The Tyranny Of The Urgent
Have you ever been distracted; had so much vying for your attention that you couldn’t seem to see clearly what order of priority your tasks should be placed in? When everything is on fire where do you aim the firehose first? It can be very frustrating at best to step back and take a deep breath so you can think clearly.
We’ve all been there. So much to do so little time. As a mom, I had to learn to juggle work, kids, husband and everything else that was on my plate and stay sane. Those were trying days and I didn’t always get it right. None of us do. Hindsight being 20/20, we could all look back and feel that today we may have placed different priorities on some of the things that we did then. #selah
I was reading in Luke about Mary and Martha. Luke 10:38-42 “As Jesus and the disciples continued on their journey, they came to a village where a woman welcomed Jesus into her home. Her name was Martha, and she had a sister named Mary. Mary sat down attentively before the Master, absorbing every revelation he shared. 40 But Martha became exasperated (or distracted) by finishing the numerous household chores in preparation for her guests, so she interrupted Jesus and said, “Lord, don’t you think it’s unfair that my sister left me to do all the work by myself? You should tell her to get up and help me.”41 The Lord answered her, “Martha, my beloved Martha. Why are you upset and troubled, pulled away by all these many distractions? Are they really that important? 42 Mary has discovered the one thing most important by choosing to sit at my feet. She is undistracted, and I won’t take this privilege from her.”
With unexpected guests Martha felt it important to attend to the obvious need of feeding everyone. Which would seem like the thing to do, especially to people like me. My first response is to “help” in whatever way I can, “get er done” has been a driving force in my life for more years than I’d like to admit.
Mary however, recognized the immediate need to be sitting and absorbing what Jesus was teaching. Was Martha necessarily wrong in trying to get food prepared for this crowd? I don’t think so. It was a need in the moment also. So why does Jesus seem to scold her for not picking the most important thing?
In any given situation there are many things that “need” to get accomplished; a work deadline, dinner, getting the kids to bed, the laundry, Bible reading and devotion time…the list is endless. What makes one task more important than another if they all need to be addressed?
With our precious Father it is forever and always about our heart posture. It’s not always what we do but why we do it. We can read our Bible but do it as “obligation” and it is nothing more to God than us checking off something on our to-do list. Or we can read it with a motive of spending quality time with our Father and sitting at his feet in relationship.
I can totally understand Martha, I was a Martha for most of my life. It’s amazing how getting older can change your perspective. She saw a need and attempted to meet it, no harm in that. But what she failed to see was the need beyond the ternary of the urgent. Had she weighed both options she may have seen as Jesus put it “the ONE thing most important” sitting at his feet to absorb every revelation he shared.
There is a multiplicity of things we all need to do each and every day, and the squeaky wheel usually gets the grease first. The Word shows us a principle in tithing that applies here. If we give God the FIRST 10% of our income, then he multiplies the other 90% and it goes further than it would if we kept the 100% for ourselves. It’s the principle of sowing and reaping.
I see Mary choosing to put time with Jesus FIRST. This is the thing Satan fights us on the most. He knows if we don’t get this right, our time will be stolen away by the many demands of our day and we end up chasing our tails to get it all done. But…if we choose to put God first in our time, just like in tithing, we end up with enough time to get done what we need to.
Distraction means “an obstacle to attention.” What we give our attention to is the direction that we will go in. Placing our attention on tasks we need to accomplish will only end in being too distracted to have any time for God. But in putting him first, he can cause everything else to fall into place the way it should.
Prophetically I see in this season more than ever, time alone with Jesus must be our priority. It is critical for the days ahead. There is much he needs us to know and be ready for. Carving out that time for Him is paramount to be prepared for what is to come. God has been speaking this to me for two years…put me first. The question is will we do it?
Father now more than ever I see how important it is to spend quality time at your feet. Holy Spirit I’m asking you to help me do this, I can’t do it on my own. Give me the grace to prioritize my time, to choose you over tasks. Give me revelation as I read your Word, expand my understanding, enlarge my heart for more of you. In Jesus name.