Crisis Management

Dear Friends,

It’s been said that one of the greatest dangers in life is to let the urgent things crowd out the important things. It’s a caution that I try to heed, but realize that I regularly fail. There’s something about the “urgent” things in life that just make them feel so, well, urgent. And so, if we let them, those seemingly urgent matters tend to crowd out the truly important things in life.

I think that reality is one of the reasons why Jesus regularly reminds us to stay focused on the “one thing” that's most important in life - taking time for Him. One example is the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10. Martha got frustrated with her sister Mary for sitting at Jesus' feet while Martha did all the work of hosting the guests. So Martha complained to Jesus. He responded by saying, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:41–42). Essentially Jesus was saying, “Listen, Martha, I appreciate your desire to work. But there is a time to work and there is a time to sit at My feet. Mary has figured out which is more important.”

This idea of making time to sit at the Lord's feet has been weighing heavy on my mind lately. I realized that this week we entered the fifth month of this year, and I’m not sure where the first four months went - mostly because I’ve been so caught up in taking care of the urgent things that have popped up every day for the past four months. And while those urgent things do need to be dealt with, they still should not take priority over the most important thing, which is me spending time with God. Not just quick, times of prayer with God - when I’m sending up a crisis prayer request. But long, intentional time - where I'm sitting at my Savior’s feet, listening to His words of love, wisdom, and encouragement.

So today, let’s ask God to help us readjust our priorities to do what's essential first, and leave everything else for after. Let's ask God to help us spend time sitting at the feet of our Lord - hearing from His Word, worshiping Him, and allowing Him to prepare our hearts for all that needs to be done each day so that - even in the urgent situations of life - we will still be centered on what truly is most important.

Amen?

Daniel