“The One Thing Needful: What Jesus and Seneca  Teach Us About Time, Life, and Living Fully”

In our hyperconnected, fast-paced world, busyness is worn like a badge of honor. We fill our calendars with meetings, our feeds with updates, and our thoughts with worries about what hasn’t yet happened. But are we truly living—or just existing?

This age-old dilemma isn’t new, and it isn’t unique to us. Nearly 2,000 years ago, the Roman Stoic philosopher Seneca offered a profound meditation on this very issue in his essay “On the Shortness of Life.” His insights feel surprisingly modern: Life isn’t truly short, he says—we just waste too much of it. We spend our days chasing fleeting pleasures, clinging to distractions, and postponing our true priorities for some imagined “perfect” time in the future.

“Life is long enough,” Seneca writes, “and it has been given in sufficiently generous measure to allow the accomplishment of the very greatest things—if the whole of it is well invested.”

He calls out the “preoccupied,” those who are forever busy yet feel empty. People who are always "in motion" but never "at rest." It’s not a matter of needing more time, he argues. It’s about taking control of our time—investing it wisely, living intentionally, and refusing to let the urgent distract us from the important.

Jesus and the Wisdom of Prioritizing the Present. This call to presence and focus is echoed in another ancient voice: Jesus. Observe the moment in the Gospel of Luke when he gently reprimands Martha, who is flustered and overwhelmed by her many tasks. Jesus tells her: “You are anxious and troubled about many things; but one thing is needful.”— Luke 10:41–42

Martha represents so many of us—stretched thin, striving, serving, yet somehow missing the moment. Jesus’ words, like Seneca’s, are not a call to do nothing, but a call to do what matters most. Both offer the same radical message: A meaningful life is not the result of doing more, but of being present to the moment and choosing what is essential.

Time: Our Highest Currency

If money is spent, it can be earned again. But every second we waste is time we will never get back. Seneca and Jesus both understood that our time is our most precious and limited resource. They invite us into a new way of seeing life—not as a to-do list to be conquered, but as a sacred gift to be lived well. This doesn’t mean abandoning our responsibilities. It means clearing away the inessential—mental clutter, unnecessary obligations, internal pressure—and making space for what truly matters: people, purpose, presence. That’s where joy and peace live.

Living the Message Today

So how do we apply this timeless wisdom to our modern chaos?

Pause daily. Reflect on where your time and energy are going. Are they aligned with what really matters to you?

Say no more often. Every yes is a trade-off with your time, so be intentional.

Be where you are. Whether it’s a conversation, a walk, or a moment of prayer, be there fully. The following image speaks volumes. Don't wait until retirement to travel...

The One Needful Thing

Seneca and Jesus weren’t from the same tradition, but their message harmonizes across centuries and cultures: Life isn’t short—we just fail to seize it. In a world that celebrates distraction and glorifies overwork, their ancient voices call us back to the heart: Live deliberately. Treasure your time. Choose what truly matters. In the end, maybe the “one thing needful” is not more time, more success, or more activity—but rather this: to be fully alive in the moment you’re given.

Have you checked how you’re spending your time today? Maybe now’s a good moment to pause, remember what matters, and begin again.