Distracted from Awe

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Familiar Story…New Revelation

Many of us are familiar with the story of Mary and Martha found in the Gospel of Luke 10:38-42 and find ourselves identifying with one or the other.

I have lived most of my adult life living like Martha, using my hands and feet serving those in need and sometimes complaining about the Mary’s who just sit around talking to people and not working to serve their needs.

I’ll post the passage so you don’t have to go grab your Bible or open another window on your device.

Luke 10:38-42 (CSB)

³⁸ While they were traveling, he entered a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. ³⁹ She had a sister named Mary, who also sat at the Lord’s feet and was listening to what he said.⁴⁰ 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.”

⁴¹ The Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, ⁴² but one thing is necessary. Mary has made the right choice, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Invited Guests

The passage says that Martha welcomed (or invited) Jesus and His disciples into her home while they were traveling. Her sister Mary is hanging out with Jesus and the disciples while Martha is upset she is doing all the work in preparation for dinner. You can almost hear the dishes crashing and clanging against each other just to get her point made to her sister.  Finally, Martha had enough and decided she wanted to do something about it. Martha thinks to herself, Jesus will make her help me. She approaches Jesus to complain about her sister not helping her prepare dinner. She says, “Don’t you care? Tell her to help me.” Jesus rebukes Martha.

Jesus’ response is what convicted me…

You are so busy with the work you are doing in preparation for me and the work that I want to do through you, that you are missing the most important thing…Me.

Let that sink in.

Rock, Pebbles, Sand

It’s like Jesus said to Martha, “Why are you putting the pebbles and sand in your life before you put the rock? That’s not the way it works. When you put me, the rock in first, then add the pebbles and sand, every aspect of life works the way it was designed.” (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, here is a link to show you this principle).

Miracle and Prediction Chapter 9

Martha and Mary both sought to serve Jesus, but Martha was distracted by many things and missed out on sitting in awe of Jesus’ presence. Martha still didn’t get it. Martha’s service to Jesus was not the problem, it was the attitude of her heart. She believed, but she did not trust God to provide. Not many verses before this story Jesus performed a miracle in feeding thousands of people out of a kids Hebrew Happy Meal in the very chapter he predicted his death. How quickly she forgot. How quickly we forget.

Many, like myself, get so caught up in the things that we are doing for God that we become blind to what He is doing around us.

C.S. Lewis explains it this way in his book, Screwtape Letters, “We have become enslaved to the pressures of the ordinary.”

Spiritually Anemic vs. Spiritually Filled

Martha is representing a spiritually anemic believer. What do I mean by that? She is working for the Lord on her own merits and not allowing Jesus, her Sabbath (Hebrews 4) to fill her soul and give her rest. She has decided to take matters into her own hands.

Mary represents the spiritually filled believer. She is in awe of Jesus’ presence and allows Him to be her Sabbath and restore her soul.

Out of the Overflow

My encouragement to my self and also to you is that real ministry comes out of the overflow of our hearts and it is necessary to do and remain active in the advancement of the gospel, but there is an element of being present, sitting in awe, reflecting on how God has provided time and time again. We have to do both.

Our attitude in how we serve others reflects our heart. It also reveals how much we trust God. Our awe of Jesus must take priority over things that distract us from his beauty. Jesus is ready to restore our souls if we only sit in awe.