What Are Your Priorities?
But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are so upset over all these details! There is really only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it -- and I won’t take it away from her.” -- Luke 10:41-42
Many of us know the story of Martha and her sister Mary. Jesus was visiting and teaching. Mary was listening to Jesus. Martha was fretting over all the guests, trying to prepare a meal and take care of all the details.
Jesus gently reminded Martha that Mary understood the importance of listening to Jesus and spending time with Him. We all should learn that lesson. Life has a way of taking over and pushing God aside. At least in our thoughts. We get so stressed about what we must do that we forget what’s truly important.
We could take that a step further when it comes to taking time for people. It’s wonderful to have guests and certainly we want to prepare. But when one or two people spend all their time in the kitchen and don’t even get to visit, then something is really wrong. Maybe the cook needs to prepare something simpler and focus not on the accolades that come from presenting a large meal but on the love that comes from sharing time with people you care about.
Most people aren’t even aware of what they’re doing -- or not doing. It’s just habit. They’ve always worked for days to prepare a large meal when guests are coming. And they always saved Bible reading until everything else is done. It’s no surprise that everything else is never done and the person ends up more stressed than before.
So take a deep breath. Put God first. And relax. Laugh. Keep things simple. Enjoy the people you love while you can. And thank God that they’re in your life.
No comments:
Post a Comment