Sitting at His Table

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

Luke 10:41–42

There will always be things to do. Ministries to serve in. People to help. Tasks that demand your hands and attention. Like Martha, we often find ourselves busy—even with good things. We want to please God, honor Him, and be faithful stewards. And yet, in the middle of all that movement, Jesus gently calls our name.

He reminds us of something Mary understood: Before He wants our work, He wants our presence.

Before He seeks our hands, He seeks our hearts.

Before we serve at the table, He invites us to sit at it.

Martha’s service was not wrong—it was good, noble, and needed. But Jesus wanted her to see that work is meant to overflow from worship, not replace it. Ministry is a gift and a calling, but it is never the measure of God’s love for you.

Look at Lazarus. He had no ministry title. No recorded miracles. No public sermons. Yet when he died, Jesus wept—not because of what Lazarus did, but because of who Lazarus was to Him. Loved. Known. Cherished.

Your value to God has never depended on your performance. He loved you before you picked up your first ministry assignment. He was pleased with you before you ever served a single person.

But does that mean we stop working? Not at all. Serving God is a beautiful expression of devotion—a fruit of following Him. It’s evidence that we have heard His call. Yet the One who calls you to work also calls you to rest. To lean in. To listen. To slow down long enough to remember that the most important ministry you will ever have is your relationship with Him.

Because at the end of the day, the world may applaud what you do for God—but heaven treasures the moments when you simply sit with Him.