1. A computer-implemented method for prioritizing event processing based on system workload at a given time, the computer-implemented method comprising: analyzing a set of events being processed in an event processing system to determine whether any of a set of predetermined patterns exists; responsive to a determination that at least one of the set of predetermined patterns exists in the set of events, determining a processing priority associated with a respective event in the set of events; determining, by examining a setting of a stress flag in the event processing system, whether predetermined components and operation of the event processing system, including a central processing unit, a memory, an input queue, and a response time measuring component are not at one of acceptable predefined levels of stress according to a set of predefined parameters; responsive to a determination that the event processing system is not at one of the acceptable predefined levels of stress, determining whether processing of the respective event can be delayed using the processing priority associated with the respective event and a time constraint attribute in an event rule in which the respective event is used, wherein the event rule uses one or more events; responsive to a determination that the respective event can be delayed, calculating a maximum delay for the respective event using the time constraint attribute of the event rule in which the respective event is used, when the respective event is a non-urgent event; storing the respective event with a time delay in event storage for later processing; and responsive to a determination that the respective event cannot be delayed, using the processing priority associated with the respective event and a time constraint attribute in an event rule in which the respective event is used, processing the respective event immediately.