Have you ever found yourself so overwhelmed that even doing what should be routine, easy tasks - such as taking out the garbage, doing dishes, laundry, even just taking a shower or brushing your teeth, appear to be monumentous undertakings?! It is in those moments that the only thing that seems to fix it is to stop, and restart... with the basics. So it is as well with our spiritual walk. Truth be told, every major spiritual lesson I have learned has first started as a physical manifestation. It's as if it just won't "stick" if what I am to glean doesn't somehow initially affect me in the flesh.
By realizing the inability to do the simplest of tasks lately without struggle I am reminded that perhaps I haven't been faithful in my spiritual routine. While I almost always begin my day with a "Dear Lord" and a concluding "Amen" as my head hits the pillow, once school started this past August I must admit my daily reading of His Word has been hit and miss. As I "snack" on granola bars, bananas, or bagels and cream cheese instead of taking time for a solid breakfast, I equally find myself "snacking" on KLOVE's 'Encouraging Word' or Air One's 'Scripture of the Day,' neither occurring every morning. Not that I am knocking such little nibbles, but a steady diet of such can leave one malnourished - both physically and spiritually. I find myself hungry, tired, and at times grumpy. Without steady nourishment and proper exercise, our bodies cannot function optimally. Our souls also suffer without proper nourishment and exercise.
The word "remember" occurs 121 times in the Old Testament and 27 times in the New Testament (1). This tells me it's pretty important. The only way to become familiar with something enough to remember it is through repetition. That is, unless you have an eidetic memory. If you are around my age, I bet you can easily recall the words to this show's theme song, "Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip. That started from this tropic port..." Did you find yourself saying or singing the rest of that verse?! If not that one I'm sure there are plenty of other jingles easily recalled, and I guarantee they didn't get "stuck" there the first time you heard them.
One of my favorite biblical stories I remember very clearly is that of Martha and Mary, the two sisters hostessing a visit from Jesus (2). Mary sat at the feet of Jesus listening to what He had to say. Martha was busy serving to the point of frustration, even pointing out her sister's lack of contribution to the tasks at hand and demanding Jesus to tell Mary to help her. Jesus pointed out that Mary chose the "good part, which will not be taken away from her," speaking of His Word. I am a Martha by trait, but can recall the first time I found balance between her and Mary. Martha likes to dominate from time to time, with such an occasion occurring recently, but I have always managed to get Mary back where she belongs. When I get so busy that I am unable to see the forest for the trees, I have to exit the forest and seek different scenery. This weekend I took a trip several hours away, where I was able to get a bit of a restart, become refreshed, strengthened, and return to a semblance of a more healthy routine once again. I found my Mary. I found peace. I was reminded there will always be work to do... we are expendable and our days are numbered. Getting back to the basics gives a better view to prioritize what is really important.
I recently found out I have another little blessing on the way, my thirteenth grandbaby. There have been too many days I misprioritized as a result of my Martha traits, and although God worked all things together for good (3), I missed a lot of what was really important. It's time for Mary to take the lead.
(1)http://www.christianbiblereference.org/faq_WordCount.htm
(2) Luke 10:38-42
(3) Romans 9:28
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