Punctuality and Efficiency

Many of my friends know that I tend to be late for many things. Most of which are when I'm meeting someone for a meal or other non-work oriented activity. It's been something I've been trying to change in my life for the longest time. Most of the time I'm late because I was in the middle of something before that. Whether it is school work or sometime its simply because I woke up late. The latter is a rarity but still it happens.

In the world we live in punctuality is certainly something that is assumed. Give or take 10mins is acceptable but I suppose once it hits 15 to 30mins and above a valid reason is to be expected and rightly so. Its simply good manners and respect for the other person. Another virtue highly regarded of in our time is efficiency. Singaporeans speak of efficiency all the time. We incorporate this virtue in our work, our ministries and even in our private lives. Not a single moment is to be wasted.

The following article provoked in me a question, "Am I ready to be interrupted by Jesus?"

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The following is an extract from King Jesus the Disguised
by Mark Galli in Christianity Today

I met King Jesus last week at the Sports-Med health club in Carol Stream, Illinois. I was coming from a hospital visit with a friend, heading toward my office for a 9:30 a.m. appointment. I was to meet with the president of the company that's publishing my next book. I had timed my morning carefully, so I would have just enough time to visit my friend, drive to work, scoot into the parking lot, and walk into my office with a couple of minutes to spare.

But on the way from the hospital, I realized I was running five minutes early. Sports-Med is about two blocks from my office. I calculated that I had just enough time to clear up a billing issue, so I pulled into the parking lot, bolted through the doors, turned the corner to step up to the billing window—and saw that somebody was standing there talking to the attendant. I checked my irritation, and then, as if in answer to prayer, this man and the attendant each said "Thank you," signaling they were done. The man turned around, offering me a pleasant smile and a "Good morning!" I gave him my I'm-in-a-hurry-but-let-me-try-to-look-gracious smile and greeted him in return.

When I finished with the attendant, I turned around to walk past the receptionist's desk. I noticed the same man standing there. He wore a threadbare sports coat, wrinkled pants, and a calm countenance. He looked me in the eye and, with another warm smile, asked in an African accent, "You wouldn't happen to be going by Wheaton College, would you? I could use a ride."

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Theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer in his classic Life Together writes about the sort of encounter I had:

We must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God. God will be constantly crossing our paths and canceling our plans by sending us people with claims and petitions. We may pass them by, preoccupied with our more important tasks, as the priest passed by the man who had fallen among thieves, perhaps reading the Bible. When we do that we pass by the visible sign of the Cross raised athwart our path to show us that not our way but God's way must be done.

It is a strange fact that Christians and even ministers frequently consider their work so important and urgent that they will allow nothing to disturb them. They think they are doing God a service in this, but actually they are disdaining God's "crooked yet straight path" (Gottfried Arnold). They do not want a life that is crossed and balked. But it is part of the discipline of humility that we must not spare our hand where it can perform a service and that we do not assume that our schedule is our own to manage, but allow it to be arranged by God.

Why is it that I kept on driving even though I've read this Bonhoeffer passage dozens of times and should know better? Well, I'm selfish, proud, lazy, and narcissistic. I'm not alone in this, but though this is true of everyone, there are also states of mind that contribute to the problem. One such state of mind is very American, very modern: We have a funny relationship with time.

Though we'd like to believe that Paul's "fruit of the Spirit" is "love, joy, peace, patience, efficiency, and punctuality," it is not so. Yet we instinctively believe it is, and we even put efficiency and punctuality at the top of the list. We follow their dictates even at the expense of love, which really is at the top of the list.

Take punctuality. As a culture, we allow only a limited number of excuses for being late. If I explain to a business associate that I'm going to be late because I have a flat tire, he's likely to say, "No problem, those things happen."

If I were to say, "I'm going to be late, because my son is sick, and I had to get him some medicine before I left the house," this man would say, "No problem."

But suppose I were to say: "I'm going to be late because I bumped into a homeless man, and he needed a meal, but I didn't want just to give him a handout. So I took him to a restaurant and sat with him while he ate." This man very well might say, "What's with that? I thought we had an appointment!"

Even if he were more understanding, we have a cultural sense that this last excuse isn't a very good one. This sense persists even when we're dealing with people who ought to know better. The woman I was to meet in my office that morning is a devout Christian. She lives and works in a community that deliberately strives to embody the teachings of Jesus. If I had said, "Pam, I'm going to be about 20 minutes late, because I have to give a man a ride to Wheaton College," Pam would have said, "No problem." But so committed am I to punctuality that it didn't even occur to me to phone her about it.

Efficiency is a similar value. I had planned my morning so that I would just make the 9:30 appointment. I gave myself time for my morning routines, for the drive to and from the hospital, and for a 20-minute visit—all planned so that not a minute would be wasted. When I found I had an extra five minutes, I used it to its fullest, taking care of a bill at Sports-Med. That way I didn't "waste time" by coming back during my lunch hour.

Taking the young man to Wheaton College did not fit into what I had imagined was an efficient morning or what I conceived of as the beginning of an efficient day—arriving 20 minutes late for my first appointment!

Let me be clear. Punctuality and efficiency are virtues. The former is a sign of respect; the latter, of good stewardship. The problem is when these virtues begin to manage our schedules, when they take over for the Spirit. God, as Bonhoeffer points out, loves to manage our schedules by interruptions.

So how to respect time, yet honor and obey King Jesus who likes to interrupt our lives? Here's one thing I'm doing: I'm trying to build into my schedule ten- to fifteen-minute blocks of time so that I can feel less pressure when King Jesus taps me on the shoulder. For instance, I'm trying to get into the habit of leaving for appointments and meetings ten to fifteen minutes early. If I arrive at my breakfast early, I look for opportunities to ask the waitress a few more questions than I would normally, or I spot a friend in the restaurant and try to find out what's going on with him. And if a complete stranger approaches me and needs a listening ear or a ride or even a meal, I have the space in my day to make it happen.

If no opportunity presents itself, I take it as a sign that the Lord simply wants me to spend the time quietly or in prayer. (Which I then have to remind myself is not a waste of time!)

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Jesus comes to us not with a crown on his head or a WWJD (what would Jesus do) bracelet. He disguises himself as one of us, because he wants us to remember that we are not just disciples of the Lord and servants of the King—though we certainly are these things. He wants us to respect his office, but he also wants us to love his person: "You are my friends if you do what I command you" (John 5:14).

It's when we make space in our busy days to meet King Jesus in personal, intimate settings—in a manger, in a carpenter's shop, or even at Sports-Med—that we find he's not only a King to serve but also a friend to love.