Present in the Moment
“The Lord said to her in reply,
‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing.
Mary has chosen the better part
and it will not be taken from her.’”Luke 10:41-42
Have you ever had the experience of preparing for a very important occasion, whether it be for a big event or for a visit by a special guest? Imagine someone who you look up to and who you greatly respect is coming for dinner. You are exited and nervous at the same time. You want everything to be perfect, from the way the utensils are placed to the taste of the meal. As the big day approaches you ask a few of your closest friends and family members to join you for that special evening. The day is finally here. Your family and friends are here, you have the chicken in the oven, and you are going around the house making some last minute changes to the decor. The door bell rings. You freeze for a second. You tell everyone to stop and that the guest of honor is here. You go to the door, turn the knob, and open the door. Your role model is standing before you. The two of you share a warm embrace, and you welcome him inside your house.
Upon entering the house, you introduce him to everyone present, invite him to take a seat in the living room, and offer him a drink. Then you go back into the kitchen to get ready to serve dinner. Although you are glad that all of the invited family and friends are entertaining your guest, you would appreciate some help to execute this big dinner. No one is helping with pouring water into the glasses, bringing out the warm rolls, putting the main dishes on the table, doing some minor cleanup and touch ups. You begin to feel more overwhelmed than you already are. You go to the living room and are visibly distraught and overwhelmed. You make a passive aggressive remark, “Can at least someone help me out here?” The room grows silent. Your guest of honor, your role model tells you, “It is okay. Relax. They are helping by keeping me company.” And then the conversations resume. What do you do? How do you feel?
When Martha and Mary hosted Jesus in their home, Martha was busy getting the house ready and the meal prepared, while Mary was at Jesus’ side listening to Him and talking with Him. Martha famously asked Jesus, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving?” to which Jesus answered, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.” I don’t know about you, but I would be a bit disappointed and upset that Jesus did not suggest to Mary that helping me might be appreciated. But of course Jesus was not saying that Mary did not need to help; He was teaching Martha a deeper lesson. He was teaching her to be present in the moment.
What was most important that day? Having everything be picture perfect or being with Jesus? Yes, work must be done and dinner must be made, but we can never lose sight of the original “why” of what we are doing and the “for whom.” Jesus was trying to teach Martha that what is most important was the relationship amongst people. If there is no relationship, why would the other things matter and what meaning would they have? To be present to the people in our lives is more important than anything else we can do. Do we spend more time doing things for our loved ones or do we spend more time actually being with them?
Our Lord challenges us to think about our lives and the priorities we have set. What do they look like? Where does our relationship with Him stand? Where are our other relationships in the list? May we use the limited time we have here on earth to be with those whom we love. And all of our relationships must be rooted in and reflect our relationship with God. It all starts with prayer. To pray is the be present in the moment with God, and by doing so, we can come to learn how to be present to others.
