There is a story from the life of Jesus reported in the Gospel of Luke about two women named Mary and Martha. Luke 10:38-42 tells us of Jesus visiting their home one evening. Martha is “distracted by all the preparations,” while “Mary sat at the Lord’s feet.” Martha comes to Jesus and lodges her complaint, “Don’t you care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

We might expect Jesus to side with Martha, as she serves the Lord and his followers. Instead, he responds with “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.”

Mary has chosen what is better. She chose to listen to Jesus.

While I love the story, I fear it quickly gets distorted by well-intentioned Christians. As a result, people get asked to serve in a ministry through the Church, and they say, “I just need to spend more time with Jesus like Mary.” This story becomes an excuse to stop serving.

The problem is that most people are not spending more time with Jesus; they are using their time to attend sporting events, go to the lake, or spend time with the family on vacation. That is not the point of the story. The application is that we need to spend more time reading our Bible, specifically the gospels. We need to spend quality time in prayer and stillness before our Savior. The call is for us to enlarge our knowledge of and connection with Jesus.

The narrative is not an excuse to stop serving; rather, it is an instruction to spend more time with Jesus in communion and fellowship than in serving. Our time of worship will fuel our service to him and not negate it.

Jesus wants you to love him first and serve him second. Both parts are necessary, and the order is significant.