Are You Too Busy?

By Angela Bratt

sticky notes on steering wheel

Well fellow Lopes, it’s already week 12. Time is flying by and we’re already over half way through the semester. It’s about this time that most of us become overwhelmed with projects, papers and exams. So many of us students are extremely involved and fill our lives with things that keep us busy. As honors students, we tend to overachieve and go above and beyond, which has the potential to be time consuming and exhausting! It seems to be a common trend in our generation to fill our lives to the maximum. We’re always trying to brag about our busyness and how much we are doing.

Sometimes our busyness can become too much of a distraction. Recently, I was trying to make plans with several different people to meet up for lunch or to grab coffee and several of them said “I’m just too busy! Can we try for next month?” In response, I said, “Of course!” However, I began to contemplate what they’d just communicated to me. By brushing me off they’d spoken loud and clear about our relationship: it wasn’t as valuable to them as some of the other things in their lives.

When individuals say they’re too busy for something it communicates that:

  1. It’s not a priority to them.
  2. It’s not worth their time.
  3. Our relationship is not valuable enough to them.

When I realized this, I was shocked. I began to think of all the times I told someone that I’m too busy and tried to push something off into the future. I began to think of all the relationships I could’ve been more intentional with and the relationships I should’ve put more effort into. The Lord began to work on my heart and I felt convicted.

Therefore, I’ve made a “rule” of sorts for myself. I no longer want to use the word “busy” to describe myself. Rather, from now on, I’ll be using the word “fruitful.”

You see, when you’re fruitful, you are producing something and can see the “fruits” of your labor. This is how I feel when I’m busy. However, using the word fruitful not only makes me stop and think about what I’m communicating, it has also been interesting to see it start various conversations. I’ve begun spreading this new insight with friends across the country and it’s been exciting to hear how they are seeing the impact on their college campuses.

I no longer want people to look at me and say, “Wow, Angela is so busy all the time!” Yes, I have a hectic schedule of two jobs, being a full-time honors student, an RA in the freshman dorm, having a vibrant and active social life, being a daughter and a sister, making time to exercise and eat healthy and having a relationship with the Lord. Despite a crazy schedule, I will always make time for what’s important to me and that ultimately means making time for others.

I desire to be fruitful in my walk with the Lord and in every area of my life. So the next time you start to say you’re too busy, think about what you are communicating to your friends. Are they a priority to you? If so, prove it to them and be intentional with that relationship. Let’s all be fruitful and fruit bearers! The Honors College is here to help!

To learn more about how Grand Canyon University’s Honors College provides an enriching experience with the opportunity for motivated students to become more fruitful and intentional in their lives, visit our website or click the Request More Information button on this page to get started.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Grand Canyon University. Any sources cited were accurate as of the publish date.

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