Reflections based on Luke 10:38–42.

‘“Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself?”… Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.’

Jesus is here tackling the issue of our natural tendency to busy ourselves doing ‘stuff’. Honestly, I find it hard to stop (even to spend time with God) before I’ve done all the jobs that need doing. And yet, when I put time with God first, my perspective on things definitely changes. And when I ask for His help for those things on my ‘to do’ list that really do still need doing often I find a renewed energy and focus. Things that I thought would take me a long time are done much more quickly.

I think that Jesus is also making a very pertinent comment about our acts of service. I know I’ve said in the previous entry of this blog series that worship is service, and that is true, but the heart behind it is the crux of the matter. I have purposefully written this blog straight after the last one because I think we can often busy ourselves with commendable tasks, but neglect the love relationship that is meant to be behind them, fuelling them. Yes, feeding and caring for the guests were necessary jobs (and, secretly, I can totally understand Martha’s frustration!) and yet we can go overboard and miss out on the very thing that we truly desire and need – time with, and input from, our Lord.

How often do we overcomplicate things that could be done more simply, which would free us up more to spend time with Him? And how often do we run out of energy doing things that God hasn’t called us to do? We need to take time to sit at His feet as Mary did; drawing from the Source so that we can serve others out of the overflow He has given us, not from our own, limited, strength.

Question: How often do you rush about trying to achieve things, while neglecting time at your saviour’s feet? Repent and spend some quality time with Him today.