Missing Out

Missing Out:

Being with Jesus Before Doing for Jesus

Today, we are talking about how we can miss out on Jesus, even when He is right in front of us.

We live in a time where it has never been easier to be distracted. Distractions are anything that take our time, energy, and focus away from what is most important—social media, smart phones, and notifications or ads popping up constantly. Pair that with the pace of life we live, and it can feel like we are constantly being pulled in 100 different directions. As soon as we are where we are supposed to be, BOOM, something beeps, rings, or flashes in front of you, and we are distracted again.

Not only can we be distracted by things around us vying for our attention, but we can also be distracted by pursuing the wrong things or not maintaining a good balance in our lives. Work, relationships, school, and our kids’ sports schedules consume our time. We can even be distracted by good things! When we are so distracted, how do we make sure we stay focused on Jesus? Today, we are looking at someone who was so distracted by serving Jesus that she missed out on being with Jesus.

Background: Busy Hands and the Moral of the Samaritan

To understand this, we have to look at what's going on—Jesus is busy! Lots of the 'big' stories about Jesus have already happened: healing the sick, calming the storm, casting out demons, and feeding 5,000 people with a couple of fish and a few loaves of bread. On top of that, Jesus has asked His followers to get busy too, sending out both the 12 and the 72 to preach and heal.

Right before entering Bethany, Jesus tells a famous parable about 'the Good Samaritan.' When asked, "Who is my neighbor?" Jesus tells the story of a man beaten and left half dead. A priest and a Levite both pass by on the other side of the road, but a Samaritan stops, has compassion, binds his wounds, puts him on his animal, brings him to an inn, and pays for his care. Jesus concludes: "You go, and do likewise."

Listening to this story and looking at much of the past few chapters, it is easy to think the moral of the Good Samaritan is simply to keep working hard—meaning Christianity is purely about work and what you can do for God. However, following all this work, Luke intentionally places a story that not only sheds light on the Good Samaritan, but shows us how we are truly meant to live the Christian life.

Distracted by Much Serving

"Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, 'Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.' But the Lord answered her, 'Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.'" — Luke 10:38–42

It all started when Jesus came to Bethany to visit the home of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, who had become personal friends during His earthly ministry. It’s clear from Luke’s account that Jesus felt at home in their house.

Martha invites Jesus to come to her home, and she gets busy trying to make everything ready and perfect for Him. I am sure she is busy getting food, cleaning the house, and getting everything together. Whether she is having to serve only Jesus or all the disciples as well, Martha wants everything to be perfect. Once Jesus and all the disciples arrive, she continues to be busy cleaning, cooking, serving, and doing all the things a great host should do.

But notice how Luke describes her: Martha was distracted.

Distracted by what? Luke tells us she was "distracted with much serving." It was not sin. It was not worldliness. It was not laziness. Martha was distracted by ministry. She was distracted by DOING good things for Jesus.

The Danger of Religious Busyness

Here is the danger: sometimes the greatest distraction from Jesus isn't rebellion against Him; it's becoming so busy serving Him that we stop spending time with Him. We make ourselves so busy with things that we do not stop to ask what He actually wants us to do right now.

While Martha is working and working, Mary is taking time to be with Jesus, sitting at His feet and learning from Him. How does Martha feel about this? Martha is upset!

I am sure she is thinking to herself, "Surely Mary will come help me. Why am I always the one working to make sure everything is ready for Jesus?" Martha invited Jesus there, Martha is the one trying to make everything perfect, and now Mary gets to enjoy time with Him while she does all the work.

Martha originally wanted the best for Jesus. She saw how hard He had been working, she recognized how worthy He was, and her heart was in the right place. But her desire to serve "distracted her," and now something that was selfless turned inward. Because she felt everything relied on her, she ended up feeling overwhelmed, alone, underappreciated, and self-righteous.

Martha is now so upset she goes up to Jesus and says, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." Notice how quickly religious busyness can turn into: "Jesus, look at my sacrifice! Tell my sister to stop being with you and help me out."

Jesus Gently Corrects the Heart

"But the Lord answered her, 'Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.'"

Do you see what Jesus is saying here? Is Jesus saying serving was bad? No! In fact, I am sure Jesus would say great things about her serving. But while Martha was caught up in the whirlwind of activities she thought were necessary, Mary simply spent time with Jesus.

Notice what Jesus does not say:

He did not say, "Martha, stop serving forever."

He did not say, "You are a bad host."

He doesn’t even tell her that what she is focused on isn’t important.

Instead, Jesus addresses her heart: "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled." Jesus was not correcting her serving; He was correcting what serving had done to her.

At some point, she started to believe everything depended on her—the meal had to be perfect, the house had to be pristine, and everything had to be ready. And because she believed it all rested on her shoulders, she became anxious, frustrated, resentful, and critical of her own sister.

Applying This to Our Lives

Isn't that what happens to us? We begin serving God with joyful hearts, but slowly we start believing that if we don't do it, no one will.

If we don't volunteer...If we don't work the extra hours...If we don't keep everyone happy...We start thinking everything will fall apart.

Martha, caught up in working, missed the most important thing: she missed the presence of Jesus.

The answer wasn't for Martha to quit serving, nor was it for Mary to start serving. The answer was to value Jesus' presence above everything else. So what if dinner would be late? So what if the dishes were not done? Mary chose to focus on Jesus above all else.

As C.H. Spurgeon once quoted: "Why is it that some Christians, although they hear many sermons, make but slow advances in the divine life? Because they neglect their closets, and do not thoughtfully meditate on God’s Word."

We can easily neglect God’s presence, neglect to pray, and miss out on His blessings because we are too busy trying to be the hero.

Historical & Scriptural Echoes

This wasn't just Martha's problem. Years later in Revelation 2, Jesus confronts an entire church with the exact same issue: "I know your works, your labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot tolerate evil people... I know that you have persevered and endured hardships for the sake of my name, and you have not grown weary. But I have this against you: You have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember then how far you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first." — Revelation 2:2–5

Jesus says a bunch of great stuff about the church in Ephesus—they had sound doctrine, endured hard times, and had discernment against false teachers. They were busy doing good things, but they lost what was necessary: they lost the love they had at first with Jesus. Notice Jesus didn't tell them to do more, try harder, or fix their programs. He told them to repent and return to their first love.

This same principle ties right back to the Parable of the Good Samaritan. The priest and the Levite might have looked the part, had the right clothes, and had the right religious things to say. They might have thought they were too busy doing "godly work." But they missed the necessary things. Instead of doing what was obviously righteous and showing mercy, they did nothing.

What Does God Actually Want?

Maybe you are feeling the exact same way today. We get caught up in so many different things—usually good things: We want to be great employees, so we work as hard as we can. We want to be great providers, so we work more than we should. We want to be great parents, so we over-schedule our children's activities. We even want to be great Christians, so we fill our lives with doing things for the church.

We sacrifice in hopes of succeeding; however, we often find ourselves burnt out at the end of it all. We are doing lots of good things, but are we doing the necessary things? God is not asking for only performative sacrifice—He is asking for relationship and obedience.

"For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings." — Hosea 6:6

"With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high?... He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" — Micah 6:6, 8

What does God actually want? For you to be in His presence and do His will—not what you think His will should be.

This is not to say we should never serve, but when is the last time you prayed, "Jesus, what do You want me to do?" We don’t need to start doing more; we need to start going to God first.

Do we pray as much as we plan? Do we ask God as often as we ask other people? Do we sit at the feet of Jesus before we rush into serving Him?

The invitation of this story is not asking us to quit serving; it is asking us to pause long enough to listen.

Main Application: Sit at His Feet First

If you are feeling stressed today, hear this: Jesus is not asking you to do less or prove your love through relentless work. Jesus is asking you to BE WITH HIM. What Jesus wants us to do is simple, but it is not easy: Before we plan, we pray. Before we act, we listen. Before we do more, we ask the Holy Spirit to guide us.

When we start seeking His presence like Mary, we won't be burnt out or lose our first love—instead, we will run the good race to completion.

Challenge

I challenge you to spend 5 minutes with Jesus before you pick up your phone every morning:

Place a physical Bible beside your bed. Before grabbing your phone to check emails, social media, or news, open it and read one entire chapter in Psalms. Spend a few moments in prayer, then go about your day. We can be so quick to try and do good, make plans, and serve Jesus that we completely miss out on Him entirely. But when we stop trying to tell God what is good and simply give our lives into His hands, we experience the "good portion" that can never be taken away. In the Kingdom of God, your identity as a child of God is never earned by your performance; it is received by faith. The Christian life doesn’t start with what you do for Jesus—it starts with being in His presence, then doing what He says.