Even the Best Laid Plans

I am the queen of plans. I have plans for everything. I have mentioned before that I am a list-maker and a scheduler if there ever was one. Several months ago I had the grand idea to keep a spiral notebook to contain all of my lists and plans rather than having them scattered about. I have already been through two of these notebooks since then!

All too often even my best laid plans go undone. This has been a reoccurring theme in my life that has once again been brought to my attention. Most recently, I was all excited about the advent season and what I could do to direct my heart towards remembering our Lord Jesus being born into this world. I had several ideas, for myself, and some that could even be appropriate for Micaiah. Last night as I was getting ready for bed, I thought how we are already several days into December, halfway to Christmas, well into the advent season, and I hadn’t even put the first thought into anything concerning the coming of our Savior. I have been busy…and distracted.

I am such a Martha. In the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10, Martha was the one who was "distracted with much serving" (v. 40) and "worried and troubled about many things" (v. 42). Jesus came to her house in Bethany and she was busy doing all sorts of tasks in the kitchen. There is much to do, especially when such an important visitor stops by! Oh, how I can identify with her! There’s always much to do. My alarm goes off in the morning to begin my quiet time and oftentimes before even opening my Bible, I might see the cloth inserts that need to be stuffed into Micaiah’s diapers before he wakes up. While getting the diapers ready for the day, I see clothes on the floor and have to pick them up. Which then reminds me that laundry is on my list for the day, so I go ahead and separate the piles. After doing that I turn to see the bathroom mirror and realize I didn’t clean it the day before like I had wanted, so I reason that I will take just 10 seconds and clean it. In no time at all, my quiet time has been cut short. So Martha. Whereas "doing" is certainly not wrong, it is not the most important thing.

Mary, on the other hand, positioned herself at the feet of Jesus. Right smack dab in front of him. The Teacher came by, and she wanted to soak up every morsel of truth that she could. Martha did not approve of Mary’s choice. "And she went up to him and said, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.’" (Luke 10:40) Tattle-tale. (Also so me; I have a tendency towards justice!) Jesus gently and lovingly rebukes her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her" (v. 42).

The word "portion" in the Greek means "meal." The meal that Mary chose to eat is the better meal. A meal that will never be taken from her. Not in all of eternity. You can’t take truth away when it’s already been ingested. Martha’s meal will be eaten in just a few short minutes and digested several hours later, only to need to be followed up with another meal.

Certainly there are preparations that need to be done. Tasks and to-do lists are part and parcel of running a household. People need to eat. Especially when guests come! It’s finding a balance between the Martha and the Mary that proves to be a challenge for me. I know there’s a place for Martha in my life, but the most important thing, the better part, the good meal, is what Mary chose. Sitting at the feet of Elohim, our Creator God. Learning more about Him, His ways, and how I and my family fit into His plans.

"The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul." says Psalm 19:7. I need to lose some of the distractions so that my soul can be revived. Because I certainly need reviving. Mary chose the good portion. She positioned herself at Jesus’ feet on purpose. We should all follow in her footsteps and do the same. I can choose to say no to certain distractions that bide for my attention. I can choose to have a plan for my quiet time so that I will not be tempted to sit aimlessly with my Bible open and be further distracted by other thoughts. I can’t afford to wait for things to settle down before I decide to listen. This is life. I have to choose to listen now, in the midst of it.

So we’re not quite to Christmas yet. How about beginning to prepare my heart for Christmas when we’re already halfway there? Better late than never, right?