Fall is upon us, and I, for one, am excited!  I’m ready to do some baking, break out my fall candles, and cheer on my college football team this weekend.  School is back in session and routines are resuming.  Everything is gearing up for a busy, productive season. 

And that is a good thing.  Summer brought some much-needed down time, so we can handle things picking back up.  As long as we go about it with the right perspective, as long as we remember one thing.

The Bible tells of a time when Jesus went to visit two of his friends, Mary and Martha.  Martha busied herself with preparing food and serving her guests, while her sister, Mary, sat with Jesus and hung on His every word.  Martha complained to Jesus that Mary had left her with all the work to do. 

Jesus replied, “Martha, Martha, … you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”  Luke 10:41, 42 NIV

I can be like Martha more than I care to admit.  Why is it so easy to become so distracted?  Why does busyness so quickly consume us?  Why is the focus on the “one thing” so hard to maintain?

We are busy people.  We have jobs, we have families, we have bills.  We have people whose lives we want to invest in and people who depend on us.  We have commitments, deadlines, and households to manage.  And we want to be faithful in all these things.  We genuinely want to do a good job with all that’s on our plate. 

I think God knew what the pace of life would be in our day.  He knew we’d have full schedules and good intentions.  That’s why He told us beforehand to remember the one thing.  Which is what, exactly?

I think the one thing Jesus was referring to was Himself.  Mary was close by Jesus, sitting at his feet in the posture of a disciple, listening to Him.  The one thing is relationship with Jesus; it’s maintaining intimate connection with Him, despite all that’s happening around you. 

An important aspect of this is guarding.  If the one thing is the main thing, then we must hold on to it. We must actively work to maintain it.  The Bible exhorts us in Proverbs 4:23 (NET), “Guard your heart with all vigilance, for from it are the sources of life.”  So, we guard our hearts when emotions swell, when circumstances swirl out of control, when stress surges.  We guard against weariness, against distractions, against anything that sucks the life out of us.  We guard our time, our priorities, our energy.  And we fervently guard against distractions from the one thing.

We guard our lives by maintaining a laser-like focus on God, His Word, and His presence in our daily lives.  We stay connected to Jesus, let His strength energize us, and let that carry us through our busy days.  And we stay closely connected to other believers who can help us as we live our lives in pursuit of this one thing.

What does this look like in our lives practically?

• Spend time with God daily in His Word and in prayer.  This is our lifeline.
• Share your life with other trusted believers and be accountable to them.  Join a small group.  Share prayer requests.  Share your heart. 
• Take an overview of your schedule and make sure it reflects what’s important to you.  If you need to drop something from your schedule, do it, and don’t feel guilty. 
• Take breaks when you need to.  Take care of yourself.  Sleep, exercise, and quality food go a long way.
• Make time for people.  Phone calls, texts, and definitely face to face time – whether that’s long lunches where you can really catch up or simply running errands together.  Take care of others.  And let them take care of you. 

This certainly isn’t an exhaustive list, and it’s nothing we haven’t heard before.  But hopefully it’s a timely reminder as we enter the busy fall season:

We can be busy without letting busyness consume us.  We can balance multiple competing demands without succumbing to stress.  We can conquer our to-do list without growing weary. 

We just need to remember one thing.