The busy season.

We are currently going through a series entitled Life’s Seasons. In it we are exploring how God equips us to navigate each one of these four seasons of life: the dry season, the waiting season, the busy season, and the celebrating season. 

This week we’re taking a closer look at the busy season. Our text is Luke 10:38-42. Here we find the familiar story of Mary and Martha. If possible, try to look at this account with fresh eyes and maybe even a new question or two. Is being busy wrong? Should I simply sit on the couch for hours on end and never attend to my family’s needs or the work I have to do? You might have a few questions of your own to address as we look to this familiar and even challenging text.

I also want to stress that being busy is not a sin. In fact Luke records the parable of the Good Samaritan; Jesus had just made a beautiful argument for the idea of doing something (being busy) so that others are benefited by your activity and care.

Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37 He (the lawyer) said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”// Luke 10:36-37

Jesus is clearly telling us to be busy doing Kingdom work for the sake of anyone who qualifies as our neighbor. Ok, then what is happening in this text?

The more I have opportunities to read this text and hear others speak about it, I’m seeing insights that my juvenile ears must have easily missed. So allow me to share three things that make Martha’s “busyness” an issue: distracted, worried, and agitated.

DISTRACTED

But Martha was distracted with much serving. // Luke 10:40 

Martha was distracted with a huge list of things to do. The word used paints a picture of a rapid and spastic bouncing off the walls or running in circles because the list of things to do is so expansive. My initial thought is that it would be helpful for Mary to jump in. Let’s see.

Work easily piles up; work is necessary and work is also given to us as a gift. But when work becomes an inexhaustible list, we might assume that everything on that list of tasks is of ultimate importance. Jesus points us away from trying to complete all the tasks to only completing those which are absolutely necessary and for which he has prepared us in Christ: for good works (Ephesians 2:10). There is nothing wrong with work and being busy. There are plenty of Scriptures which point to keeping busy as a noble thing. 

The issue then, is focused work. Now I’m feeling guilty; I love a good distraction.

WORRIED

But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are [worried]. // Luke 10:41

To be worried, according to this definition, is to be torn apart and divided by too many tasks. This, again, seems to hint that being busy is bad; but the point is more that we are to be busy within the limitations that God gives us. In other words, none of us can be in two places at once. We are limited. We do not have a finite ability to complete numerous tasks. Operating as a believer in this world means that we find out what capacity God has geared us for and then operate in that capacity. The alternative pulls us in numerous directions without the ability to complete the necessary tasks.

AGITATED

But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and [agitated] about many things, // Luke 10: 41

In this word we have the makings of an explosion. The person has become so distracted and worried that there is an eruption of violent and noisy words. Am I muttering angrily as I complete the laundry or wash the last stack of dishes? Will my busy life create a sense of purpose or a sense of frustration? Am I completing tasks with joy or with expletives? 

I do not mean to belittle any one of us as we discover one or two or even three of these “busy” signs in our own work ethic. The purpose of this note is awareness and repentance rather than browbeating. Since we know that God already loves and approves of us, his reason for raising our attention in the words of Luke 10 is so that our 21st century busy world is offered a better solution. He is not trying to pummel us into submission but to offer us a better path forward. Agitation becomes, then, a signal light on the dashboard of our life. Is the engine overheated? Am I operating with enough oil in the engine oil pan? Smooth running is the goal. 

Jesus offers Mary for an example of the one completely necessary duty: sitting at the feet of Jesus. This means we are to have the stance of a student. We will ask Jesus what is it that he has for us to do. Does Jesus want us to feed the poor, or listen to the lonely, or call on the sick, or pray with those who have lost a loved one? There is business to be done. Mary chose to be busy with letting Jesus lead her to the next activity in life.

May God bless each and every one of you as you keep busy while sitting as a student, with Jesus as your Teacher. Peace to you all.

Pastor Al