Have you ever had the thought “I don’t know my purpose in life” cross your mind? Does the busyness of life have you desperately needing true rest? In both cases you may feel that you have no one who can help you, or understand you, in the way you need. There is a story in the Bible that speaks to both of those things. In the book of Luke chapter 10:28-42 we see an encounter with Jesus and two sisters, Mary and Martha. In this story, we read how Mary’s first reaction was to sit at the Lord’s feet and listen to his teaching. Whereas, in verse forty, it says how “Martha was distracted with much serving.” Before we move on, which sister do you find yourself identifying with already? Is it Mary whose first priority is to listen to the Lord and sit in His presence, or is it Martha who is doing all the preparations before allowing herself to enjoy the Lord’s company? As we read on, we learn that Martha voices her frustrations about her sister not helping in the way she thinks she should. In response the Lord answers, “Martha, Martha,” you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed- or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” You may experience this feeling in your own life. You may feel that you work so hard for things, while others don’t do as much, yet still get recognized. But notice the Lord doesn’t say what Martha was doing was wrong, because it was good. It is just pointed out that Mary chose what was better. Mary chose what was necessary. The preparations are nice, but God wants you to get more out of your time with Him than validation for what you do for Him. He wants you to be fulfilled by Him!
God doesn’t want you to miss out on time in His presence because you are spending so much time preparing for Him.
Learn to stay where your feet are and lean into what God is teaching you in the moment!
You want to know what your purpose is?
Your purpose is to focus on your heavenly Father! You are to focus on getting to know Him and, as a result, making Him known to others. Right now, we are a people in exile. In Genesis, Adam and Eve were in perfect harmony with their Father and Creator before sin entered. They were then thrown out of the place where harmony existed with God. So, we are to remember that our original purpose was to be in His presence. Yes, Adam and Eve worked in the garden, but they did so with the absence of anxiety and distraction. Everything was done with full awareness of God being with them.
We should remember the importance of sitting at the feet of Jesus, instead of keeping busy preparing for Him to come into our life when we have it more together.
In reality, He is right there sitting and waiting for each of us to come to listen and rest at His feet. Only good can come from putting Jesus first. Your experience will include peace and comfort rather than comparison and anxiety. There is so much more that comes from being with Jesus that will help in other areas of your life. Therefore, don’t miss out on the reason you are here on this earth. Don’t miss out on the beauty of being able to come to God as you are. And lastly, don’t miss out on finding rest in God right where you are. Go to Him first, He sees you, understands your frustrations, and wants to fulfill all your needs!
