“…Mary has chosen the good portion…” – Luke 10:42 (ESV)
In Luke 10:42, Jesus said Mary’s choice “will not be taken away from her.” What a powerful promise from Jesus as He responded to Martha’s demand.
Friends, in Luke 10:38-42, the meal Martha prepared would be consumed and forgotten. The cleaned house would become dirty again. The arrangements she made for everyone’s comfort would fade into history. But what Mary received, intimacy with Jesus, revelation of His character, the transforming power of His presence, would echo through eternity. It would sustain her through the dark days ahead: Jesus’ arrest, His crucifixion, the agony and grief. It would anchor her when everything else shook.
Life takes many things from us. Jobs are lost. Health fails. Relationships end. Loved ones die. The economy crashes. Pandemics sweep the globe. Everything we build with our hands can crumble. But no one, no one can take Jesus from us. No circumstance, no demon, no diagnosis, no disaster. The “good portion,” God’s Word, is eternal.
Perhaps you’re reading this, and you recognise yourself in Martha. You’ve been running hard, serving faithfully, but your soul is exhausted. The joy is gone. Prayer feels like a duty rather than a delight. You can’t remember the last time you simply sat in God’s presence without an agenda, without a request, without rushing off to the next thing.
Jesus is speaking your name today, with the same tenderness He showed Martha: “[Insert your name], [insert your name], you are anxious and troubled about many things.” (V 41). He sees your weariness. He honours your service. But He’s inviting you to something better, not instead of your service, but as the foundation for it.
The dishes can wait. The emails can wait. The endless to-do list can wait.
Come. Sit. Listen. Receive.
Choose the good portion.
Prayer
Lord, Jesus, I ask that Your peace replace my anxiety. Let Your perspective reshape my priorities. Let Your love fill every empty place in my heart. Restore what busyness has stolen. Revive what weariness has dulled. I want to live from overflow, not obligation. I want to serve from fullness, not emptiness. I want everything I do to flow from the time I spend at Your feet.
Thank You that this portion can never be taken from me. Thank You that You are always available, always welcoming, always ready to receive me. I am Yours, and You are mine. I pray this in Your precious and holy name, Amen.
Read: Isaiah 40:31; Jeremiah 29:13
Bible Reading Guide: Psalm 12; Matthew 14:22-36; Matthew 15:1-9; Genesis 41:41-57; Genesis 42