Be Where Your Feet Are

Distraction can take something valuable without making a big scene. It can keep somebody physically in the room while mentally living somewhere else. The call to be present pushes back against a culture that treats busy like a spiritual gift and productivity like proof that life matters. The question becomes simple and personal: who needs more presence than productivity?

Jesus shows what presence looks like. Jesus welcomes children when the disciples see an interruption, and Jesus stops for Bartimaeus when everybody else hears noise. Jesus does not treat people as delays in the real work. People are the work. The interruption is sometimes the assignment.

Martha shows that distraction is not always sinful-looking. Martha is serving Jesus, working hard, and doing something good, but Martha misses Jesus while trying to do things for Jesus. The danger is not only choosing bad things over good things. The danger is letting something important steal attention from something more important. Family can end up receiving the leftovers while work, customers, strangers, and church receive the best version.

Deuteronomy 6 places faith in ordinary life: sitting at home, walking along the road, lying down, and getting up. God does not build discipleship around a few polished moments. God uses car rides, dinners, late-night conversations, games, homework, and stories that have already been heard six times. Ordinary moments can feel ordinary until someday they are gone.

Jesus also calls attention away from tomorrow and back to today. Tomorrow keeps becoming today, the finish line keeps moving, and the season being endured turns out to be life itself. “Be where your feet are” means refusing to sit at the table while the mind is at work, to attend the game while the heart is on the phone, or to sit in church while mentally living in Monday.

Moses gives the picture of availability. Moses notices the burning bush, stops, goes over, and answers God with, “Here I am.” Presence begins with noticing, stopping, listening, and looking up. Attention communicates value. The life being waited for is already happening, the people being prayed for are already sitting at the table, and the moments that will someday be missed are happening right now.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. The interruption may be the assignment. Jesus stopped for children, blind beggars, hurting people, and desperate parents. Jesus did not see people as obstacles to a more important mission. Presence recognizes that the person in the doorway may matter more than the task on the screen. [38:35]
• 2. Good things can still distract. Martha was not distracted by something evil or selfish. Martha was distracted by serving Jesus while Jesus sat in her home. The danger comes when important responsibilities receive attention that belongs to the people those responsibilities are meant to serve. [42:30]
• 3. Faith grows in ordinary moments. Deuteronomy 6 puts faith in the house, on the road, at bedtime, and in the morning. God forms hearts through repeated, unspectacular moments of real life. Availability matters because the deepest conversations rarely arrive on schedule. [46:29]
• 4. Attention tells people they matter. Jesus stopping for Bartimaeus communicated more than kindness. Jesus gave a hurting man undivided attention in a crowd that wanted him quiet. Presence says, “Right now, I am here with you.” [55:26]
• 5. Be where your feet are. Jesus warns against sacrificing today while worrying about tomorrow. Tomorrow’s finish line keeps moving, but today’s life is already here. Presence does not require perfect moments, only the willingness to notice and receive the moment that is happening. [49:46]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [26:55] - Choosing the Word “Present”
• [30:33] - Declaring War on Distraction
• [31:50] - Presence Over Productivity
• [33:09] - Jesus Welcomes the Children
• [37:33] - Jesus Stopped for Bartimaeus
• [40:24] - Martha Misses Jesus While Serving
• [43:38] - Don’t Give Family the Leftovers
• [45:25] - Faith Happens in Ordinary Life
• [49:28] - This Is the Day
• [52:16] - Jesus Had Time for People
• [53:09] - Moses Notices the Burning Bush
• [55:26] - Undivided Attention Communicates Value
• [57:33] - The Last Moments Nobody Sees Coming
• [1:00:04] - Be Where Your Feet Are

Bible Reading

Luke 10:38-42
“Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” [40:30]

Deuteronomy 6:4-7
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.” [45:39]

Mark 10:13-16
“And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, "Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it." And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.” [33:18]

Observation questions

1. In Mark 10:13–16, how do the disciples respond to the children, and how does Jesus respond differently? [33:33]
2. In Luke 10:38–42, what is Martha doing, what is Mary doing, and what words describe Martha’s inner condition?
3. According to Deuteronomy 6:4–7, in what everyday settings are God’s people told to talk about His commands? [46:41]
4. What examples show the difference between being physically present and giving someone real attention? [28:50]

Interpretation questions

1. Jesus welcomed children when the disciples viewed them as an interruption. What does this reveal about what Jesus considers important, especially when people compete with a busy schedule? [34:30]
2. Martha was serving Jesus, yet her preparations distracted her from Jesus. How can a good responsibility become disordered without becoming sinful in itself? [42:20]
3. Deuteronomy 6 places faith conversations in ordinary routines rather than only formal religious settings. Why might God choose ordinary moments as the main place where faith is seen and passed on? [47:09]
4. Jesus’ attention toward people communicated that they mattered. Why does undivided attention carry such weight in relationships? [55:40]

Application questions

1. Who in your life may need more of your presence than your productivity right now? What tends to pull your attention away when you are with that person? [32:07]
2. Think about a recent interruption—a child wanting attention, a spouse wanting to talk, a friend reaching out, or someone needing help. Did you treat that moment as a disruption or as an opportunity to love? What could change next time? [38:48]
3. What “good thing” is most likely to distract you: work, serving, household tasks, planning, providing, or something else? How can you keep that good thing from taking attention away from God or the people you love? [43:18]
4. Which ordinary part of your week—mealtimes, drives, bedtime, a walk, chores, or time after a game—could become a more intentional space for conversation, prayer, or simply listening? [49:08]
5. Where are your feet often in one place while your mind is somewhere else? What is one small, realistic practice that could help you be fully present there this week? [51:51]
6. What would it look like for you to say “Here I am” to God and to the people closest to you this week—not perfectly, but with real availability? [54:12]