Do First What Matters: Choosing God Over Busyness

Luke 10 puts Mary and Martha in the same house with the same Jesus, but they make two very different choices. Martha opens her home, works hard, and gets pulled in every direction by all the preparations that have to be made. Mary sits at the Lord’s feet and listens to what He says. Martha surrenders to the urgent, while Mary chooses what is better.

The urgent is not always unimportant, but it is not always the most important thing either. An angry customer needs attention, but good systems can keep every day from becoming one emergency after another. A broken engine is urgent, but changing the oil was important long before the engine quit. The urgent keeps screaming for attention, while the important often waits quietly until it gets crowded out.

Jesus tells Martha that she is worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her. The choice at the feet of Jesus is not laziness or neglect of responsibility. The choice is a refusal to let activity replace relationship with Christ.

Busyness does not necessarily equal productivity, meaning, or fulfillment. Satan may not have to make somebody bad if he can make that person busy doing things that do not matter much in the grand scheme of things. Overcommitment burns people out, weakens marriages, steals time from children, wears down health, and pushes time with God to the edges of life. The best leaders, parents, teachers, and followers of Christ do not simply do more. They do more of what matters most.

Wisdom requires artificial deadlines, a little cushion before the real deadline gets there. Wisdom also requires being ruthlessly selective in every yes. Good opportunities may need to receive a no so that the best opportunities can receive a yes. A “to don’t list” may be just as necessary as a to-do list.

Jesus calls His people to do first what matters most. Time with Jesus cannot be saved for whenever life slows down, because life rarely slows down on its own. Matthew 6:33 calls believers to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, trusting that everything else will be added in its proper place. God realigns the heart, renews the mind, directs the steps, and helps His people live on purpose rather than react to every demand. Mary’s choice remains open to every believer: choose what is important over what is urgent.

##

---

Key Takeaways

• 1. The urgent can crowd out Jesus. Martha’s problem was not that work existed, but that work became the thing that controlled her. Urgent demands have a way of making everything feel equally necessary, even when it is not. Time at the feet of Jesus restores the ability to tell the difference between what is loud and what is lasting. [44:56]
• 2. Busyness is not the same as fruitfulness. A full schedule can still produce an empty soul, a strained family, and a distracted heart. Overcommitment often looks responsible at first, but it can slowly rob a person of rest, health, peace, and spiritual attentiveness. The meaningful life is not built by doing everything, but by doing what matters most. [51:23]
• 3. Good opportunities may require a no. A yes to every invitation eventually becomes a no to something more important. Selective commitments are not selfish when they protect family, spiritual health, rest, and the priorities God has given. Saying no to good things can become the way a believer says yes to the best things. [53:17]
• 4. Seek God before reacting to life. Reactive living lets other people, deadlines, and distractions determine the shape of each day. Seeking God first puts the heart back under His direction and prepares the mind for the battles ahead. God’s Word renews the mind so that choices are shaped by His kingdom rather than the tyranny of the urgent.
  
  ## [59:07]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [30:33] - Choices Series Wrap-Up
• [31:40] - Choosing Purpose Over Popularity
• [33:03] - The Tyranny of Being Busy
• [34:28] - If Satan Cannot Make You Bad
• [35:45] - Choose Important Over Urgent
• [37:56] - Mary and Martha
• [43:31] - Worried and Upset About Many Things
• [45:52] - Create Artificial Deadlines
• [48:59] - Be Selective With Your Yeses
• [53:43] - Do More of What Matters Most
• [55:44] - Put Time With Jesus First
• [61:31] - Pursue Your Priorities
• [63:10] - Choosing What Matters Most

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.’” [37:56]

Matthew 6:33
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” [59:28]

Proverbs 3:5-6
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” [01:04:02]

Observation questions

1. What was Martha doing while Mary sat at Jesus’ feet, and what words describe Martha’s inner condition?
2. What did Martha ask Jesus to do about Mary, and how did Jesus answer her? [43:31]
3. What distinction was made between an urgent problem and an important responsibility in the examples of an angry customer and a broken engine? [36:16]
4. What practical tools were given for protecting important priorities from being crowded out by urgent demands? [45:52]

Interpretation questions

1. Jesus did not rebuke Martha simply for serving. What does His response show about the danger of allowing necessary work to become a distraction from relationship with Him? [44:11]
2. Mary “has chosen the good portion.” What makes time at the feet of Jesus something that cannot be taken away, even when other responsibilities still need attention? [55:26]
3. Matthew 6:33 calls believers to seek God’s kingdom first. How can seeking God first reshape the way a believer sees work, family needs, rest, church commitments, and interruptions? [59:17]
4. Proverbs 3:5-6 speaks of acknowledging God “in all” one’s ways. What might it look like for a believer to seek God’s direction before saying yes to a commitment or reacting to a stressful demand? [01:03:52]

Application questions

1. What is one important part of life that has been repeatedly pushed aside by urgent demands lately—time with Jesus, marriage, children, health, rest, or dealing with a spiritual struggle? What has been crowding it out? [40:48]
2. When does busyness begin to feel productive or responsible even though it may be draining spiritual life, peace, health, or relationships? Where might that be happening personally? [51:36]
3. What is one “good opportunity” that may need a prayerful no in this season so there is room for a better opportunity God has given? [53:23]
4. Would creating an artificial deadline help protect something important this week? What specific task, appointment, or responsibility could benefit from building in some cushion before the real deadline? [46:00]
5. What might belong on a personal “to don’t list”—a habit, commitment, distraction, or pattern of saying yes that needs to change? [51:57]
6. What would it look like to put time with Jesus first in a realistic way this week? Is there a time, place, reading plan, or simple rhythm that could make that choice more intentional? [58:02]
7. Rather than living reactively to every request and interruption, what are the two or three priorities God is calling each person to pursue right now? [01:01:21]