Luke 10:38-42
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. 40 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!" 41 "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."
I really love this encounter Jesus has with the sisters because it gives me the reality check I often need in life. Like most people, I’m more of a do-er than a be-er. I’m pretty good at getting over busy with all the tasks on my to-do list. But what gets lost along the way is my contemplative side, which I think I actually pay attention to more than a lot of people because of my diverse experiences through seminary and other religious enrichment settings. But I still neglect it. I still find myself uttering only the most practical prayers and not taking enough time to really sit in God’s presence and listen for him to speak and guide me. Churches are notoriously bad at this. We’ve got the Consistory meetings planned, the kitchen cleaned and organized, the bills paid and most of the details taken care of. We’ve got a smooth sailing church and get our work done. But between the two sisters in our passage, which are we? We’re real good at working, but how good are we at listening to Jesus? Would he say to us what he said to Martha, “Few things are needed.”? If we indeed are much more inclined to be like Martha, what does that say about our effectiveness for God’s kingdom and the possibility that in spite of our best intentions we might totally miss the point?
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. 40 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!" 41 "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."
I really love this encounter Jesus has with the sisters because it gives me the reality check I often need in life. Like most people, I’m more of a do-er than a be-er. I’m pretty good at getting over busy with all the tasks on my to-do list. But what gets lost along the way is my contemplative side, which I think I actually pay attention to more than a lot of people because of my diverse experiences through seminary and other religious enrichment settings. But I still neglect it. I still find myself uttering only the most practical prayers and not taking enough time to really sit in God’s presence and listen for him to speak and guide me. Churches are notoriously bad at this. We’ve got the Consistory meetings planned, the kitchen cleaned and organized, the bills paid and most of the details taken care of. We’ve got a smooth sailing church and get our work done. But between the two sisters in our passage, which are we? We’re real good at working, but how good are we at listening to Jesus? Would he say to us what he said to Martha, “Few things are needed.”? If we indeed are much more inclined to be like Martha, what does that say about our effectiveness for God’s kingdom and the possibility that in spite of our best intentions we might totally miss the point?
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