Women's Devo | March 2022
Choosing Wisely
Luke chapter 10:38-42 tells of two sisters, Mary and Martha. Jesus and His disciples came to a village where Mary and Martha opened their home for a meal and rest. After Jesus entered the house, he began to share with His disciples. Mary also sat to soak in what the Lord was saying. Martha was busy preparing for the meal. After realizing that Mary was not helping with the preparations and work, Martha became annoyed. Seeing that Mary was not doing her part, Martha was so distraught that she spoke to Jesus about the issue. Martha asked Jesus to address Mary and instruct her to help with the work. Jesus told Martha that she was worried about the wrong things and Mary had made the right choice.
In Mary and Martha's day, women did not typically work outside the home. They carried the bulk of the load concerning the household. The women were expected to take care of the everyday things, including the meals, making the home comfortable, and ensuring everything ran smoothly. Martha was only following the example her culture had set for her. While Mary also knew the customs of her culture, she had realized that something more significant than tradition was right in front of her.
I know most of you have it together. Still, in my role as a pastor's wife, I often find myself in the same situation as Martha while doing the daily things that my life requires. You know, cooking, cleaning, picking up all those things that get out of place, those things that no one can explain how they got there in the first place. Then there is running many errands for lots of people, washing mounds of clothes, and this is just the beginning of my household list of things to do. Next is the family list. Mom can you ________ (you fill in the blank)? And you always say, “yes” because you love them so much.
And then follows your extended family's list. You know, making sure you remember birthdays special occasions and making time to visit and spend time together. Then we have the ministry list, making sure you attend the things on the church calendar and do your part to make them happen. Make visits, texts, or phone calls to check on the sick, the hurting, or to say, “I love you”; doing extra things for others that God lays on your heart. Serving those God has entrusted to you with your whole heart. These things are essential. But boy, does it make for a Martha kind of exhaustion if you are not serving properly! Serving without sitting is draining. Not just a physical tired, but spiritual as well.
I envision Martha running down the checklist after Jesus arrived, asking herself, "Do I have enough wood to cook with?" "Is there enough oil to fry the cornbread? Does the basin have enough water? Is the towel clean enough to dry Jesus's feet?" I imagine that Martha was dealing with a lot of stress and complete tiredness when she saw Mary sitting. The Savior of the world was sitting in their living room, and Mary did not care enough to help her make His visit perfect. At times I, like Martha, have had such tunnel vision to get the tasks done that I fail to see the most important thing right in front of my face. I am even embarrassed to say that I have been so busy serving the church that I didn't realize that I was not serving Jesus adequately. And to be quite honest, it was wearing to work in this manner. After checking off all the boxes from "the lists," it was not enough. I still felt like something was unfinished.
After a time of prayer, Jesus reminded me He does not care as much about our schedule as He does about our relationship with Him. He wants us to draw close to Him, sit at His feet, and listen to His voice; this feeds our souls and energizes us to meet the needs of the calling that we have. We often spend so much time nourishing others that we have nothing left to feed ourselves. We have not realized we have depleted our reservoirs and need to replenish. In John 21:17, Jesus said, "Feed My sheep." Feeding sheep is part of our calling, but we must also provide for ourselves.
I began to comprehend that Spiritual exhaustion is not a sign of sin but of serving with my priorities out of order. Isaiah 40:31 tells us that if we wait upon the Lord, He will renew our strength. “To wait for” means “to look for.” I wasn't looking for Him when I needed to be. I was supposed to be at His feet, worshipping Him and listening to His voice. I repented. And I began to again include quiet time to sit at His feet, quiet time to enjoy His word and quiet time to listen to His voice drawing me near. And you know what? I heard His voice more clearly. It was with the same loving tone that He had always used. He was not angry, nor did He fail to come when I called. After all, He is my Heavenly Father, and he only longed for our relationship to strengthen, and that is precisely what I wanted and exactly what I needed. My stress level began to drop, and the exhaustion soon became replaced by a peace that only comes from sitting at the Master's feet soaking in nutrients. Today, I work hard at continuing to keep my priorities in perspective: my relationship with God, my marriage, my family, my church family, and then other things. I love serving those God has placed in my life and count it an honor to do so. Yet, while serving, I am becoming a Mary, learning to stop and sit awhile. After all, Mary chose wisely.
In Mary and Martha's day, women did not typically work outside the home. They carried the bulk of the load concerning the household. The women were expected to take care of the everyday things, including the meals, making the home comfortable, and ensuring everything ran smoothly. Martha was only following the example her culture had set for her. While Mary also knew the customs of her culture, she had realized that something more significant than tradition was right in front of her.
I know most of you have it together. Still, in my role as a pastor's wife, I often find myself in the same situation as Martha while doing the daily things that my life requires. You know, cooking, cleaning, picking up all those things that get out of place, those things that no one can explain how they got there in the first place. Then there is running many errands for lots of people, washing mounds of clothes, and this is just the beginning of my household list of things to do. Next is the family list. Mom can you ________ (you fill in the blank)? And you always say, “yes” because you love them so much.
And then follows your extended family's list. You know, making sure you remember birthdays special occasions and making time to visit and spend time together. Then we have the ministry list, making sure you attend the things on the church calendar and do your part to make them happen. Make visits, texts, or phone calls to check on the sick, the hurting, or to say, “I love you”; doing extra things for others that God lays on your heart. Serving those God has entrusted to you with your whole heart. These things are essential. But boy, does it make for a Martha kind of exhaustion if you are not serving properly! Serving without sitting is draining. Not just a physical tired, but spiritual as well.
I envision Martha running down the checklist after Jesus arrived, asking herself, "Do I have enough wood to cook with?" "Is there enough oil to fry the cornbread? Does the basin have enough water? Is the towel clean enough to dry Jesus's feet?" I imagine that Martha was dealing with a lot of stress and complete tiredness when she saw Mary sitting. The Savior of the world was sitting in their living room, and Mary did not care enough to help her make His visit perfect. At times I, like Martha, have had such tunnel vision to get the tasks done that I fail to see the most important thing right in front of my face. I am even embarrassed to say that I have been so busy serving the church that I didn't realize that I was not serving Jesus adequately. And to be quite honest, it was wearing to work in this manner. After checking off all the boxes from "the lists," it was not enough. I still felt like something was unfinished.
After a time of prayer, Jesus reminded me He does not care as much about our schedule as He does about our relationship with Him. He wants us to draw close to Him, sit at His feet, and listen to His voice; this feeds our souls and energizes us to meet the needs of the calling that we have. We often spend so much time nourishing others that we have nothing left to feed ourselves. We have not realized we have depleted our reservoirs and need to replenish. In John 21:17, Jesus said, "Feed My sheep." Feeding sheep is part of our calling, but we must also provide for ourselves.
I began to comprehend that Spiritual exhaustion is not a sign of sin but of serving with my priorities out of order. Isaiah 40:31 tells us that if we wait upon the Lord, He will renew our strength. “To wait for” means “to look for.” I wasn't looking for Him when I needed to be. I was supposed to be at His feet, worshipping Him and listening to His voice. I repented. And I began to again include quiet time to sit at His feet, quiet time to enjoy His word and quiet time to listen to His voice drawing me near. And you know what? I heard His voice more clearly. It was with the same loving tone that He had always used. He was not angry, nor did He fail to come when I called. After all, He is my Heavenly Father, and he only longed for our relationship to strengthen, and that is precisely what I wanted and exactly what I needed. My stress level began to drop, and the exhaustion soon became replaced by a peace that only comes from sitting at the Master's feet soaking in nutrients. Today, I work hard at continuing to keep my priorities in perspective: my relationship with God, my marriage, my family, my church family, and then other things. I love serving those God has placed in my life and count it an honor to do so. Yet, while serving, I am becoming a Mary, learning to stop and sit awhile. After all, Mary chose wisely.
Janet Hatten serves alongside her husband, Scott, as Senior Pastors of Jesup Church of God in Jesup, Georgia. They have been in full time ministry for 23 years and married for 31 years. They have two adult children and three beautiful grandchildren. Justin and his wife Amelia, have a son Jett, age 1. Katie and her husband Joseph have two children, Adeline, age 4 and Jaxx, 3 months. Janet is actively involved in the Women’s Ministries at Jesup Church of God and leads the HUGS Ministries for widows and widowers within the church. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her family and traveling and seeing new places.
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