Choose What Is Better
“Being in charge is stressful, but running on empty is worse.”
Luke 10:38-42 (NLT)
As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”
But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”
Reflection:
Sweet Martha. How many sermons have been built on the back of our dear Sister Martha’s bad moment? She got recorded by name in Scripture, but forever for a failure.
But BECAUSE of Martha’s moment we know:
Moments. Our lives are built with them. We have good moments, but it’s the ones we mess up that slap us silly with regret and reveal our lack. You know them well. Just think of your “if-only” list, and you will have a clue to their power.
The sticky part of Martha’s moment was that it was so virtuous. She just wanted to throw a really good dinner party for Jesus!
But as only Jesus can do, He put His finger right on something internal in Martha: distraction.
Simple distraction. Not hostility. Not rejection. Not a lack of devotion. Simple, every day, meaning-well distraction.
As benign as distraction seems, Jesus knew it would dislocate her connection with Him.
He separated what she wanted from what she needed:
That’s a conundrum as old as time, isn’t it?
Satan strategically waits. He watches as we sanctify our busyness as faithfulness. He pats us on the back as we nourish a “suck it up” approach to life and label it “dying to self,” while we ignore healthy margins and become spiritually dusty.
Frenetic energy is the perfect Novocain for issues in need of truth and healing. More seems to make up for less… and falling into bed exhausted each night numbs the black holes in our souls and makes us feel that we matter, are valuable, wanted, and irreplaceable.
Jesus knew the enemy of Martha’s soul would wait stealthily while busyness atrophied her heart. At the perfect moment, her heart would fall out on the pavement of life and shatter.
As Jesus calmed and refocused her, He was saving her future. As He readjusted her understanding, He was launching her into the wholeness she was designed for.
This is the deal He made with Martha and wants to make with you:
“Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” Matthew 11:29 (NIV).
Sit at Jesus’ feet, look upon His face, and drink in His presence. Like a well-handled Rubik's cube, you will find correct priorities falling into place.
Action Step:
What moment in your life can you point to and say, “I’m so very, very glad Jesus redeemed that moment?”
Prayer:
Jesus, turn my eyes toward You and pull my heart close. I am in need of that power that can only be found in You. I wait. I’m looking. I’m listening. I’m longing. I need You. Amen.
As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”
But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”
Reflection:
Sweet Martha. How many sermons have been built on the back of our dear Sister Martha’s bad moment? She got recorded by name in Scripture, but forever for a failure.
But BECAUSE of Martha’s moment we know:
- What our priority should be
- What Jesus desires for us
- That being in charge is stressful, but running on empty is worse
Moments. Our lives are built with them. We have good moments, but it’s the ones we mess up that slap us silly with regret and reveal our lack. You know them well. Just think of your “if-only” list, and you will have a clue to their power.
The sticky part of Martha’s moment was that it was so virtuous. She just wanted to throw a really good dinner party for Jesus!
But as only Jesus can do, He put His finger right on something internal in Martha: distraction.
Simple distraction. Not hostility. Not rejection. Not a lack of devotion. Simple, every day, meaning-well distraction.
As benign as distraction seems, Jesus knew it would dislocate her connection with Him.
He separated what she wanted from what she needed:
- She wanted “to do something” for Him.
- He wanted her to know Him.
That’s a conundrum as old as time, isn’t it?
Satan strategically waits. He watches as we sanctify our busyness as faithfulness. He pats us on the back as we nourish a “suck it up” approach to life and label it “dying to self,” while we ignore healthy margins and become spiritually dusty.
Frenetic energy is the perfect Novocain for issues in need of truth and healing. More seems to make up for less… and falling into bed exhausted each night numbs the black holes in our souls and makes us feel that we matter, are valuable, wanted, and irreplaceable.
Jesus knew the enemy of Martha’s soul would wait stealthily while busyness atrophied her heart. At the perfect moment, her heart would fall out on the pavement of life and shatter.
As Jesus calmed and refocused her, He was saving her future. As He readjusted her understanding, He was launching her into the wholeness she was designed for.
This is the deal He made with Martha and wants to make with you:
“Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” Matthew 11:29 (NIV).
Sit at Jesus’ feet, look upon His face, and drink in His presence. Like a well-handled Rubik's cube, you will find correct priorities falling into place.
Action Step:
What moment in your life can you point to and say, “I’m so very, very glad Jesus redeemed that moment?”
Prayer:
Jesus, turn my eyes toward You and pull my heart close. I am in need of that power that can only be found in You. I wait. I’m looking. I’m listening. I’m longing. I need You. Amen.
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