being vs. doing

"As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord's feet, listening to what He taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, 'Lord, doesn't it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.' But the Lord said to her, 'My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.'" ~ Luke 10:38-42

This story has been resonating with me lately. I think maybe it keeps coming to my mind because I just feel busy. It seems as though every time I sit down, I am overwhelmed with the amount of items left to be scratched off of my "to do" list. No matter how diligent I am in a day, they never seem to get done. I have been asking myself if I am just piddling away my time, if I am a master of procrastination, if I am easily distracted, or if I am just expecting entirely too much of myself. On any given day the answer could be any one of those. But, regardless of any of those things, I feel like the Lord keeps reminding me that He is more concerned with my being than my doing. God does not care so much about the tasks I accomplish each day or how many things get scratched off my list. He cares more about my being vitally united to Him as my source for all things. He keeps reminding me to come and sit at His feet, to learn from Him, to discover what really matters, to see people and not worry about making sure the chicken is roasted to perfection or the rolls are perfectly browned. He reminds me that some things are lasting...and usually not the things I find myself worrying about.

So, the goal is to focus more on the being than the doing...