Making Time For God

As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem they came to a village where a woman named Martha welcomed them into her home. Her sister Mary sat on the floor, listening to Jesus as he talked.

But Martha was the jittery type, and was worrying over the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, "Sir, 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."

But the Lord said to her, "Martha, dear friend, you are so upset over all these detailed! There is really only one thinh worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it - and I won't take it away from her!" Luke 10:38-42 (TLB)

John D. Bown, from Minnesota, has been doing early morning devotions using The Upper Room for over 35 years. He is now retired, but he remembers that when he was working there were mronings when his mind was preoccupied with work and family responsibilities. Sometimes John felt he had so much to do that he shortened his devotion time so he could move on to that day's activities. In hindsight, John can see that he was putting other priorities ahead of spending time with the Lord.

We see several examples of this in the Bible. One story is in Luke 9:57-62, where two men said they would follow Jesus, but only after they had attended to other tasks. Another example is from today's Bible reading. When Jesus arrived to visit Martha and Mary, Martha was too distracted and busy to spend time with the Lord. When she complained about Mary sitting and listening to Jesus, he gently rebuked her. Martha let little things get in the way of big things. John can relate because he has done the same. So have most of us reading this.

As John now reflects back, he can see that the days when he was "too busy" were exactly the days he should have been spending more time in prayer, not less. Out goal is not to fit Jesus into a busy schedule; it's to make him the focus of our life.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we know that sometimes we get too caught up in the daily activities of life. Help us always to focus on you, in Jesus' name. Amen.