Busy does not make us Holy

Lk 10:38-42

In line with my earlier post about the narrow path to true virtue, we have this passage.  This passage is important to the understanding that what we think is important on the path of holiness isn’t always important.  Busy doesn’t make holy, all the time.  In fact, busy can be a distraction away from real holiness, an excuse or shield against doing the real right thing.  In other words, busy can become a look at me and all these really cool things I AM DOING!  It’s something we use like a royal robe, when really it’s rags.  Let’s explore this…

Jesus comes to Mary and Martha’s house and Martha (ok, in my head she looks like Martha Stewart) decides this is the time to put on the dog and pony show.  She goes into super host mode.  Mary on the other hand sits at the Lord’s feet to listen and take in what He is saying.  Martha doesn’t even have it spiritually together enough to have her heart in the right place.  Not only is she ignoring the chance of a life time to sit and listen to the Master speak, she is complaining that Mary isn’t helping her.  What does that tell us?  Well, it tells us Martha is focused on the things of this world, she thinks that her will and want supersedes what is actually happening.  And what is happening is that (even if at the time they don’t recognize him as Christ) a Master Rabbi has come to teach, and not just the men.  In her defense, it wasn’t super common that a Rabbi put emphasis on women learning like that, but in my mind, I think it makes it more astonishing that she didn’t notice that not only were the men welcome to learn but He wanted the women to hear too.  She probably didn’t think of that….because she was busy. 

This is an eloquently simple story with many layers that apply to us now.  It’s something we can overlay on almost any of the stories of the bible.  Imagine how different the Good Samaritan story would be if the Samaritan had his face in an Iphone, too busy to even notice the beaten man on the side of the road.  Think about what it may have looked like had Moses told God that he had waaaaay too many heard to manage to take time and talk to Pharaoh.  Take your time and think how different one of your favorite books or passages in the scripture might have been had whoever in them had been too busy to do the real right thing.  Peter might have been too busy fishing to follow Jesus.  There are so many ways this could be different.  In fact, you have the ultimate example of churchy busy in the Pharisees.  They were busy in the temples, doing all the stuff you can imagine any modern pastor doing, and in control.  That’s what busy work is on one layer, busy equals we are in control.  This is OUR plan.  This is what WE want to do.  This is what WE want done.  Busy, busy, busy.

Martha assigned the hostess responsibilities to herself because she was focusing on what she thought was important, she wanted in control and we see this by her desire to have Mary be in that control too. 

There is a lot of take away here.  Sometimes we put ourselves in places of honor or service not because it’s God’s will, but because we THINK it’s the important thing.  Sometimes we work so hard at doing what we are doing that we completely blank out on what really needs our attention.  We use busy as a shield against real spiritual need, growth, learning, and service so later we can have an excuse to why we didn’t do XYZ thing and feel completely justified doing it…because we were busy. 

The modern society has made busy an artform.  If you ask someone to do something they will likely give you a list of reasons they can’t. “Kids have soccer practice, then I have to do this that and the other, and watch TV, and blah blah blah.”  Busy.  Even people who serve the Church do it, sometimes especially them..”I have a finance committee meeting, then a meeting for the KOC and I have to do blah blah blah for the church.”  It’s more insidious when we are busy with the Church sometimes, because that gives us the illusion of Mary when we are really just Martha in church clothes.  The problem is when we get wrapped up like that we are potentially putting barriers up between us and what God really wants us to be doing. 

I’ve heard so many times, “I’m too busy to pray the rosary.”  “I’d help this person, but I’m so busy.”  “I’d love to (fill in the blank with your thing) but I’m so busy.”  The truth is, if you are too busy to do that kind of thing, you are too busy.  God wants us working for Him in his kingdom, we can’t be couch potatoes, but we do have to seek and find, every day His will for how we spend the currency of our time.   If we are too busy being busy to be mindful of the opportunities to love and minister and learn, then we are too busy.

Just some food for thought and prayer…

Father, I come to you today asking you how I should spend my time.  Grant me the ears to hear the opportunities I would miss. Grant me the heart of obedience that will allow me to act on those opportunities.  May I never be too busy to do what is truly Your Will.  In Jesus name, Amen!

Here I am, Lord, send me!

Lisa Brandel