can you see how busyness is a great tool for the adversary?  We are different people when we are just on auto-pilot or in “survival mode” than when we are purposeful and focused.

Just like what we have discussed already, these are personal questions with personal answers.  What may be busyness to one may not be busyness to another.  You must take the time to know for yourself.  We can be still when we take time, or better yet, we make time to quiet the chatter, to unplug from technology and from the voices of the world.  We can be still by doing those things that help us to tune inward and strengthen our connection with heavenly things. We can be still as we seek to develop awareness of our body, mind, and spirit.   We can be still by doing those things that nourish our souls (D&C 88:15 “And the spirit and the body are the soul of man,” emphasis added).

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