KELLY LOFLIN

I am sure you are familiar with the background of this moment in scripture Luke 10: 41-42. Jesus had come to dinner at Mary and Martha’s house. They were sisters. And, like many siblings, they had very different personalities. In fact, it is easy to see some of the difference in this passage alone. Martha was type “A” all the way. She was extremely concerned with making sure all the arrangements were just right and that the food was prepared properly. She had probably cleaned the house four times over and whipped up her most popular culinary delight. She was busy bustling around the home, yet she was bothered. While Martha was working hard, she noticed her sister was hardly working. Mary was busy too, but in a much different way. She was sitting at Jesus’ feet. (vs. 39) This bothered Martha greatly. It bothered her so much that she even appeals to Jesus to get Mary to help her! Look at vs. 40: “But Martha was distracted with much serving and she approached Him and said ‘Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the work alone? Please tell her to help me.’”That is when Jesus responds with “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.” How many times have you and I been guilty of getting so wrapped up in many things, that we don’t do the one thing that is most important? I don’t know about you, but “the most wonderful time of year” to me is also the craziest and busiest time of year. And, if we are not careful, we will get so wrapped up in preparing and doing the "many things", that we don’t do the ONE THING…sit at Jesus’ feet and worship Him! Were the many things Martha was doing, bad things? Absolutely not. They were important. They had to get done and no one would have had anything to eat had Martha not prepared it. But Jesus can look deep into our soul and see who we really are. As for Martha, she was worried and troubled over many things and was consumed by it. Sound familiar to you this holiday season? We get so caught up in the needs of our Christmas productions, the rehearsals, family situations, job stress, shopping crowds, etc. that if we are not careful, it will consume us. We will wake up to realize that we were wrapped up in business, and missed out on holiness. We could potentially worship our work instead of working at our worship. What good was it doing Martha to have Jesus Himself in her living room, if she wasn’t going to spend any time with Him? Could it be she was more concerned with His perception of her cooking than she was with the condition of her soul? Maybe she wanted to impress her friends and the community with the fact that Jesus had come to her house and she had prepared a meal for the Messiah. Unfortunately, the Messiah wasn’t impressed by her preparation and production. What He wanted was her attention and her affection. I don’t know what Martha’s motives were. But all the while, Mary sat at His feet and worshiped him. Psalm 27:4 says “One thing I have desired of the Lord, that I will seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord…”This I do know. The one thing will simplify and purify the many things! As we move into this crazy time of shopping, hauling, traveling, singing, partying, and everything else-ing, let us remember the one thing…worship Him! That is why our worship services should take precedence far above any other activity or program in the church. The worship of our Lord must remain the primary focus of what we do and who we are! Everything else, "important stuff", falls under the category of many things. So as we go about this season, remember that the many things are about doing. The one thing is about being. God is more concerned with our being than He is with our doing. Have a Merry Christmas . . .