Luke 10 shares an account of
a visit Jesus made to some friends—Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. Martha scurried
about getting food on the table and acting the welcoming hostess, while Mary
simply sat with Jesus and listened to the conversation in the room.
If I had been there, I would have been out in the kitchen chopping parsley for tabbouleh or frying the onions for mujadara. Like Martha, I would think feeding our guests would be quite important!
And yet, Jesus rebukes Martha for her choice and applauds Mary for hers, "Mary has chosen what is better . . .“
Life is full of choices—choices about how we spend our time, our money, our energy, our strength, our emotions. Some days the choice is clear; other times we struggle to decide what should take precedence.
Every day we sort through lists of errands, concerns, and tasks to figure out what truly matters. In a recent Lutheran Hour devotional, Dr. Kari Vo wrote that part of our mandate as Christians is figuring out what Jesus wants of us, so our one precious life here on earth gets used for His glory as effectively as possible. We need to ask ourselves each day, “What is the one thing God wants me to be doing today?
Maybe today what God is asking IS for me to prepare food for guests. However, it is just as likely that He is nudging me to simply sit and listen to my friend as he pours out his heart. What God asks of me can change from day to day but what is constantly important is for me to be praying and seeking God’s leading.
Don Ciampa, a colleague and friend of Dick’s and mine, once told us, “Before I get out of bed, I think about the things I plan to do that day. But, as soon as my feet hit the floor, I ask God to lead me where He wants me to go, and to put me to doing what He wants me to do, and my plans are changed.”
Good advice for us all!
Be encouraged!
