Luke 10:38-42 -- On Letting Go and Choosing God

"Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.
And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus’ feet, and heard his word.
But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me.
And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:
But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her."
Luke 10:38-42


This story has a lot of meaning in it I think. On the surface, if we are also perhaps focused on the wrong things, it seems to be Christ advocating slacking off on work in order to hang out with friends.

And perhaps in one way, Christ is advocating that, sometimes. The story is about priorities and doing what is important... knowing what we can let go from our busy lives in order to fit in better things, or the most important things.

I know that I, like many, have problems with juggling priorities, wanting to hold on to everything and accomplish everything. But here God is helping us to understand that there isn't time for everything, and God supports making the choice to put our time with God and the gospel first.

I'm not saying we should quit our jobs or stop feeding our families, but I am saying that as we put God first, things that we may have thought were very important before might take a back seat, or even drop off our plates entirely, and that is okay. We cannot keep all of those balls in the air, so let's go ahead and choose some to let go of. And often it is our relationships, with God and with other people, that are worth taking some time from other responsibilities and burdens to pursue. Not dumping everything in the dust, but prioritizing better, and using the time that we have more wisely.

Today, whether we feel more kinship with Mary or Martha, let's remember Christ's words and take advantage of the time that we have to listen to and learn from him. If something else doesn't get done, so be it, as long as we are partnering with God and choosing wisely. :)