Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.
Henry Van Dyke
My dove in the clefts of the rock, in the hiding places on the mountainside, show me your face, let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely.
(Song of Songs 2: 14)
Heavenly Father,
I am awestruck knowing that you desire to have an intimate relationship with me. You know my faults and my weaknesses. You see doubt and worry on my face and hear complaining and grumbling coming from my mouth. You know how often I fall and stumble on my walk of faith. I marvel that despite my faltering ways you still see my face as lovely and my voice as sweet.
You know the rhythm of my heart. You know my yearning to feel loved, cherished, and cared for in a world that so often feels unloving, lonely, and cold. How easy it is for me to give in to discouragement and depression and to listen to the lies of the enemy. Too often, I trade in a glorious encounter with you for a cheap substitute the world offers that only leaves me empty, discontent, and longing for more.
Yet there you are, wooing and luring me to come away with you. Above the symphony of all you created – the roaring thunder, the waves crashing along the seashore, the ocean breeze, and the melody of the birds, you still desire to hear my small voice calling out to you.
Thank you, Father, for loving me. You are always there. You are always faithful. I never have to compete for your affection or love. Your love quenches the deepest longing of my soul and is eternal.
“Martha, Martha, ” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her. (Luke 10: 41-42)
Only one thing is needed. What a comforting thought in a world filled with dozens of distractions. How much simpler life would be if we learned to focus on the one thing we need.
I’ve always enjoyed the story of Martha and Mary. It’s a much-needed reminder of what truly matters in life. Unfortunately, I’ve been more like Martha than Mary most of my life, especially when hosting holiday meals for my family. Like Martha, I have good intentions, but I always go overboard and prepare too much food and spend too much time trying to make everything perfect. More often than not, my good intentions lead to me feeling frazzled and irritable. By the time my family is leaving to go home, I feel like I didn’t have time to visit, because my focus was on serving the massive amounts of food I prepared and the clean up required. I miss out on what is most important, which is time with my family, and focus too much on the urgency of getting things ready.
Martha had great intentions. She opened her home up to Jesus and his disciples. She obviously had a servant’s heart and the gift of hospitality. However, she became so distracted with the meal preparation that she missed what was most important. When she saw her sister, Mary, sitting at the feet of Jesus, she grew resentful and irritable about having to do all the work by herself.
“But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” (Luke 10: 40)
A lot of women are like Martha, myself included. We take on more than we can manage. We get involved in too many activities. We say yes when we should say no. Our plates are already overflowing and we take on one more thing. We have great intentions, but we end up resentful and wonder why nobody is helping us. We are stressed out by the chaos we created. And we miss the one thing that is needed most- time with Jesus.
Overflowing schedules drain the life out of us, and trying to live up to unrealistic expectations robs us of peace. We can still entertain people in our homes and show hospitality without driving ourselves to the brink of exhaustion. A soup and sandwich lunch, shared with an elderly neighbor or widow from church, can be just as wonderful as a huge dinner.
Holiday meals can be simple. Not everything has to be homemade or elaborate. It’s the fellowship with others that matters most. What kind of Christian example are we setting for our guests if we become grouchy and irritable when we should be showing hospitality?
If your plate is running over and you’re feeling irritable and resentful, remember the words of Jesus – only one thing is needed. Use Mary’s example and sit at the feet of Jesus. Listen to what he is teaching you through his word. Seek him in prayer and ask him what things on your schedule are truly his will for this season of your life and what things need to go.
Seeking the one thing needed is the first step to finding peace and serenity in a loud and noisy world filled with distractions.
Be still and know that I am God. ( Psalm 46: 10)
Christians everywhere live with it, embrace it, and at times boast about it. Yet it is one of the most powerful weapons the enemy has in his arsenal, and we often aren’t aware of its presence. Busyness, if not eradicated from the believer’s life, will eventually destroy the abundant life that is found only in a healthy relationship with Christ.
Following the tragic events of 9/11, we became more concerned about terrorist attacks and weapons of mass destruction, which remain a threat to this day. However, while the need for homeland security is real and necessary, the spiritual battle facing Christians can destroy more than our physical bodies, homes, and possessions. It not taken seriously, and fought with valor, it can destroy our very souls. Busyness is one of Satan’s weapons of mass destruction in the lives of Christians, and we must be prepared to fight against it.
The trend of busyness seems to have reached epidemic proportions in the lives of believers today. Ask any Christian how they are and you are likely to get the same answer: Busy! Sadly, we sound like the rest of the world in this regard. We are stressed out, rushing from one activity to the next, running in circles, exhausted, and running on empty. We fall into bed worn out and jump up the next morning to start the cycle all over again. I once heard a pastor say that BUSY stands for Being Under Satan’s Yoke. I have to agree.
Unfortunately, we live in a society that values busyness. We boast about how many things we get done in a day or how many things we are involved in. It seems the more we have on our calendars the more affirmation we receive. We may look at others and ponder with amazement how they fit so many things into their daily schedule and envy them.
Satan uses the weapon of busyness to keep Christians from growing in their spiritual walk. Since Satan often works subtly, we fail to notice him. He keeps us distracted by all the things going on around us, hoping to render us unproductive and ineffective as believers in Christ. Busy lives lead to lives void of prayer and scripture reading. Lives void of prayer and scripture reading leads to immature faith that never grows or deepens.
Satan distorts our thinking, convincing us that everything is okay. When asked about our relationship with God, most Christians would proclaim, “God is first in my life!” However, when asked to share our daily schedules, we may find something totally different. Our true priorities can be determined by taking an honest look at our daily schedules. The things that fill our days speak volumes about what is number one in our hearts. We always make time for the things that are most important to us.
As I grow older, I care less about keeping up with the rat race. I’ve scaled back my commitments to outside activities drastically. I’ve chosen to concentrate on my relationship with God and writing for His glory. I feel this is my ministry in this season of life while I’m struggling with health issues and healing from the loss of my husband and father.
Rather than participating in a Bible study class, I’m reading scripture with my journal open and jotting down what God puts on my heart each day. Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m all for structured Bible study groups, and I’ve participated in many over the years and have gained wonderful benefits from them. But now is a different season for me. It’s a season to be still, slow down, and not worry about keeping up with the fast pace of life swirling around me.
Learning to be still before God each day is a wonderful thing. I feel free to soak up the treasures from God’s word without the distraction of a lesson to finish or a class to attend. There’s something pure and beautiful about intimacy with God and just sitting at his feet waiting to see what amazing things he wants to teach me.
Less truly is more. I’ve found the more I’ve cut back on outside things, the more complete my life feels. In light of eternity, it won’t matter how many clubs we belonged to or how many activities we were involved in. What will matter is our relationship with our Heavenly Father. Nothing is more important. Nothing matters more.
As Christians, our priorities should not look the same as the rest of the worlds. Time with God is a must and is not something to be taken lightly. Apart from God, we can do nothing.
Excessive busyness must be eradicated from our lives. Only them will we know the blessing of intimacy with our Savior. The abundant life He came to give us is waiting, and it won’t be found in the rat race. We need to slow down, be still, and seek first His kingdom rather than the distractions the world has to offer.