Luke 10:38-42 - Uptight around Jesus

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the [dinner] preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” 41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:38-42, New International Version, 1984)

A  more accurate translation is that Jesus responded, "Martha, Martha, you're anxious and distracted about many things" μεριμνάω - anxious, unduly concerned θορυβάζω - troubled, distracted  (BAGD)

If you've ever fixed a big meal for guests, you know it can be tricky to have all the dishes hot and on the table, ready to eat at the same time.* Trying to listen in to what house guests are talking about in the other room makes it even more taxing.

Martha wasn't irrationally "worried" about some hypothetical catastrophe in the distant future.
She was uptight about an immediate deadline: getting dinner on the table.
Her original motive--love for Jesus--was derailed, "distracted by the preparations."
The word literally means, "pulled or dragged away..." {περισπάω, BAGD}

The task--fixing dinner--pulled her away from the reason for the task: sharing a meal with Jesus.

Jesus didn't fault her for fixing a meal. In fact, she was back in the kitchen when Jesus visited later, just before His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem (John 12:2)

What was the "one thing needed" that Mary chose and Martha forgot?
Mary's "better part" wasn't that she was sitting while Martha was moving.
The "better part" wasn't inactivity, but active listening.

Jesus,
Responsibilities and deadlines press in on us. There are people to serve; tasks to accomplish. Even when we start out with loving motives, don't let the tasks distract us from listening to You. As we work, we want to hear Your voice. Amen.

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*The photo is a traditional Swedish Christmas dinner that includes Swedish meatballs, potato sausage, rice pudding, and lingonberries. My family will attest that I can get uptight trying to get it all on the table at the same time, so they graciously pitch in and help!