Introduction
Life is hectic...we are always rushing.
Someone has said that our life can best be characterized by three words: Hurry...Worry... Busy...!
There is nothing wrong with being busy. But there is a subtle danger associated with it. It is that we can become so busy over so many things that we hardly have time for the important thing.

Many things usually come to us as urgent and so often we succumb to these pressing things. We allow these seemingly urgent (the pressing) things to choke us that we do not have the time and energy left to tend to that which is most needful (the essential, the important) thing in life.
We can be so busy with our jobs, our careers, our businesses and even our ministries.
The awful truth is that we can become so busy for God that we hardly have time to be with God.

God is not looking for people who are be busy for Him. Rather He is looking for people who would take time to be with Him. Busyness has the subtle danger of robbing away from us that, which is important. It has the danger to rob us of having quality time with God.
Jesus taught us the importance of being with God and the danger of being distracted by the busyness of life in on of His visit to Mary, Martha and Lazarus at their home in Bethany (Luke 10:38-42).

Now in the story we see two contrasting sisters (Martha and Mary) both loving the Lord, but:

• Mary was sitting at Jesus' feet - listening to Him, spending blessed time with the Lord. This is the posture of a true disciple. The Apostle Paul sat at the feet of Gamaliel, as a disciple to the renown and respected Jewish Pharisee.
  So Mary was seen here as a devout disciple of Jesus. Mary's sitting at Jesus' feet was commendable.
• In contrast Martha was busy serving - apparently trying to prepare a meal for the Lord.
  In fact she was distracted with much serving - meaning she became so tense and anxious, so exasperated and irritable. Martha's busyness in serving had become a source of her irritation.

Jesus commended Mary and admonished Martha. Here in this story we can learn from the words of Jesus to Martha (verse 42) that busyness in life can have 3 subtle dangers:
1. The Pressing (urgent) can crowd out the Needful (important).
2. The Good can crowd out the Best.
3. The Temporal can crowd out the Eternal.

The first danger when you are busy is, the pressing can crowd out the needful. So often we succumb to the many pressing and urgent things and we become so busy and preoccupied with them that we overlook the one important thing - the one thing that is needful.
That's what we found in Jesus' word to Martha in v.42 - "...but one thing is needful."

• You can be very busy with many things but Jesus said - one thing is needful. There may be many urgent and pressing things in life that demand our attention. But we must recognize that not all-urgent things are essential or needful. We must not fall into the trap of being busy - and that means we need to prioritize so that the one thing that is needful might not be crowded out.
• The best thing - the one thing that is needful must be given priority. Otherwise it gets crowded out all together. In this world that we lived in - the serious disciple of Jesus is one who can discern between the pressing (the urgent) and the needful (the essential).
• Friends if you are busy climbing up the ladder of success make sure your ladder is leaning on the right wall - for Jesus said: "Only one thing is needful." What is that "one-thing" that is needful in your life?
  And if we are to be true to Jesus and to do all that we ought to do, then we must separate the many things that call to us from the one thing that is needful.

The second danger is that busyness in life can obscure us from doing the best thing in life. We can become so busy doing all the good things but miss out doing the best thing. This is seen in Martha's life. Martha was busy serving...

• Now there is nothing wrong with Martha serving. It's her busyness that had caused her to lose her perspective. Her busyness had caused her to miss the thing that was to be the best. What Martha did may be good but it certainly wasn't the best, for then she became upset. (Good but not the best!)
• Sometimes in life our choices are not always between right and wrong, black and white or good and evil. Often we may have to make clear cut decision between the good and the best. But how can we if we are so caught up in the busyness of serving. In the midst of busyness - even the good things you are busy with can crowd out the best thing that you ought to do.
• We must not be distracted with much serving (like Martha) - we must be discerning to prioritize so that the best thing (which Jesus said that Mary had chosen) gets to be done.
  Friends, as life presses in on you, more and more you have to chose between the good and the best if you are going to keep your relationship with Jesus alive.

The third danger is that the temporal can crowd out the eternal.
Busyness has such a subtle way of obscuring your perception and focus on things eternal. When you are busy with the things of this life - chances are you lose sight of living your life that will count for eternity.

• The Lord said to Martha: "Mary has chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her." In other words what Mary had chosen was of eternal value for the Lord said that it should not be taken from her.
  Mary in a simple and yet undivided devotion to the Lord focused on thing eternal - which is developing a closer relationship with the Lord. She was spending quality time with Jesus.
• Martha in her busyness of serving focused on the temporal. She was more concerned of the things of this life. The meal she was busy preparing would be good and enjoyable only for a little while. But Spiritual food, which is the Word of God that Mary was receiving, would sustain her for eternity. Jesus said:
  "Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeded out of the mouth of God." <Matt 4:4>
  "Do not work for the food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life..." <John 6:27>
• Friends, do you want your life to count for eternity? If you want, you cannot afford to be busy with things that are temporal. What are the good things that will last for eternity? Jesus said, "Mary has chosen the good part and it shall not be taken away from her". What is it? Personal relationship with the Lord! Taking time to be with the Lord, listening and communing with Him. Never be too busy for God!
  While Martha was too busy for God and landed with thing temporal,
  Mary was never too busy to be with God and landed with thing eternal.

In Martha we saw the pressing (the urgent), the good (serving), the temporal (the meal).
But in Mary we saw the needful (the essential), the Best (the good part - relationship with Jesus) and the eternal (listening to the word).

Martha was busy for God but Mary was never too busy to be with God.
Jesus corrected Martha and commended Mary - which of the two will you choose?
Would you be the 'Martha' - busy and upset with much serving? Or
Would you be the 'Mary' - sitting at Jesus' feet and listening to Him?

God is not looking for people who would be busy for Him.
He is looking for people who would be with Him to love Him.
Friends, if you are busy working for God - I have bad news for you!
You don't work for God - God does not need your work. You work with God and that requires spending time listening at Jesus' feet.