I have been talking about different seasons lately that we can walk through in our Christian walk. The first season I talked about was the dry season, then the waiting season, and today I am writing about the busy season. If you have been reading over the past few weeks you will remember that I first started with what I feel like is the hardest season, the dry season. If you are in this season you will probably think that God is angry or doesn’t care about you but He always cares for us and He will never leave us according to Hebrews.
Hebrews 13:5 (KJV)
Let your conversation be without covetousness, and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.
Last week I talked about the waiting season. Waiting goes against our human nature. We live in what I call a “microwaveable society”, meaning we want everything right now and we do not want to wait. We talked about Joseph and how we waited 13 years for a God-given dream to come to fruition. We must remember what Luke said:
Luke 16:10 (KJV)
He that is faithful in that which is least faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.
Today, I want to dive into the busy season of life. Let’s face the facts: we are all BUSY!
Sometimes it feels like the pressures of the world are more than I can handle. Many times I feel like there are not enough hours in the day to get everything accomplished that I feel needs accomplishing. Have you ever felt that way?
I find myself often drinking my cup of coffee while on my phone reading the email or text message that came in overnight. It reminds me of the story of Mary and Martha in the book of Luke.
Luke 10:38-42 (MSG)
As they continued in their travel, Jesus entered a village. A woman by the name of Martha welcomed him and made him feel quite at home. She had a sister, Mary, who sat before the Master, hanging on every word he said. But Martha was pulled away by all she had to do in the kitchen. Later, she stepped in, interrupting them. “Master, don’t you care that my sister has abandoned the kitchen to me? Tell her to lend me a hand. The Master said, “Martha, dear Martha, your fussing far too much and getting yourself worked up over nothing. One thing only is essential, and Mary has chosen it- it’s the main course, and won’t be taken.
Let’s look at this a little closer. Martha was the Martha Stewart of her time. I imagine her house was always spotless. If she had a cookie jar it was always gull. The neighborhood kids all hung out at her house because she was so hospitable. Mary thought they were sister, I imagine was not as organized as her sister. Perhaps, she was late for family dinners and often forgot about things. I do not know if this is true, I am just imagining the story.
So Martha gets word that Jesus was coming to her house for dinner. Imagine a flood of thought in her mind, “I am so excited, however, I need to do X, Y, Z, and when I get all that finished I need to do whatever else. (My wife feels this way when guests are coming)
Jesus probably arrived at her home with a crowd following him. That probably put more pressure on Martha and if she’s like my wonderful wife the “surprise” of the “extra” guest probably stressed her out and added more pressure. As the evening went on, Martha was getting quite perturbed at her sister Mary for not helping her in the kitchen and leaving her to do all the work. She was so busy that she lost sight of what was more important.
Mary had the correct mindset thought. She sat at Jesus’ feet. One translation puts it this way: “Martha, my beloved, Martha. Why are you upset and troubled, pulled away by all these many distractions? Are they that important? 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.”
So…How do we deal with the busy seasons throughout our lives? Let me tell you…
God’s got this!
I often have to stop and take a moment an remember that God knows about this set of circumstances that I am dealing with and He will take care of it! Remember:
2 Corinthians 9:8 (AMP)
And God can make all grace {every favor and earthly blessing} come in all abundance to you, so that you may always {under all circumstances, regardless of the need} have complete sufficiency in everything {being completely self-sufficient in Him}, and have an abundance for every good work and act of charity.
Jesus promises peace.
John chapters 14 through 17 have many what I call “gold nuggets” that Jesus left us with. One, in particular, is found in Chapter 14 and verse 27.
John 14:27 (AMP)
My {perfect} peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be afraid. {Let my perfect peace calm you in every circumstance and give you courage and strength for every challenge}
Stay in the Word.
I understand that this can be very difficult especially when you are strapped for time. However, in my experience, it helps keep my focus on God.
Martin Luther said “I have so much to that I shall spend the first THREE HOURS in prayer” He understood the importance of having a quiet time. Of course, I know that most of us can’t set aside 3 hours but how many of us can carve out 10-15 minutes. How many of us have a 15 minute or more commute to work where we can worship and listen to the audio bible and pray and listen? Don’t get to busy to spend time with God. If you are too busy to pray and read your bible you are too busy!
I know there are so many out there that you are dealing with a busy season in your life, just remember that God knows what you are going through. Do not give up; lose hope, or back away, from the things you are doing. This is just a season and it will not last forever!
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