The idol of efficiency
There is a cultural preoccupation with efficiency within the modern Western world. It is so prevalent that at times we – even as Christians – do not question whether it is good or bad, it just is. We can get so caught up in the madness along with the rest of the secular world. But is this healthy? And beyond that, is it always godly? Is this obsession with efficiency yet another way to pay homage to ourselves, adding to the illusion of our capacity to control within our spheres of influence? Does God approve, or does He define productivity in a different way?
It is good to work towards excellence in everything we do. Good stewardship includes the wise management of time, talents, and resources. Paul covers this with a blanket statement in Colossians 3:17: “Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus,” and Christ alludes to this in the “Parable of the Talents” in Matthew 25. And yet working towards perfectionism and absolute efficiency often perverts the heart motive into something idolatrous – seeking to worship and serve created things rather than the Creator (Romans 1:25). In order to see what faithfulness looks like, we must turn toward the perfect example of God Himself. He deliberately goes against our cultural ideas of what is efficient and what we so often esteem as the best good.
The patient process of redemption
When God created the world, He did not do so in an instant. He enjoyed it, taking His time, reveling in His own patient process, taking each unrushed step towards the whole with great care and love. Similarly, when Adam and Eve sinned, God’s way of providing redemption was far from immediate – from our perspective, it was inefficient. He took not just weeks or months but centuries, weaving again and again His own forbearance and strength against the desperation and corruption of humanity. He proved His own excellence and goodness not by sending immediate solutions but by walking with His people in their sorrows, showing great patience and grace in the face of recurrent human failure, forgetfulness, and evil.
The life of Christ is yet another example of God’s patient process of care. Jesus did not become incarnate and immediately go to the cross, hurrying to get His holy agenda over with. Instead, He spent months in the womb of His mother and years growing as a child and a man, experiencing a full life of joy and suffering alongside us. The treacherous pathway to the cross consumed His life. It was a life of longsuffering, lament, and love. Day by day, year after year, He set His face toward the cross, relentlessly pursuing redemption at great cost to Himself.
Working as we wait
Now, after Jesus’ death and resurrection, we await His return. We hasten the day, yet our goal is not just to accomplish restoration but to know Him, both in life and in death. No amount of efficiency and goal orientated living can provide the same goodness of just being with the Lord, sitting at His feet as Mary did (Luke 10:39). We work and we worship Him, patiently stewarding what He has given us in the meantime.
“Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.” (James 5:7-8)
May we take our cues from the farmer who is steady and unrushed in his faithful work towards the harvest. Like the five wise women in the parable of the ten virgins, may we work to stay awake, to be ready, and also rouse as many as we can before the imminent return of our good King (Matthew 25:1). Let our hearts be established in something far more precious than our own earthly kingdoms, and far more joyful than anything we could ever accomplish for ourselves.
Rebecca Faulks is a nurse, seminary student, and member at Mosaic Boston church in Boston, MA.
