Moderator’s White Paper – It’s a matter of faith. 1. A matter of faith: The spiritual vitality of the Church 2. Disengagement: Individualism and congregationalism 3. Disunity: the woundedness of our Church 4. Loss of voice: A deafening silence 5. Professionalism: Raising the bar 6. The ethics of mission: Checking our motives for mission 7. Busyness: A sickness of the soul 8. Stewardship: Giving an account

"The busier they are, the more likely they will get tired and cranky with each other. We can have lots of fun when that happens. Keep them busy, and they don't take time to talk to each other. Even better, keep them too busy to listen to each other. We know things are going our way when other people become an interruption to them. Just keep reminding them that their tasks are much more important than people! “Keep them too busy to plan ahead. The less planning and prioritising they do, the better. We're especially in good shape when they don't have time to evaluate what they're doing. If their work isn't effective, we don't have nearly as much to worry about."

Busyness goes far deeper than activity, it is a distractedness that produces muddle-mindedness and ultimately deadens the human soul. Judy Lief: "Our hope is that if we keep all the distractedness going, we will not have to look at who we are, we will not have to feel what we feel, we will not have to see what we see.“ When we don’t know where we are going, no measure will tell us how we are going and any direction will do.

What do we mean by “busyness”? Engaged in much activity or work; occupied. A busy design may have much distracting detail. What Bible passages relate to busyness? Matthew 11 v in the Message version “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me - watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

Luke chapter As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. 39 Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. 40 But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus [She stood over them] and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.” 41 But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! 42 There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

What do we learn from this passage?  We can feel for Martha.  There was nothing wrong with serving.  Her attitude, way of serving & timing were wrong.

Brother Lawrence taught that: “We ought to give ourselves up to God with regard both to things temporal [earthly] and spiritual, and seek our satisfaction only in the fulfilling of His will, whether He lead us by suffering or by consolation [encouragement].” “Make it your study, before taking up any task, to look to God, be it only for a moment”; to recognise God’s presence and to practice his presence/to connect with his presence.

Kitchen Prayer (attributed to Brother Lawrence) Lord of all pots and pans and things, since I've no time to be a great saint by doing lovely things, or watching late with Thee, or dreaming in the dawn light, or storming heaven's gates, make me a saint by getting meals, and washing up the plates…. Thou who didst love to give men food, in room, or by the sea, accept the service that I do, I do it unto Thee. Amen

Busyness is about filling our lives with so many tasks and activities that we leave no time or too little time for reflection, rest or relationships; or in a Christian context, no time for prayer, for reflection, rest & relationship with God. These are three ‘R’s of a healthy Christ-like life. ….otherwise Busyness can become a sickness of the soul.

Possible ways forward Before beginning any new ministry, ask what two ministries you are willing to stop. Rediscover the spiritual discipline of silence (corporate and individual). Conduct a “busyness audit” on your congregation to assess the health of your congregation. Focus on the spiritual disciplines of renewal. Ask “why are we doing this?” Send all ministers on an annual spiritual retreat (this is not their holiday!) Reduce the number of church meetings. There are some Questions for dialogue