Steps For Efficient Living

Our cat Peach relished a full-length sprawl, tummy pressed against the front of the refrigerator to capture every smidgen of warm air rippling from the vent. Little did he know how improved efficiency would soon wreck his luxuriant habit when compulsions to upgrade both color and capacity sent us refrigerator shopping for the first time in 25 years.

I'll never forget Peach's sad face of puzzlement as he wriggled in front of the new white box, diligently seeking the familiar warm flow. But thanks to the high thermal efficiency of the latest models, waste heat out the vent was history. Good news for the pocketbook meant bad news for Peach, who was forced to seek other inefficient appliances--the dryer and clock radio--to warm his bones. For him, efficiency had negative overtones.

I noted a similar reaction when a delegation of foreign engineers visited our power plant construction site. Expecting praise, we eagerly described how the latest technology improved operating efficiency. Surprisingly, however, the visitors collectively winced. "But in our country," they replied, "we don't do such things." Wherever our company had installed an automatic valve, their company would station an employee to operate a manual valve. Inefficiency meant more jobs.

Likewise, my own efforts to improve personal efficiency by making seemingly simple substitutions have also spawned some undesirable consequences. Consider a few case histories:

--Substituting activity for accomplishment. In order to enjoy a little more sleep, I endeavored for years to successfully transfer my Bible reading from early morning to the hour I spent commuting to work. But ambient noise and chatter frequently negated the benefits of an activity demanding quiet, meditative reflection.

--Substituting impatience for persistence. I have wasted countless hours dictating handwritten journal entries at 160 wpm so voice recognition software could translate "today we went to town" into gibberish like "two days wee wind two-tone." Corrections were painstaking and time consuming, and I could have ploddingly typed everything without error at 40 wpm.

--Substituting quality for quantity. My children were never as satisfied with my short bursts of "quality" time with them as they were with extended seasons of "quantity" time.

--Substituting efficiency for effectiveness. The folly of transporting two cats to the vet without first confining them in pet carriers needs no explanation.

Shortly before his death, Jesus acknowledged that He had completed the work on earth assigned to Him by His heavenly Father. Not all the sick had been healed; not all the hungry had been fed. Yet He had followed instructions, and all on His list had individually been dealt with.

From this model emerge four simple steps for efficient living: (1) Get our assignments directly from above. (2) Work them to the end, plodding if necessary. (3) Use the allotted time wisely. (4) Make and accept no substitutions.

Sorting this out in a workable fashion is a lifelong process, but what else matters?

Copyright 2004 James McAlister

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