Wednesday, March 22, 2023

Imagine for a moment that Jesus was coming to your home for dinner. How would you prepare? I’d want to clean the house, plan the perfect meal, pull out the china, polish the silver, and set a beautiful table. It would be so easy to get overwhelmed doing everything perfectly, I might miss the most important part: abiding in Jesus.

To abide in Jesus is to have a life-giving connection to him. We abide in Jesus by spending time in his presence.

Let's focus on Luke 10:38-42, the story of Mary and Martha. Notice how differently the two sisters behaved when Jesus visited their home.

Put yourself in Martha's place. She was thrilled to make dinner for her Lord. She wanted everything to be perfect. She became so consumed with her to-do list that she didn’t have time to greet Jesus when he arrived.

It’s so easy for me to imagine Martha in the kitchen, rushing around. She was probably yelling, “Mary, did you finish the potatoes? Where are you, Mary?” The indignation was likely building up—why wasn’t Mary helping? (Was that her laughing?) I see Martha throwing her pot holder down on the counter and storming into the sitting room to investigate.

That’s when Martha finds Mary sitting at Jesus' feet. She thinks, “How dare she—I’ll fix her! I’m going to tell Jesus, and surely, he will reprimand her.”

Luke 10:40
But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.

Now let’s picture Mary. She’s in the kitchen peeling potatoes, thinking to herself: “My sister is all worked up, running around frantically and barking out orders to everyone. I wish she would calm down.” Mary hears someone at the door, so she goes to answer. It’s Jesus, and she is overwhelmed with happiness. She stops for a minute and glances into the kitchen. Should I finish peeling the potatoes, or should I go listen to Jesus? She looks right into Jesus’ eyes and feels his love and adoration. She can’t help but follow him in the room, sit at his feet, and listen. She’s filled with joy. She is spending time with her Savior.

Both sisters loved and adored Jesus. One was focusing on all that needed to be done, and the other was sitting quietly at Jesus’ feet.

Jesus gently and lovingly pointed out to Martha what was most important.

Luke 10:41-42
⁴¹ But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! ⁴² There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Questions:
Which sister are you most like? How so? How can you abide in Jesus? Do you focus more on the problems of this world or Jesus?

Next Steps:
Set a goal to spend 10 minutes a day abiding in Jesus.

Join a Group or attend GrowthTrack.

Prayer:
Jesus, sometimes I can be so much like Martha and lose sight of what is really important. Help me to focus and abide in you at all times. Please take away my need to control and perfect the situation. Help me surrender all my worries and cares to you. I am humbled that my Savior delights in me and wants to spend time with me. I know when I abide in you, I will be filled with your peace and joy. I praise you for being such an awesome Savior. Amen