Day 17: The "It's Not that Serious" Sin
Question: How do you steer clear of a sin that doesn’t feel all that wrong?
Bible Passage: James 4:17 "If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.”
Reflection: Sin isn’t only doing something obviously wrong. It can also be failing to do what you know is right, including wasting time or neglecting what God calls you to. A quick search can show you as many as 120 sins named throughout the bible. The Ten Commandments are pretty clear. Worship no other gods. No idols. Don’t misuse God’s name. Keep the Sabbath. Honor your parents. Don’t murder, commit adultery, steal, lie, or covet. Clean. Recognizable. Easy to spot. Hard lines.
But what about the sins that aren’t so transparent? The sins that are SO easy to justify? The sins that are identified by the world as perfectly acceptable? Those sins that pull you away from community with God and other believers?
In Luke 10, Mary is sitting at the feet of Jesus while Martha is busy making everything just right. Martha isn’t doing anything wrong. She’s being responsible. She’s serving. She’s getting things done. But she’s also missing something so much better. Jesus doesn’t correct her for being busy. He redirects her because she’s distracted from the best thing.
If you were to draw a pie chart of the time spent in your waking hours, what would it look like? Go ahead. Draw a circle and then divide it into these 3 slices of time:
Time spent doing things that need to be done
Time spent with God or intentionally for God
Time that just… disappears
There’s overlap, of course. Taking care of your family, doing your job well, showing up for people. Those can absolutely be acts of service. I don’t even like chicken and dumplings, but I make them anyway because my family does. I think that counts! But then there’s that third slice. The one that quietly grows. And if I’m honest, this is the piece that gets me. And I’ve got all the right language ready for it. “I need downtime.” “I’m not doing anything wrong.” “It’s fine to have time for myself.”
None of those are lies. But they can still be a cover. Because there’s a difference between biblical resting and escaping. A difference between being filled and just being distracted. A difference between pulling myself into a mindless time machine and pushing myself into community with God or fellow believers.
And truly, I don’t love how much space gets taken up by scrolling, tapping, checking, watching, and refreshing. But hey! I almost ALWAYS do my Bible study first! And a lot of my follows are biblically based! This helps me stay connected with other Christians! I mean, this is basically worship! See?? It’s so easy for me to make excuses to spend more time doom scrolling than I do hope growing.
I’m starting to see that sin isn’t only about doing what’s wrong. Sometimes it’s about not doing what’s right. And that’s where things get slippery. Because the most dangerous sins are rarely the ones that shock you. They’re the ones you can explain. The ones that sound reasonable. The ones that hide behind phrases like “I deserve this,” “I need a break,” or “it’s not that serious.”
And here’s the part that’s hard to ignore. God has already pointed this out to me. Not as a rule. Not as guilt. But as a nudge I keep brushing off and making excuses for. There’s nothing inherently sinful about liking photos, checking scores, or wondering why Instagram thinks I need a LOT of self-tanner options. But that’s not really the point anymore.
The point is this: I know the good I ought to be doing. And I keep choosing something easier instead. Sure, it doesn’t look bad on the outside, but it’s slowly pulling me away from what matters most on the inside.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for the magnificent creation of time. Thank you for providing moments in my life that aren’t full of busyness. Forgive me for using so much of it for mindless pursuits. You’ve made it clear where my time could be better spent, and still I choose what’s easy. Help me not just recognize the good you have ready, but to actually choose it over and over again. Give me clarity to see distraction for what it is, and the courage and conviction to rest only in you. Teach me to value your presence more than my comfort, and your purpose for my life more than simply passing time. Remind me that time spent with you is never time wasted. Realign my heart with what lasts. Lead me back to you.
Bible Passage: James 4:17 "If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.”
Reflection: Sin isn’t only doing something obviously wrong. It can also be failing to do what you know is right, including wasting time or neglecting what God calls you to. A quick search can show you as many as 120 sins named throughout the bible. The Ten Commandments are pretty clear. Worship no other gods. No idols. Don’t misuse God’s name. Keep the Sabbath. Honor your parents. Don’t murder, commit adultery, steal, lie, or covet. Clean. Recognizable. Easy to spot. Hard lines.
But what about the sins that aren’t so transparent? The sins that are SO easy to justify? The sins that are identified by the world as perfectly acceptable? Those sins that pull you away from community with God and other believers?
In Luke 10, Mary is sitting at the feet of Jesus while Martha is busy making everything just right. Martha isn’t doing anything wrong. She’s being responsible. She’s serving. She’s getting things done. But she’s also missing something so much better. Jesus doesn’t correct her for being busy. He redirects her because she’s distracted from the best thing.
If you were to draw a pie chart of the time spent in your waking hours, what would it look like? Go ahead. Draw a circle and then divide it into these 3 slices of time:
Time spent doing things that need to be done
Time spent with God or intentionally for God
Time that just… disappears
There’s overlap, of course. Taking care of your family, doing your job well, showing up for people. Those can absolutely be acts of service. I don’t even like chicken and dumplings, but I make them anyway because my family does. I think that counts! But then there’s that third slice. The one that quietly grows. And if I’m honest, this is the piece that gets me. And I’ve got all the right language ready for it. “I need downtime.” “I’m not doing anything wrong.” “It’s fine to have time for myself.”
None of those are lies. But they can still be a cover. Because there’s a difference between biblical resting and escaping. A difference between being filled and just being distracted. A difference between pulling myself into a mindless time machine and pushing myself into community with God or fellow believers.
And truly, I don’t love how much space gets taken up by scrolling, tapping, checking, watching, and refreshing. But hey! I almost ALWAYS do my Bible study first! And a lot of my follows are biblically based! This helps me stay connected with other Christians! I mean, this is basically worship! See?? It’s so easy for me to make excuses to spend more time doom scrolling than I do hope growing.
I’m starting to see that sin isn’t only about doing what’s wrong. Sometimes it’s about not doing what’s right. And that’s where things get slippery. Because the most dangerous sins are rarely the ones that shock you. They’re the ones you can explain. The ones that sound reasonable. The ones that hide behind phrases like “I deserve this,” “I need a break,” or “it’s not that serious.”
And here’s the part that’s hard to ignore. God has already pointed this out to me. Not as a rule. Not as guilt. But as a nudge I keep brushing off and making excuses for. There’s nothing inherently sinful about liking photos, checking scores, or wondering why Instagram thinks I need a LOT of self-tanner options. But that’s not really the point anymore.
The point is this: I know the good I ought to be doing. And I keep choosing something easier instead. Sure, it doesn’t look bad on the outside, but it’s slowly pulling me away from what matters most on the inside.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for the magnificent creation of time. Thank you for providing moments in my life that aren’t full of busyness. Forgive me for using so much of it for mindless pursuits. You’ve made it clear where my time could be better spent, and still I choose what’s easy. Help me not just recognize the good you have ready, but to actually choose it over and over again. Give me clarity to see distraction for what it is, and the courage and conviction to rest only in you. Teach me to value your presence more than my comfort, and your purpose for my life more than simply passing time. Remind me that time spent with you is never time wasted. Realign my heart with what lasts. Lead me back to you.
by: April Myers
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2026
May
Day 1: The Joy of Conviction Day 2: Formed for WisdomDay 3: God is Our Refuge Day 4: Fighting the FleshDay 5: What is the next right thing to do?Day 6: The Spiritual Discipline of Silence Day 7: Not Fast, Just Furious Day 8: The Rosetta GroanDay 9: The Secret Place, It Starts HereDay 10: Call GodDay 11: Leave Nothing Undone Day 12: WhyDay 13: Obedience That Hurts, Endurance in the Midst of Suffering Day 14: Unbalancing Your Life for GodDay 15: What weighs you down?Day 16: The Delusion of Pride Day 17: The "It's Not that Serious" SinDay 18: The Primary Goal of Prayer is Presence
2 Comments
This is so good. I think we all needed this reminder. Just because we didn't clearly do something wrong (at least from our humanly perspective) doesn't mean we are doing something right. To bring this to the current status of the world - just because something doesn't affect you personally doesn't mean you shouldn't care about it. Apathy is a sin that rampant among Christians these days because it's so easy to justify and brush it off. It's also probably because most of us don't even realize that apathy is a sin. Ignoring an issue just because you or your circle isn't affected is a sin.
Ouch