Christmas is coming; don’t be distracted

Are you distracted by all the preparations that have to be made for Christmas? As exemplified by the Bible passage quoted below, we may not be giving the right attention or the correct priority to our activities as we prepare to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

^“38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. ³⁹ She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. ⁴⁰ But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” ⁴¹ “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, ⁴² but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”” (Luke 10:38-42 NIV, emphasis mine).

Consider the irony in the story. Jesus and his disciples were on their way to a certain place and they came to a village where Martha opened her home to them. This was not a pre-arranged visit; they were just passing through. There were no telephones for Jesus to have given advance notice of his visit. Imagine welcoming about thirteen people (Jesus and perhaps his 12 disciples) to your home without prior notice, planning or preparation. Martha must have been frantically trying to do all she could at the last-minute to entertain the most important visitors to enter her home.

Meanwhile, her sister Mary sat at Jesus’ feet listening to him. From Martha’s perspective, Mary was “chilling” or wasting time instead of doing something productive, such as helping to prepare the meals, drinks, and other activities to entertain Jesus and the disciples. Martha did what many of us would have done. She complained to Jesus and asked him to tell Mary to come and help her.

However, Jesus refused. Jesus expressed his concern about Martha worrying too much and pointed out that Mary had chosen the better approach and that he was not going to deny her that choice. Instead of praising Martha for her wonderful preparations and encouraging Mary to help her so that he and his disciples would be more comfortable, Jesus was displeased with Martha for attempting to use him to deprive Mary of the better choice she had made. In other words, all the hard work Martha was doing at that particular time to impress Jesus and make his visit comfortable was not as impressive to him as Mary’s choice of sitting at his feet and listening to him. Jesus might have been tired from the journey, but he ranked his teaching and listening session over his personal comfort.

This seems to go against our natural way of thinking in terms of the urgency of the circumstances. One would have thought that it was Mary who was distracted because she was idling about sitting and listening to Jesus instead of helping to entertain the visitors. And if Jesus had not been involved and we were to put this to a vote today – even among Christians – the majority of us would most likely side wrongly with Martha. One reason is that our thoughts or ways are not the Lord’s thoughts or ways (see Isaiah 55:8-9). Therefore, it is important that we seek to have the mindset of Christ and follow his lead (see Philippians 2:5).

Jesus knew the only thing that was needed – a focused, bonding relationship with our Lord and Savior that enabled Mary to listen and learn about his powerful and enduring words. It teaches us that the Word of God and the words of Jesus are paramount. That was why later in his ministry Jesus said that heaven and earth will pass away, but his words will never pass away (Mathew 24:35). For these reasons, the Word of God and the words of Jesus, whenever and wherever they are proclaimed, must be given the highest priority. The unique opportunity Mary had to listen directly to the words of Jesus was so important that Jesus was not going to take it away from her, even if it displeased Martha. It is not how busy we are, or how good our deeds are, but how pleasing our deeds are to the Lord.

My friends, time spent sitting and listening at the feet of Jesus is not wasted. Time spent reading and studying the Bible, worshipping the Lord, seeking His face, and listening to Spirit-inspired Sermons in Church, is not wasted. It is time well-spent.

It is that time of the year. Many of us are busy running up and down doing things in preparation for Christmas. Christmas is about Jesus Christ. We need to pause a little and consider how much of what we are doing is pleasing to Jesus whose birthday we are preparing to celebrate. Are we doing things at the expense of spending time at the feet of Jesus and listening to him?

Let’s not be distracted as Martha was, even though she thought she was busy for the Lord. We should not let our good intentions and good deeds distract us from Jesus. What matters are things that please Jesus, our Savior and Judge. Jesus should be the center of our attention. When we devote our attention to other people and things and away from Jesus, we are being distracted. It does not matter how good our intentions may be. We need to reprioritize and refocus our attention on Jesus.

Christmas is coming and Christ is seeking all those who will invite him to their homes and hearts for the celebration. Jesus was born for all people, lived for all people, died for all people, and rose from the dead for all people. Martha thought that the Savior of the world and Great Provider who could give living water (John 4:10), turn water into wine (John 2:7-9), and feed multitudes with five loaves of bread and two fish (John 6:11), was only in her home to receive refreshments and rest from his journey, but Jesus was also there to give them something more important – divine words of salvation. Anything apart from that was a distraction. Therefore, if you want to have the best Christmas, don’t be distracted about what to buy or wear or eat or give or where to go. Instead, focus on Jesus Christ. Draw as close to him as possible. Sit at the feet of Jesus and listen attentively to his wonderful words of salvation. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Prayer is the key. May God grant us the grace to seek Him daily through our prayers.

Dr. Daniel Gyebi, Attorney-at-Law, Texas, U.S.A., and Founder, PrayerHouse Ministry, Kumasi, Ghana.

PrayerHouse Ministry is dedicated to providing a quiet facility for Christians to pray individually by themselves without any intermediary priest, pastor or any other person. This is a free service. No money is demanded or accepted. One facility is located at Kyerekrom / Fumesua, near Building and Road Research Institute Offices, one mile off the Kumasi-Accra Road and next to a house called Grace Castle. If you are interested, please contact Agnes at 054-7498653. Another is located at Kantinkyiren, at the junction of Kantinkyiren and Konkori, off the Kumasi-Obuasi Road, branching left at Trede junction. Contact Kwadwo at 020-8768461 / 0246-989413.