THE BEST THING

“Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, ‘Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.’ But the Lord answered and said to her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her,’” (Luke 10:38-42, NASB).

We’re all familiar with the story of Mary and Martha, the two sisters who eagerly welcomed Jesus into their home. Like many of us, Martha busied herself with tasks and preparations, ensuring that the Lord would be served well. Meanwhile Mary sat with Jesus and listened to Him. He eventually said to Martha, “You are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary,” (Luke 10:41-42, NASB).

None of Martha’s tasks were inherently bad, and Jesus didn’t say it was wrong to do them. He gently pointed out that Martha’s chores were distracting her from the best thing: Himself. In the same way, the Lord does not ask us to eliminate earthly tasks from our lives. In fact, many things we do day-to-day are important and admirable, just like Martha’s commitment to hospitality. But we must be able to discern what is good from what is best – and when we’ve allowed something else to take Jesus’ place on the throne. Remember, our relationship with Him is the most valuable thing we have.

Resetting the priorities of our heart is not a one-time thing. Ask the Holy Spirit what may be distracting you from Jesus.

Jeff