Chasing PerfectSample

Jesus’ rebuke of Martha highlights that God cares about the orientation of our hearts above all else. He wants us to experience the fullness of joy in Him. He wants us to love Him and engage with Him. He wants worship to be about a continuous, passionate, focused relationship. 

Worship isn’t about outward displays. How we worship is simply a reflection of our inner state. Worship often includes sacrificial giving or little moments  committed to others in invisible ways. But what we worship is an indicator of our heart orientation and a sign of what is important to us. 

Self-worship puts our focus on accomplishments and instant gratification, at the cost of our intimacy with God. Meanwhile, Jesus’ example of worship demonstrates that the surrender of self is required to develop healthy relationships and set eternally significant goals. As He prayed in Luke 22:42, “Not my will, but yours be done” (NIV). Jesus trusted His Father, so His life exemplified a glad surrender of His own will. 

When we surrender our desires and dreams to Jesus, we are truly seeking Him first. This is the right worship. On the other hand, when we fail to align our plans with His Word and chase our glory, we miss the very heart of God, which exhausts our souls. 

This is the essence of what Jesus explained to Martha when she was upset that Mary was sitting as His feet instead of helping her entertain their guests. If we don’t worship God, we will naturally find our affections and identity placed on something else. Sometimes we aren’t even aware of the things that have captured our hearts and taken hold of our souls.

Maybe it’s your marriage. You may have your spouse on the throne of your heart. It’s easy to expect your husband to meet all your emotional and spiritual needs. But he wasn’t designed to play this part. Even the best godly men will fail you because they are human. God created us as helpmates to our husbands because He knew they are awesome partners but terrible gods.

Maybe you desire to become a mother. You’ve prayed all the prayers. You’ve done the fast. You’ve read all the books. You’re starting to wonder if God even cares. While I don’t understand all the mysteries of God, I do know He doesn’t want any desire—no matter how good—consuming you and stealing your joy. If He has you in a season of waiting, He may be trying to reveal something to you—a calling already in front of you.

Maybe it’s your kids. Children are a blessing and a sweet gift, but your identity cannot be based on their accomplishments. When we place our worth on them, we “worthship” them and their achievements. 

Maybe it’s your dream, your job, or your hobbies. I can quickly become irritated at the smallest inconvenience, especially when it interrupts my productivity or daily plan. When I’m preparing for a talk, I’m quick to snap at the kids for playing music, roll my eyes when my dog needs to go outside, or act annoyed when my husband asks a question. It’s because, in that moment, I’ve elevated my plan above all else.

I’m guessing you have your examples of when you get in the way of God. When our jobs, family, relationships, and dreams hold too much weight, they can suffocate us. They consume our thoughts, overwhelm our time, and steal our joy.

It’s easy to worship those tangible things around us. And like Martha, it’s easy for us to lose focus on what’s truly important as we chase these distractions. But even as we do, our souls still cry out for the real thing: Jesus. Like Mary, we must recognize this and choose to align our priorities with God’s will by seeking Him first.