“Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.’ But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.” — Luke 10:40-42
Being the mother of three children and serving two congregations, I can definitely relate to Martha. I totally can feel Martha’s frustration with her younger sister and can easily imagine the exasperation she must have been feeling as she took on the pressures of being a good hostess and welcoming Jesus and his followers into her home. I can only imagine the distractions Martha was facing as she worked tirelessly preparing and caring for her guests and the resentment of watching her sister get to sit and listen to Jesus.
Often, I find myself overwhelmed and distracted with the pressures that I and others place on my time and energy. There are many demands both spoken and unspoken placed on parents, grandparents, children, workers, hosts in how one is expected to be and do. It is easy to grow tired just trying to keep up. With the summer schedule, I want to be outside playing games, swimming, reading a book, even a devotion, taking an afternoon nap or just having fun with my friends and family, but more often than not, I find myself scattered and overwhelmed in transitioning from one activity to the next with laundry, dishes, more laundry, emails, phone calls, bills and more.
I find myself turning to God in the same manner as Martha and asking, “Lord, don’t you care?”
What if these same words are there for me? For you? What if we read these words of Jesus and I place our own name in that of Martha’s, “Wendy, Wendy, _____, ____ you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need for only one thing.”
Only one thing? Wouldn’t that be nice, says my cynical side? And yet, what if what he says is true?
What would it be like to Mary, to be sitting at the feet of Jesus? What words would Jesus speak to me, to you? What message would we hear? I hear permission to sit, to be in the presence of our Lord, to be present with those around me and to take space and time with God.
Jesus gives Mary permission to sit and learn from him. I truly believe Jesus gives me and you this permission as well. We all have this gift and freedom. It is a gift that will not be taken from us. A gift to be filled and fueled and renewed by the love, grace and mercy of our Lord so that we can face the demands and pressures of this world and not grow resentful and contemptuous but thankful and grateful for the opportunities our Lord gives to us.
Recently, I have read several studies on how to be more productive. Each one I read offers similar advice: work for 45 minutes and take a break for 15 minutes. To me this seems counterproductive and a waste of time. Martin Luther is known to have said, “I have so much to do that I have no idea how it will begin, let me begin in prayer.” Then he is known to have prayed for 3 hours. Look at the work and gifts this man was able to do that we still have today. Space and time with God is a beautiful gift. When I practice this and actually take this time to sit at Jesus’ feet, my day turns out much differently. Rather than grow resentful, I see the tasks as opportunities and gifts to give to others as I have been given.
So this day, I invite you to take time, like Mary, to sit at the feet of Jesus, to hear his words to us and to be renewed – renewed in Christ’s love and grace now and forever.
Wendy Richter is a pastor at St. Mark’s and All Shepherds Lutheran churches.
