Week 2
Jesus entered a village, and a woman named Martha received him into her house. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at Jesus’ feet and heard his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she came up to him, and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister left me to serve alone? Ask her to help me.”
Jesus answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is needed. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.” —Luke 10:38–42
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” —Matt 6:33
Before we were born again, we lived as if we were the ones in control. We decided what to do and when to do it. Much of our sense of busyness comes from this posture. We take on more than we were ever meant to carry. We complicate our lives, crowd our schedules, and slowly squeeze out space for genuine intimacy with Jesus. We may say he is our highest priority, but our cluttered minds and hurried calendars often tell a different story.
After we are born again, we must learn an entirely different way of living: a life of deep dependence on God. If we truly believe that life is found in him, we must intentionally come to him—not merely to analyze Scripture, but to know the Person from whom it comes. Like Mary at Jesus’ feet, we choose presence before productivity.
As we do, we learn to trust that God himself, through the Holy Spirit and in daily communion with him, will order our steps. And we discover something quietly freeing: there is time to do what he asks us to do. But only time for what he asks us to do. When we seek first the kingdom, our lives are simplified, not by doing less for its own sake, but by doing what matters most.
Reflection Questions
Who drives your agenda—you or Jesus?
Is modern technology (e.g., smartphones, email, social media, etc.) a help or hindrance to your time? What changes might you make to become more effective or efficient?
Review your past twenty-four hours. Record how you spent large amounts of your time (or how small amounts of your time added up).
Lord, what are you teaching me in today’s reading?
Lord, what else have you said to me through thoughts, circumstances, conversations, emotions, or the work of the enemy?
Lord, what do you want me to do: At home? At work? In ministry?