When It’s Hard Being Still
If you are around kids a lot, or have children of your own, one thing is certain; kids have trouble being still. Have you noticed when you ask them to be still or sit still, the “wigglier” they seem to get? Those little bodies are full of energy and they want to go non stop! Sometimes I feel like I am so much like those little busy bodies and the Lord is whispering, “Be still, Kirstyn.”
I didn’t realize how much time I had on my hands before having kids. I never really took advantage of my time and looking back, I can tell you I was pretty lazy. Today, I feel like time doesn’t slow down. I’m busy taking kids here and there, from this side of town to that side of town. If I’m not running them to and from school, then I am taking them to extra curricular activities. If I am at home, I’m busy trying to clean before my kids have the chance to rearrange all of my furniture and clutter the room with all of their toys and games once again. Even my mind has trouble being still. My thoughts are always racing, especially when I am trying to have my quiet time. My mind is constantly thinking of what all I need to do or get done and I immediately lose focus. Social media can also consume our time and before you know it, another hour is gone. Whatever your schedule is, whether you’re busy working day in and day out, or running kids everywhere, life can become so routine.
The other day while I was sweeping the floors, my four year old son walked over to me, tugged on my shirt, held his book out in front of me and said, “please read to me.” My son, Chapal, loves to read books. Not that he can actually read the words, but he loves to look at the bright colored pictures. Even more so, he loves when someone reads the words to him because then those bright colored pages become more of a reality to him. My response to him was, “I can’t right now. I’m busy.” I immediately noticed the look of disappointment on his face as he walked away with his book. I felt terrible for turning him away and something inside of me quickly reminded me that he won’t be this little much longer. The cleaning can be put on hold to read a book to my son. I don’t want him looking back one day, thinking that cleaning was more important to me than spending precious time with him and investing in him.
There is a quote that says, “If the enemy can’t have you, he’ll keep you busy.” We are so busy with our lives that we so often forget what’s most important. The enemy loves to distract us with anything and everything as long as it keeps our focus off of the Lord. We’ve heard the story of Mary & Martha many times, but I believe we continually need to be reminded of their story. If you look in Luke 10:38-42, we see where Jesus is a guest in these two sister’s home. Martha of course is trying to do the hospitable thing by cleaning, serving, and probably preparing a meal for Jesus. She looks over and witnesses her sister not lifting a finger, but just sitting in front of Jesus. Now if I were Martha, I would be pretty angry too. We can almost sense Martha’s frustration by the way that she responds in verse 40. She has the nerve to ask Jesus, “Do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?” And then she follows up with a command, “Tell her then to help me!”
First of all, I cannot imagine talking to Jesus in that tone. Asking Him of all people if He actually cares, and then goes further by commanding Him to tell Mary to help her. We see Jesus respond in verse 41 , “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary, Mary has chosen the good portion.”
Notice that Jesus doesn’t down play all of the serving that Martha is doing, but He is simply pointing out that her heart isn’t in the right place. I believe so many of us can relate to Martha, I know I can. We forget in the midst of our busy day to day lives, what is most important. Jesus is telling us to be still, meaning to cease any movement. I mean how often does that actually happen during each day? Jesus is wanting all of our attention and focus, and to be with Him. Let’s take marriage for example. If I am so caught up in serving my spouse with cooking, cleaning, ironing his shirts, doing the dishes, but never spend one waking moment with him, then our marriage would suffer. In a similar way, if I want my relationship to grow with the Lord, I’ve got to make the effort to spend time with Him rather than focusing on how many boxes I can check off on a “to do” list. I once heard a quote that said, “Jesus is more concerned with our love for Him, rather than our usefulness to Him.”
It’s so easy to get distracted and lose track of time in our busy lives. Everything around us is constantly demanding our attention and just like Martha, our focus can easily be set on the wrong thing. I encourage us, to find a time during the day to pause, take a breather, and sit at the feet of Jesus just as Mary did. His Word is far more important than anything else this world has to offer. “Be still & know that I Am God.” Psalm 46:10