Multitasking Madness
By Beth Mabe Gianopulos
If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. Mark 3:24-25 NIV
We live in a world where multitasking and efficiency are gods. With each new app, smartphone, or time-efficient appliance that is developed, we convince ourselves that we will be able to do even more in less time. We prowl the internet to find articles that will help us be more efficient with our time. We purchase gadget after gadget that promises to give us more hours in the day, yet, we feel busier and more stressed than ever.
The days of sipping tea on the porch and watching the sun set are long past. Now, if I am sitting on the porch, I am most likely replying to work emails, texting a friend to schedule lunch, and ordering pizza for dinner. While I am accomplishing all of these tasks, I may take a moment to see the blazing colors of light streaking the sky as the sun sets. Because I know that I need to be “in the moment,” I snap a picture and post it on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Snapchat with a catchy tagline, “taking a moment to relax and enjoy God’s creation.”
In my drive to multitask – to do more with less – to stretch time, I do not realize that I am divided against myself.
The Bible is full of God’s promises that I am enough, God’s grace is sufficient, and all I need to do is be still and know that God is God. However, my multitasking and constant distraction reveals the great divide within me – I am not living a life that believes these promises. Instead, as I multitask, I attempt to change the laws of nature – I try to make more time. I try to accomplish more than any person was ever meant to accomplish in one day. My actions cry out to God, “Look at me! I am working so hard! I am good enough! Am I doing enough to earn your love?”
Even worse, my desperate drive to multitask reveals the much deeper fear that lies within me. I am afraid to lose control. I am afraid to be still. I am afraid to sit in the silence and just be. I am afraid that if I am not orchestrating every minute of each day, my world will crumble around me.
Multitasking divides me and nothing gets my full attention. While I say that I believe I am enough, and that God is in control, my actions reveal that I am trying to do it all and be it all.
Are you divided against yourself? Do you try to do it all and be it all? If you, like me, struggle with multitasking, take a moment and give one activity your full attention. Be fully present in the moment and compare how you feel in that moment to how you feel when you are in the midst of multitasking madness.
Jesus, help me be present in the moment. Show me that I am enough and that You are in control. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
For more encouragement, visit Beth at pwlawyermom.blogspot.com.
© 2021 by Beth Mabe Gianopulos. All rights reserved.
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Originally published Tuesday, 09 May 2023.
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