Worthington - Breaking busy: how to find peace & purpose in a world of crazy

If you have breath in your lungs, youre probably busy. (And maybe even out of breath!) Its easy to get caught up in tasks and to-dos, but in the midst of the manic we lose the beauty of life in exchange for busyness. Stop running in circles and start living in the moments.

With humor and humility, Alli not only shares her candid failures and follies but gives practical and useful tips on how to break patterns of busyness. Her experiences allow us to enter into her story and learn how to get off the hamster wheel and start living the life we always wanted to live! Its time to Break Busy.

BIANCA JUAREZ OLTHOFF, teacher, speaker, and author of Play with Fire: Discovering a Fierce Faith, Unquenchable Passion, and a Life-Giving God

I dont know when or how busyness became a status symbol, but I am so glad that in Breaking Busy, Alli Worthington is calling us all back to a better way of living!

JON ACUFF,New York Times bestselling author of Do Over: Rescue Monday, Reinvent Your Work, and Never Get Stuck

Breaking Busy speaks into the life of every woman who strives to spend her time, energy, and talents on the most important priorities in her life. As a working-mother authority, Alli Worthington transparently guides her readers through her own life transitions and tough choices, sharing her insights in both a thoughtful and whimsical way. This book brilliantly combines storytelling with action planning for life-impacting change. Breaking Busy is a must-read for every busy woman searching for peace and purpose amidst the demands of a crazy life!

DEE ANN TURNER, Vice President, Corporate Talent, Chick-fil-A, Inc.; author of Its My Pleasure: The Impact of Extraordinary Talent and a Compelling Culture

Alli Worthington has learned the difference between simply having a full life and truly experiencing life to the full. She shares her secrets in this warm, funny, and wise book that will help all of us finally trade busy for Gods very best.

HOLLEY GERTH,Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Youre Already Amazing

Breaking Busy is a great read for women who feel like they dont have quite enough hours in the day to finish their to-do list in other words, most of us! Allis voice is authentic and witty, plus her content is uber-practical. Whether youre a harried mom with french fries littering the floor boards of your minivan or a high-level executive with more meetings than your iCal can keep up with, this book will help you navigate the next season of your life with significantly less stress and a lot more genuinely relaxed smiles.

LISA HARPER, Bible teacher, adoptive mom, and author of Believing Jesus: Are You Willing to Risk Everything

Alli Worthington strikes you as the kind of girl who can have and do it all. Shes remarkably successful, juggles a wild and crazy family, and yet manages to always show up looking smart and snappy. If I didnt know her better I would be intimidated! But here is the truth: Alli is one of the most genuine, thoughtful, strong, and stable women I know. Her book Breaking Busy is an honest, insightful, and hilarious telling of her own journey to (as the subtitle says) find peace and purpose in a world of crazy. Read it and know youre not alone and that you too can break busy.

JENNI CATRON, leadership coach and author of The 4 Dimensions of Extraordinary Leadership

No offense to anyone else, but I think Alli Worthington might have written this book just for me. I needed Breaking Busy! but Im not alone. This book is practical, yes, but its also wise and warm, like a good friend who helps us all to find the real way forward into a life less busy and more fulfilling.

SARAH BESSEY, author of Out of Sorts: Making Peace with an Evolving Faith

The secret to a life of fulfillment is all about getting off the busy train. In Breaking Busy, Alli Worthington will show you just how to ban busy, live better, and laugh all the way home.

CLAIRE DIAZ-ORTIZ, author and Silicon Valley innovator

Alli Worthingtons Breaking Busy is a breath of fresh air. Her honest storytelling and practical advice will resonate with any person who has uttered the words Im so busy!

JESSICA N. TURNER, author of The Fringe Hours: Making Time for You

ZONDERVAN

Breaking Busy
Copyright 2016 by Alli Worthington

Requests for information should be addressed to:
Zondervan, 3900 Sparks Dr. SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Worthington, Alli.

Breaking busy : how to find peace and purpose in a world of crazy / Alli Worthington.

pages cm

ISBN 978-0-310-34222-9 (pbk.) ISBN 978-0-310-34224-3 (ebook) ISBN 978-0-310-06705-4 (mobile app)

1. Christian life. 2. Christian womenReligious life. I. Title.

BV4501.3.W68 2016

248.4dc23 2015026533

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.Zondervan.com. The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.

Scripture quotations marked KJ21 are taken from the 21st Century King James Version. Copyright 1994 by Deuel Enterprises, Inc. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible. Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Any Internet addresses (websites, blogs, etc.) and telephone numbers in this book are offered as a resource. They are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement by Zondervan, nor does Zondervan vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Published in association with literary agent Jenni Burke of D.C. Jacobson & Associates LLC, an Author Management Company www.dcjacobson.com

Cover design: Lori Danelle Wilson
Cover photos: Shutterstock
Interior design: Kait Lamphere

First printing December 2015

To my husband, Mark

Thank you for your love, your patience,
your leadership, and your courage.
You are my rock when I get shaky.
You are my steady when I freak out.
Thank you for choosing me all those years ago.
I cherish this journey with you
every up, every down, every crazy turn.
I cant imagine taking this ride
with anyone else by my side.

CONTENTS

by Christine Caine

by Christine Caine

Busy is intoxicating. We live in a day and age when we seem to get high on being busy. In fact we wear the label like a badge of honor, a secret seal of approval, a validation and proof of our worthiness. If were not busy, constantly racing from one thing to the next, then we obviously must not be doing enough... right? On the surface we seem to love the rush of having more things to do than time to do them in, but deep down we have a nagging sense that there must be more to our short time on earth than not having enough time to live the abundant life Jesus said he came to give us. Who has time for abundant living when we are clearly not even barely living?