FBC Daily Devotional – July 8, 2021

Well, a good Thursday to you.

How are you doing?

Are you staying focused?

Are you staying focused?

Are you too easily distracted?

I thought of that today in the reading of our scripture readings

for the day in Luke chapter 10 and then another idea in chapter 11, but especially the way

chapter 10 ends.

You remember this account?

Jesus is at the home of Mary and Martha and He's he's teaching and of

course There's a there's a lot of people there and Martha

She has the gift of hospitality if you will.

She is a server and she wants to make sure everybody's taken care of.

She's very hospitable and You know, she reminds me of a lot of

People I've met, you know, you could you go to their home and they they just want to make sure you have plenty to eat.

You know Conversation all the rest is all good, but but you got to have enough to eat.

I'd have enough to eat.

I Recall many many years ago I was a it was in college actually and I was ministering in a church

on the weekends and was invited to someone's home this was down south and I was

taken aback by one of the parent customs of a lot of folks and these in the

southern culture.

There were several of us there for dinner her family As well as me

and another guy and I think one of the person was visiting and She prepared this elaborate meal

and called us all to the table and the husband, you know he returned thanks for the food and then she told us all

to sit down and Well sit down.

I'm looking around I'm thinking counting the chairs and

We're missing a chair we're missing a seat.

There's one more person and there are seats so I thought well this is

Interesting and and the wife and mother who was host the hostess of the place She just stood off to

the side and I said to her here you come sit here.

Come have my seat.

I I don't I don't know.

No, no, no, no, no, no.

No, she said no.

No, no.

No, no.

No, you said you said you said and in her southern matriarchal

Accent and method and So I did, you know, I did what I was told I was

after all a guest in the house and She proceeded to make sure everybody was served and she went and sat in the

kitchen and ate in the kitchen.

I thought man, this is this is different.

All right.

She was having this conversation around the table every once while she'd pop in to see make sure there was enough food and if any dishes

needed to be refilled for seconds or thirds or whatever and She just had that gift.

Well, this is Martha in in this section of Luke chapter 10, this is Martha

Jesus is there as disciples are there, you know Mary Martha there and others and She just wants to make sure

there's gonna be dinner and there's gonna be enough food for everybody to eat.

So she is scurrying about preparing a meal for everyone to eat and she's getting a

little ticked because She's doing all this stuff to prepare food and Mary is just

sitting there at the feet of Jesus.

Listening to him teach when there's all this work to be done and she finally comes and fusses at Jesus and says

Jesus would you would you tell Mary to come help me sir?

There's there's so much to do and Jesus rebukes her a little bit very kindly and graciously

and he says to her Oh Martha Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.

But one thing is needful and Mary has chosen the good part which will not be

taken away from her.

Now what I get from that is not that Mary was or that Martha was doing anything wrong what she was doing was fine

and was from a good heart, but There was one needful thing right then and there and that was to

listen and pay attention to Jesus and what he's having to say.

She couldn't be learning from him while she's fussing around with all this stuff.

She needed to focus her attention on what Jesus had to say on that one thing that was needful.

All right.

Now how that speaks to me is I I find it quite easy to be like

Martha.

Distracted by many things.

And neglecting the one thing that's neutral.

It's not that the Distracting things are bad or you know

in any way wrong.

They're things that may need to be done eventually, but there's one thing I need to

focus on right now and That one thing is the thing I need to be working on.

I need to be giving my attention to.

Right now all kinds of opportunities will come and call for my attention to pull me away.

Am I going to go or am I gonna stay on the one thing you see?

I think about that and in my occupation and my line of work.

There's a lot of time I need to spend in studying the word and I find it very

easy to be distracted.

I actually have applications on my phone and on my computer that That

blocks certain kinds of activity, you know, I don't I don't check email I can't you know, I can't

fuss around on Facebook or any of that kind of stuff during certain hours.

Because those are the hours I need to be focused on the study of the word and then of course

That stuff is bad enough.

But then there's there's all kinds of good distractions good things that can be done and call for attention

In the course of a morning when I should be studying.

So one thing is needful Jesus says she's chosen the good part and I guess

that's the that's the question I need to ask myself when I'm tempted to be distracting.

Am I choosing the good part?

Am I choosing the good part or am I letting the good part take second third fourth

place?

Well, I hope that's a challenge and encouragement to you too to stay focused on the one thing

that God has given you to do in your Your vocation whatever that might happen to be.

So our Father in our God I pray that you would help us to be free from distractions.

Help us to say no to them and to focus on the one needful thing.

Especially Lord when it comes to things like our devotions or being in church and listening to the word

I pray that you would help us to stay focused on the one needful thing.

And this we pray in Jesus name and for his sake.

Amen.

All right.

Well, have a good rest of your Thursday.

I trust God all bless you in it, and you'll have a good day.