A Choice To Make

A choice to make… Jan. 2, 2011

Intro:

- how would you rate your 2010? Good year? Bad year? Physically or spiritually? Do you feel closer to God or does it feel like He’s further away?

- do you think you made good choices in 2010?

- we’ve just had a busy season, busy schedules, busy lives

- fact is that we choose to do most of things that we do that make us so busy. We have a choice as to how full we make our day, our week, our month, our year.

- It’s not that being busy is a bad thing. Being lazy on the other hand is…nothing gets dome that needs doing.

- but what we must be careful of is being so busy, that we miss out on the important things in life, and especially, the one thing that is really needed in life.

- I noticed the number of ‘1’s’ in yesterdays date and times (1:01:01 am on 1.01.01, 11:11:11 on 1:1:11)

- it got me to thinking about whether there is just one thing that is most needed in life. So I looked up that phrase…one thing. Here’s what I read: turn in your bible to Luke 10:38-42

Luke 10: 38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Two women in a house, a house now full of people, dinner needs to be made, one woman is working frantically, one is not so ‘busy’.

- have you ever been in a situation like that? You’re going nuts, and is seems no one else is?

- how did that feel?

Martha was:

a) Distracted (are we easily distracted - when it comes to our time with the Lord?)

b) Worried (are we concerned that we have to earn people’s favour – or GOD’S?)

c) Upset (how do we feel when it seems others aren’t as busy as we are?)

d) Self-centred – (Lord, don’t you care…) we can make ourselves look pretty important

e) Demanding – “Tell her to help me!” (God, you owe me!)

Mary was:

a) Sitting – we need to slow down sometimes and rest – God instituted the Sabbath to REST

b) Listening – one of the best things we can do is LISTEN to what God says. We do that by reading the word, listening to teaching, participating in good conversation over the Word of God.

c) Taking advantage of an opportunity – when opportunities come where we can learn, GO! Church happens whenever we get together…take advantage of those opportunities as often as possible. Don’t make excuses NOT to…we’re not that busy.

d) Choosing what is better. Vs 41 – ONLY ONE THING IS NEEDED

e) City slickers illus.

Martha invited Jesus into her home, then got so busy that she missed out on what He had to give her in life. I trust that after this conversation, she put aside her worries and distractions and listened to what Jesus was teaching in that home group that day

- When we invite Jesus to come into our lives, we shouldn’t just do that, and then busy ourselves so much that we miss out on what He’s trying to teach us.

- We have to be teachable… ready to listen, able to stop and open up to what God is saying

- I listened to a message by Craig Groeschel that mentioned a few things we should make priorities in our lives in order to improve our spiritual growth in the coming year.

1) start each day with God – commit some time to the bible and to prayer (bible in a year?)

2) Start each week with worship – gather with God’s people to worship the One who’s worthy of our praise.

3) Start each month with tithing – give back to God what is rightfully His

4) Start each year with fasting – deny yourself so that God can fill you up

If there’s one thing that I pray for each of you, it is that you will make God the one thing that is most important to you…Seek first His Kingdom and righteousness, and all the other things will be added to you as well…but first, we have to make the one choice…to make God #1