JESUS SPEAKING
Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore, tell her to help me.” And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10: 38 – 42.)
INSPIRED THOUGHTS
After eagerly welcoming Jesus into her home for the evening, Martha began feverishly serving her new guests. In traditional Jewish culture, the women were responsible for preparing the meals. As a result, Martha became upset when she observed Mary sitting at Christ’s feet, intently listening to His every word. She attempted to correct her sister, but the Lord corrected her instead. Unlike Mary, Martha had failed to put God first; ahead of all of her other duties.
In the 1500’s, a German Monk named Martin Luther sparked the protestant reformation (a movement that sought to restore the church to biblical truths, rather than man-made religious traditions.) As the leader of this movement, he was an extraordinarily busy man. However, despite his remarkable number of responsibilities, he would arise early every morning to spend time in prayer; conceding that on his busiest days he needed God even more. He once said, “I have so much to do today that I’m going to need to spend three hours in prayer in order to be able to get it all done.”
Like Martin Luther, we must make God our number one priority. The amount of distractions in this life are seemingly endless. The busier we are, the less time we have to complete our daily tasks. On our busiest days we can behave like Martha and make less time for God and more time for our chores. Or we can choose to act like Mary and make God our top priority. By reading scripture, praying, and seeking God’s will in the morning and throughout the day, we are making the right decision. If God is our priority, everything else will fall into its proper place. And the peace of the Lord will remain in us, as He accomplishes His work through us.
“Lord Heavenly Father, help us to make You the most important thing in our lives. May life’s busiest moments never distract us from focusing on Your goodness. Teach us and love us; pour Your Spirit out into our hearts, that we might be used to effectively accomplish Your will in this place. We love You Father, we praise You, and we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things, according to Your will, in Jesus Christ’s name. Amen.” God bless all of you!
Jesus Speaks 