Are You a Lucy Lister or a Pie Guy? Thinking Through Priorities in the Christian Life
I’m the last person that should talk about priorities and time management. But I’d like to get you thinking about how we should look at using our time.
Maybe you’re a Lucy Lister. You see priorities in your Christian life as a descending list of relationship tasks. Here’s a simple one I remember as a young Christian:
God
Others
Self
Or how about this more detailed one:
God
Family
Church
Work
Self
These lists can be endless. The strength of Lucy Lister is that she sees God as the top priority. Passages like Matthew 22:35-40 and Matthew 6:33 command us (respectively and rightly) to love God with our entire being and put his kingdom values first.
But the problem I see with a Lucy Lister (or a Larry Lister for that matter) is the double mindedness that can occur. It’s the feeling I get when playing with my grandchildren that I should be praying. Or when I’m working, I should be spending time with my family.
A list tends to make each successive entry less important in priority. A list fails to see each relationship is interconnected with the others. Can’t I show my love for God in how well and how hard I work? Can’t I honor God by taking time away from everyday responsibilities to seek refreshment and physical rest?
Better to think of life’s priorities like the Pie Guy (or Pie Girl). Here are some examples:
I like this second “pie” better. Each of the “slices” represents a time allocation and priority. Each “slice” can change in size depending on life’s circumstances. For example, there are times when work is demanding and takes priority for a season at the expense of other important priorities. A health situation might demand greater time and priority until it is resolved.
What I like best about the “pie” is Christ is the center of all of it. I’ve always liked Ecclesiastes 9:10: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.” (ESV)
I take this verse to mean that whatever task/relationship I’m involved in, I’m to go full bore because Christ is at the center of it.
Studying for a sermon or writing an article for the Forge? Put your whole heart into it! Fishing the Crooked River for a refreshing break? Go for it! Cheering for the USA men’s soccer team in the World Cup? Yell until your voice gives out!
The NT verse, 1 Corinthians 10:31, is helpful here too: “Whether then you eat of drink or whatever you do (emphasis mine), do all to the glory of God.” (NASB)
The Christian life boils down to doing what we do for the glory of God. This frees us from second guessing ourselves.
You can already surmise I’m more of a Pie Guy than a Larry Lister. But honestly, I don’t think in terms of lists or slices of a pie. I think more about what God wants me to do or say in a particular situation.
I’m still growing in this area of priorities and time management. I want Christ at the center of all of it. And you should too.