Yesterday, while I was out with my family, we passed a man reading the sports section of the newspaper while he was waiting for the light to change. We all laughed and I began thinking about our growing passion to attempt to fit more into our busy schedules. We hurry from place to place, working as we go thanks to our Bluetooth headsets, voice recorders, and similar electronics. Then we enjoy meals that are unhealthy, but can be purchased and consumed while on our way to our next appointment. Time formerly spent relaxing and reflecting in quiet or conversing with family and friends is now filled with other activities.

And then some people add even more. Like the gentleman we passed, people try to read the paper, put on makeup, and study for exams. Texting while driving is commonplace even when the police cite those who do and in spite of the news reports of people losing their lives or taking those of others.

I confess that I am stunned by our compulsive need to keep doing more. We make it look nice by calling the results of our efforts, “increased productivity,” and naming our addiction, “multitasking.” Is this what we were made for? How can we be fully present to the people and the activities we are doing if we are trying to do more than one activity at a time?

Jesus had time for people, even though he accomplished quite a bit in his thee years of ministry. As full as his agenda may have been, we never get the sense that he would be checking his Blackberry while the Samaritan woman was coming for water, nor interrupting his teaching of the disciples because he needed to, “take this one, it will just be a minute.”

I sit in meetings and at lunch with people who have become cyborgs, refusing to remove their earpiece while they try to convince me that they are truly present and listing to me and others around them. Friends take call after call while we are trying to share a cup of coffee together. It is frustrating, and I am just as guilty.

Recently, my daughter asked me if I could please not be on the computer so much and if I would be willing to stop checking my phone every few minutes to see if I had texts or emails coming in. She asked, “Could you just leave those things alone for a while? I would really like to spend time with you.”

Ouch! It hurt, but mostly because she was right. I too was embracing the value of multitasking over living with focus. I was choosing to be partially connected to several instead of being fully present to one. I promised to change, and gave her, and her mother, permission to hold me accountable.

It is difficult to avoid what is so commonly embraced and what is increasingly expected of us. It is hard to say that we are choosing a different way of life that enjoys and affirms the usefulness of technology without allowing it to direct our lives.

I am sure the man driving with the sports page is busy and wants to make the most of his time, but maybe there is a better way to live that really does get the most out of each moment, but not trying to do more than the moment allows. I would hate to think that I am missing opportune moments in order to see what spam came in within the past two minutes.

If God has our heart and what is at hand, our attention, then we can live powerful lives full of meaning, and what is most important will be accomplished, most likely with a lot less stress. Oh, and if you see me with that ubiquitous blue flashing in my ear, or checking my Blackberry once again when I should be engaging the people I am with, feel free to hold me accountable too.