...but one thing is needful. -- Luke 10:42
Martha was encumbered with many things -- cleaning, cooking, sweeping, serving. She was in a dither. While she was sweating all the things needing to be done, she had not only Jesus sitting there in her midst, but her lazy sister, Mary, was sitting right there beside him soaking up all he had to say. Jesus said, "...one thing is needful: for Mary has chosen the good part." When we get so wrapped up in our service that we fail to notice that Jesus is the reason we do that service, it is time for a timeout. Many churches do a lot of good in their communities. Many members push their churches to do more. When service comes ahead of worship, or when service comes before connecting in some overt way with Jesus then we have our priorities mixed up. Service is a necessary component of any strong faith, but it can never replace the contemplative, searching time for hearing the words and feeling the presence of God. If you feel like the total purpose of the church is to serve the poor and needy, then people have forgotten the needful thing - the good part, the time with Christ. Without that spiritual food and sustenance, those serving burnout, and may even get irritable. The needs of the poor will be with us always Jesus said, but what we are all in need of is the time with Him. Set aside a time for some kind of prayer/meditation at least once a day.
Prayer:
Help us, O God, to pull up a seat near to our Savior and rest for a bit in his presence and grace-filled words. In His Name we pray. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment