The NIV 365 Day Devotional

Don’t Miss the Jesus Moments

When Jesus and his disciples arrived at Martha’s house, she welcomed them gladly and immediately saw to their needs. But the more she served, the angrier she got. While she was slaving away, her sister was sitting at Jesus’ feet, hanging on to his every word. Finally, Martha erupted in frustration, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” (Lk 10:40).

We might expect Jesus to tell Mary to help. But that’s not what Jesus did. Instead he took the opportunity to teach Martha that activity is not necessarily accomplishment. He explained, “Few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her” (Lk 10:42).

Mary took advantage of Jesus’ presence and gave him her full attention. She demonstrated focus, an indispensable quality of leadership, by directing her priorities and concentration on the main thing. Martha had her priorities mixed up—she focused on the minor things—and nearly missed the Jesus moment. Martha’s experience teaches us that when Jesus is in the house (and remember, he’s always in the house), give him your full attention. Prioritizing attentiveness to Jesus focuses our energies on what really matters and increases our leadership influence and effectiveness.

Taken from the NIV Maxwell Leadership Bible.