Martha, Martha

Luke 10:38-42 ESV

"Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, 'Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.' But the Lord answered her, 'Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.'"

Hurry hurry

You're running out of time

Complete this task

Fulfill these needs

Scurry to the next event

Never say no

Hurry Hurry

The clock screams with each tick

"Faster faster"

Each tock whispers

"Rush, rush"

But don't you see?

You missed the in betweens

The laughter with friends

The conversations with family

The love in the air

If only you let these moments impede

The rushing about for silly little things

I think it speaks a lot that Martha was worried about so much. She was trying to serve others. She was trying to do things that were, in and of themselves, good. But they became her focus and she missed the most important thing of all, Jesus. We can get so caught up in the busy, the rushing, the go, go, go that a lot of the times we don't realize that we are choosing that. A lot of the rushing is due to our planning or us feeling like everything needs to be done all at once. That's not to say that some seasons aren't busy. They are. Why do you think one of the ten commandments is to rest, to sabbath? Because God knew we needed it and He knew it's something that wouldn't come easy for us. The faster we move, the blurrier everything else looks. Think about it. Driving fast, everything comes at you in a blur, there and then gone. Walking fast, you barely process the people walking around you. What they look like, what they're wearing. Blur. Take a picture while moving, blurry. Too fast of movement causes things to be blurry. That is just fact. No matter what you're doing, the faster you move, the blurrier things are, and the more you miss. Our focus becomes skewed and everything around us becomes almost unnoticeable.

We've all been in the "busy" boat. We've all been in seasons where our schedules are packed and we're constantly rushing about. But I find it important to remember to choose moments to slow down. I remember in volleyball, my coach always told us that serving was the only part of the game we could control. So to take a moment to choose to slow the game down for just a second and catch our breath. God tells us the same thing by commanding us to honor the Sabbath. It doesn't only allow us to recenter our focus on Him. It also helps us catch our breath from the busy. In a society that tells you that being busy is good. That rushing about is normal. I'm here to tell you to make sure you value and incorporate a Sabbath. A day of rest into your routine. It honors God and helps you show up better in the following days. Not slowing down leaves so much room for other things and people to become our focus and ultimately idols. Let us allow the in between moments, the slow moments to interrupt our busy. On a mission trip in Ecuador, as we were evangelizing, almost every person we stopped to talk to MADE time for us. They never made us feel like we were interrupting their day. They chose that talking to us mattered more than whatever errand they were about to run or chore they were about to complete. That's something I'll never forget because it's so foreign to us. The concept of slowing down, not rushing to that next thing, and allowing to be interrupted has beauty to it. Yes, we have deadlines and things we need to make on time. But there are so many things that we choose the deadline and don't allow interruption. Breathe. Let that unexpected conversation happen. The laughter last a little longer. Let's stop rushing about for silly little things and miss out on so many beautiful memories. Let's be like Mary and remember to sit at the Lord's feet, no matter how busy.