Cumbered About Much Serving Luke 10:38-42 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO

Martha’s problem in Lk 10:38-42 is that she was cumbered about much serving.  She is not unlike many of us today.  We have a lot going on and much of this “serving” is hampering us or cumbering us.  Being cumbered about much serving:

Causes you to miss God’s word – Lk 10:39 – Mary wasn’t just lounging around enjoying fellowship with the Lord while her sister was cooking.  She was listening to Lord’s word.  Martha was cooking a meal to feed the Lord when she should have been listening to his word that he came to feed them.

Provokes you to fuss with the Lord – Lk 10:40 – Martha complained to the Lord although her grief was with her sister.  She said, “dost thou not care…?”  We often fuss with God and complain, “Lord fix our mess.”  The mess is not his fault or anyone else’s; so, he is not responsible and he is not going to fix it.  We need to fix it.

Incites you to throw a pity party – Lk 10:40 – Martha said, “… to serve alone.”  Serving a meal for a few people was not Martha’s problem.  She was upset because she was doing all the work and Mary was doing “nothing.”  Imagine how much fun it is to eat a meal with a family member who is ticked off that she had to cook for you.

Creates dysfunction in your relationships – Lk 10:40 – “bid her therefore that she help me.”  Was this a prayer request?  Was she being a tattle tale?  Was she trying to embarrass her sister in front of her guest?  If she really “needed” the help she should have just calmly said, “Hey, Mary, I need some help in here.”  Instead, she waited until her temper was stoked and then let everyone have some of it.

Bleeds over into other areas of your life – Lk 10:41 – “careful and troubled about many things.”  When you are cumbered, the rest of your life is distressed.  Normal things can be trouble and minor things can cause anxiety.

Skews your priorities – Lk 10:42 – “one thing is needful.”  The one thing that Martha needed was the one thing she missed.  She was critical of her sister for choosing the highest priority.  Martha didn’t realize that her cumbered, careful, troubled life would have settled down if she had just spent some time with the Lord listening to his word.

Conclusion: Take a lesson from Martha and Mary.  If you find that your life is cumbered with much serving, the solution is not to get busier.  The solution is to stop and spend some time with the Lord in his words.