Chapel speech: On busyness.

Originally presented at Luther Junior and Senior High School morning chapel, June 4, 2013.

Two years ago, I was a senior in college. I was in two clubs and had two jobs as a tutor and a homework grader. I was always very busy, but one Thursday, I was having an especially busy day. I had class in the morning, homework to grade and a tutoring session to run in the afternoon, and a club meeting and a play to attend in the evening. I also had lots of homework to do that day. As on most of my busy days, I probably prayed to God that He would help me get through my busy schedule.

The tutoring session that afternoon was held in a tiny room in a building that had just been completely remodeled. The room could only hold three or four people. When the session ended, my tutees got up and turned the door handle. But the door did not open. There was something wrong with the new door latch, and my tutees and I were the first ones to discover it.

At least we had dry erase markers.
(Photo by one of my tutee's friends.)

Fortunately we had our cell phones, and there were windows to the hallway outside, so we could get others' attention. People outside tried to use credit cards and pocketknives to open the door, but nothing worked. Finally, an hour later, a locksmith came carrying an electric saw. He told us to stand back, and then cut out the door handle with the saw and kicked the rest of the door open in a cloud of sawdust, freeing us.

I couldn't stop laughing as I watched the locksmith cut the door down. This was the silliest thing that had ever happened to me. Something as tiny as a door latch was keeping me from all my "perfect" plans. By the time we got out, the club meeting had ended, and the play had already started half an hour ago. I couldn't do anything except walk back to my dorm room.

I'd thought I had my day under control. I'd thought that God would have helped me get things done. But my thinking was wrong. God isn't a good-luck charm, and I think he used a defective door latch to demonstrate that to me.

When we have a mountain of work to do, God can seem pretty small in comparison. But God is bigger than your to-do list, and He's not going to let us just use Him to accomplish our tasks. He loves us too much to let us do that. We don't always know what God has planned for us, but He can definitely think of better things than we can. So next time you feel overwhelmed by work, or even life, remember that God is bigger and sees further beyond our schedules and deadlines, and He guides us the whole way.

Let us pray.

Heavenly Father, we thank you that you meet us even in the middle of our busy lives. Guide us and help us to see your love clearly, even in times when it seems like we have too much work to do. Help us to focus on you most of all. In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,"
declares the Lord.
"As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts."
Isaiah 55:8-9 (NIV)