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When Jesus was visiting Martha & Mary, Martha was all in a hustle - worried about serving well. She was controlling the food, distracted by what she was doing, and trying to be a good host.

Here’s what the passage says:

“While they were traveling, He entered a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who also sat at the Lord’s feet and was listening to what He said. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks, and she came up and asked, ‘Lord, don’t You care that my sister has left me to serve alone? So tell her to give me a hand.’ The Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried about and upset about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has made the right choice, and it will not be taken away from her.’” Luke 10:38-42

Martha was doing all the right things - she invited Jesus into her home, was probably preparing food and working hard to serve the Lord, but it wasn’t enough??

Quite the contrary, she was doing too much. She was focused on all the little things and missing out on the one big important thing.

“One thing is necessary.”

Mary was chilling. Not helping, not serving, not striving to please. She was just sitting there. 

That has to be frustrating coming from Martha’s perspective, but what does Jesus say?

“Mary has made the right choice, and it will not be taken away from her.”

What Mary was doing is very countercultural to the fast-paced, efficiency-focused, Western U.S. world - “Mary… sat at the Lord’s feet and was listening to what He said.”

She sat & listened.

When was the last time you did that?

Not sat and watched a show, not sat and scrolled through social media, not sat and listened to music.

When was the last time you sat and earnestly listened for the sound of His voice?

Martha was too preoccupied to enjoy His presence.

Mary was at peace in His presence.

Are you preoccupied with everything around you?

Or are you at peace in His presence?

Philippians 4:6-7 “Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

When we hear His voice, all the other voices - the news, TikTok, your own negative thoughts - get drowned out.

As my favorite hymn goes “and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.”

We must turn our focus away from all the little distracting tasks and remember the one most important thing: Him.

John 10 tells us that Jesus is our shepherd and His sheep hear His voice. “He calls His own sheep by name and leads them out… The sheep follow Him because they know His voice” (John 10:3-4).

Matthew 6:25-34 is a great passage that I continually turn to when I am worried. We do not need to worry about our bodies, clothes, food, the future. God is in control. He’s a good God. He is faithful. We do not need to worry about these other things.

“Therefore we do not give up. Even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day. For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

“One thing is necessary.” What have you chosen?