WOMEN’ S MINISTRY
First Things in the Midst of Many Things
Luke 10 tells of the occasion when
Martha invited Jesus and his disciples into her home. Jesus did not have a home and was not welcome everywhere, but this home was a household where he was wanted. During their visit Martha served them and provided for their needs, and soon she complained to our Lord that Mary was not helping her with the work. We go on to read that Mary was sitting at the Lord’ s feet so that she could listen to him. Jesus knew what was going on with Martha and told her that she“ was anxious and troubled about many things,” but Mary had chosen the right thing to do. Sometimes we have trouble understanding the right perspective when we are in the heat of life, but our Lord Jesus is teaching us that there are first things in the midst of many things; and that the first things always involve him.
Aimee Byrd, in her book, No Little Women, tells us in reference to this account of Martha and Mary:“ We are first disciples of the Lord.” Our feet and hands may have much to do for many people, and whatever we do will surely involve hard work, but none of these things are first things. They are not our primary identity. It is easy to confuse our identity because life requires so much of us in order to be faithful to what God has given us to accomplish. Young children are dependent on their mothers for survival as well as nurture twentyfour hours a day, but just because they require all of a mother’ s time, they are not to occupy first place in a mother’ s heart. First place is taken. First, we are not a daughter, a wife, a mother, a friend or any other role we might take on. Our primary identity is the identity that we have now and through eternity. First we belong to Christ; first we are his. That is who we are.
Knowing that we are his first can answer life’ s complexities for us. We seem to be anxious and troubled when we think that some goal of our own
will not be achieved. But if our goals are him, his ways, and his works of providence, we know that these things are ours. The Lord knows that we, like Martha, will be confused about what we should do and what our perspective should be. Surely there will be times when we are anxious and troubled. Just as our Lord Jesus knew what was going on with Martha, he knows what is going on with us. He was faithful to Martha and he will be faithful to us as he calls us to understand first things in the midst of many things.
— Jane Boatright
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