Tuesday, July 24, 2012

The Most Important Thing


On my list for our trips to Colorado is always the desire to have a retreat day to one of my very favorite places ~ Glen Eyrie. My Dad makes this happen by watching my children for a day - thanks Dad!

As I drove on to the property, I was overwhelmed with God's goodness at sparing this amazing place. It was miraculously saved from the Waldo Canyon Fire - praise God!

The rest of this week, I'll be sharing things that emerged that day. I spent almost the first hour just sitting - not really thinking about anything, not doing anything, just. being. quiet. It is amazing how many different things you can hear when it is quiet - the drop of the water into the fountain, the chirp of the birds, the stirring of the breeze through the leaves, the skitter of the squirrel as he looks for something to nibble.


One passage I spent some time on that came to mind is this:

Luke 10:38-42,

"As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. 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!'


'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.'"


This is where my heart is camped out right now and the passage I think about when I lay down in bed at night. Is there something you're camped out on right now?

7 comments:

Ginger said...

Titus 2: God has led me to fast and pray for a friend's marriage. He struck me I am the "older woman" in Titus 2. I don't know how he is going to work that one out. And Philippians 2:13: "for it is God who is working in you, enabling you, both to will and to act for HIs good purpose."

Wendi said...

Great passage. I think sometimes it am too much of a Martha and miss out on the simple, meaningful moments. Something I will most likely always be working on.

Enjoy your day!

Julie said...

That fountain photo is stunning!

Valerie said...

Beautiful thoughts! It can be a challenge to remember that sometimes the best hospitality is actually spending time with our guests. I for one can be guilty of running around like a chicken w/o its head "trying" to make things just right for my guests rather than truly being present with them!

south girl in the west said...

Thank you for sharing this scripture. It is one of my favorites. As a mother of soon to be 4 boys i am always trying to keep the house "put together", perfect is not possible anymore. but i love the reminder while these things are important and needed, making sure we are filling ourselves and our families with "that better part" is the ulitmate of importance!

angie said...

So, do you think that Martha was viewing her work as taxing or an act of service? I agree that she should be at Jesus' feet, but she may have been more agreeable if she had prepared for his visit by creating beauty.
I am typing this with a bit of a smile on my face. I don't mean to make light of the scriptures. I just got a mental picture of Martha having a different perspective on the task at hand.
After reading The Harbinger, I am camped out on Isiah 9:10.

Mona said...

Hi. This passage has always been an important one to me, and one that continues to confuse me. After my father died, I tried to help my mom as much as possible by keeping her life as much the same as I could. I ended up cleaning for her, shopping, bills, errands,etc. When I asked my sister to help she always said "I've got my own family to take care of." So did I. But I so wanted my mom to be taken care of. I ended up doing most everything and began to resent my sister who would go over my mom's house rested and refreshed. I know that it was my choice to do these things for my mom but someone had to (she had had a brain tumor). My sister went to mass every week, where I felt I could barely handle life. I felt like I was living my faith by serving some one else. I still don't know what God would have thought in these circumstances. I feel sitting and praying is great, but there are still things in life to be taken care of and someone has to do it. I'd be interested to know what your feelings are on this subject, if this made any sense at all! Thank you. Your blog brings me peace. Mona