A few of you my age will probably know where that title came from, but for those who don’t, I’m not talking about a song from 1972, but rather a TV program from 1963. Happy Googling!

As strange as it may seem to some, I see that idea being lived out in Luke 10:38-42, “Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Jesus into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Jesus and said, Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore, tell her to help me. And Jesus answered and said to her, Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”

If you describe yourself as a “doer” or an “organizer,” you can understand where Martha was coming from. She welcomed Jesus and His disciples into her home, which was a gracious thing to do. We need more Marthas in our lives. However, she became so busy with the preparations and the work of hospitality that she didn’t slow down and pay attention to Jesus. In fact, she became upset with her sister, Mary, for not helping her.

Do you ever make yourself so busy, even with good things, that you miss out on hearing the voice of Jesus in your life? Does this mean we shouldn’t do any work for the kingdom of God? Should we only sit still and reflect on the Bible and pray? No, we are certainly called to be active in doing the Lord’s work. In fact, the story of Mary and Martha comes immediately after the parable of the Good Samaritan, a story in which Jesus praises someone who works hard to be a good neighbor, showing compassion and hospitality.

Instead of going to either extreme, trying to do everything, or doing nothing at all, we must always focus on the most important thing, which is Jesus Himself. Inspired by His love, we can show hospitality to those around us, but let’s not forget Him in the process.