It’s not possible to write about distractions and how to break free from them without sharing the Bible’s poster gal of busyness herself, Martha.
We all know Martha from the Bible, don’t we? Yes, Martha might as well be my spiritual-sister of pain when it comes to hitting me right between the eyes more than any other woman in the Bible. She’s a beautiful example of spiritual truths I need to work on daily in my own life.
My name is Joanne, and I’m a Martha. I am an over-achiever do-do-do queen. I’m easily distracted by the mundane and microscopic. I volunteer for too much, am soon distracted by the overwhelming nature of the task, and within minutes I’m irritable over the unimportant and soon angry no one is helping me. Sound like a “Martha” to you?
When I took the time to study this Godly woman, I discovered there are only five teeny-tiny verses in the gospel of Luke that share her story, yet five verses pack a knock-out punch, don’t they? While teaching at a recent women’s conference, I shared how the Lord gave me another insight into Martha, and surprisingly, it wasn’t about her busyness.
Luke 10:38-42
Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. 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 serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.”
And Jesus answered and said to her, “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.”
We see Martha quite a few times throughout the gospels, much of the time she is serving. In the first part of Luke 38:40 But Martha was distracted with much serving… we see Martha is distracted.
We’ve already learned distracted means to be drawn away from or diverted. But, it got me thinking, not only is Martha busy, busy, busy, she is being taken away from the best part of her day, her time with Jesus.
Our time with the Lord is so very important. When Paul wrote his first letter to the Corinthians, he felt it important enough to share with them. And this I say for your own profit, not that I may put a leash on you, but for what is proper, and that you may serve the Lord without distraction. 1Corinthians 7:35
As much as I enjoy serving Him through women’s Bible studies, writing, and encouraging friends, I should ask the Lord every morning what my “better” choice for the day should be. Time with Him is a blessed opportunity. The more I spend time with Him, the more I want to spend time with Him.
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