As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” — Luke 10:38-42
It’s easy to let life fly by while you’re working your way down a checklist which is also known as your life. Your routine might vary slightly day to day but only because of the different activities you’ve tried to squeeze in. Whenever you encounter an empty spot in your schedule, you try and find something to fill it. And if you’re like most people you can identify with Martha at least some of the time.
We don’t know a lot about Martha because she is only mentioned in the Bible a few times but from this passage it seems like she’s a busybody. If you yourself are not a busybody, you probably know someone who is. They can never seem to sit down and relax. There’s nothing wrong with working. In fact the Bible warns against being idle. Jesus had an important message for Martha that I think we need to hear too.
Are you preoccupied with the cares and worries of this life? Do you worry about things that ultimately don’t matter? Jesus told Martha that she did. She opened her home to Jesus and His disciples. She was doing a “good” thing but lost sight of the fact that she had the Christ in her home. Next time you lose sight of what’s important and life seems like it’s slipping away, set aside some extra time to sit at the Lord’s feet and soak in His presence. Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth (Psalm 46:10).
Originally posted January 9, 2010.