Busy lives and God's presence

The Martha and Mary story brings division into the ranks of those who read it, decrying Christ's words or trying desperately to ensure Martha's place as being worthwhile (Lk 10.38-42). Perhaps we should just sit back and acknowledge the fact that busy lives do detract us from God's presence. Maybe we should acknowledge that the opportunity to sit at the feet of God is one that is good if we were only to discern it in our busyness. Or perhaps we should be angry because nobody is helping us put things together so that we can be a family. So that we can eat together and then have the opportunity to sit together in God's presence. The more hands on deck will get things done faster to give us more time. Then there are always only a few that actually get things done while everybody comes to celebrate not having lifted a finger to help. Yet, we know that we allow our busy selves the opportunity to create more concerns to worry about and be busy about, so we never actually stop to smell the roses.

We need to take time to smell the aroma of God in our lives

There is a small book that was written during the 1600s which perhaps tells us a different story. A story that all of us in our busyness need to understand and is something that readers of the Lukan text also miss in Martha's interaction with Christ. These writings were collected by an abbot and published after the death of the author in 1690. Brother Lawrence spent most of his spiritual life in a kitchen (somewhat like Martha). He cultivated what he called the presence of God. In the Lukan passage God is present in the form of Christ and this is what is at issue in terms of Martha. Martha can only see her busyness not the relationship that is present in Christ. Brother Lawrence determined that he had a low spirituality but developed the understanding that no matter where he was or what he was doing he was in the presence of God.

In our busyness we forget, like Martha, that God's presence is close if we were only but to discern it. We loose ourselves and say that what we are doing is important and cannot be not done. Yet, like Brother Lawrence we need to cultivate an understanding of God's presence in our lives at all times, even in the most busy time. In our busyness we think that we are honouring God, just as the Israelites did at the time of Amos (8.1-12). They could not wait until they had left the temple and the offerings to get back to what they thought was more important. They forgot that God was ever present in their lives, just as we do. In doing so they alienated themselves from God. They formed broken communities that were untrustworthy. They relied on guile rather than on love. It is when we begin to take in the fact that God is present at all times that we can show love to our neighbour. Brother Lawrence highlights our attitudes of busyness with his ability to find God in the present no matter what that present circumstance was. In opening ourselves up to a relationship we allow God to be close to us even in the midst of our own busyness. Only then will we understand the critique of Martha in Christ's presence, not for her work but for her lack of understanding that it is God's presence that is important nothing else.