Choosing the Good Part
by Rusty MillerThe crush and rush of the holidays is over, but before I settle in to a more laid back routine, I am beset by a thousand responsibilities. There are deadlines at work and deadlines with my work as an elder. There are appointments to keep and birthdays to buy for. There are mailings to get out, Pleonast posts to write, we have a gospel meeting coming up, and I must begin to read my Bible through. There are school functions and school projects to help with, and we need to start having more people over to the house and...
And in the midst of all of this, the faint cry of the Lord calls to me from Luke’s gospel, chapter 10, verses 41-42: “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only a few are necessary, really only one, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”
When I slow down long enough to look seriously at my own life. I fear there is far too much Martha in me, and not enough Mary. None of the things which have me so hurried are wrong, but neither was Martha’s goal of caring for her guest. The problem is in the neglect of something so important for things which, in the distance of hindsight, are so trivial. The day was coming for Martha when her guest would no longer be there to speak to her, and what would her memory of that day be? Of cleaning and cooking and scurrying about? I wonder too, what my memories of these days will be?
It is about this time that everyone is caught up in the making of resolutions, which, for the most part, only add to the problems of time. Now we must fit in time to exercise and prepare food for a better diet. Or we must complete some project which has gone uncompleted because we ran out of time.
This year, instead of making a series of resolutions destined for failure, make only one: This year, I am determined to choose the good part, which shall not be take n away. That is, I am going to sit and listen to what the Lord has to say. This year, I am going to let a few more things go in order to discover more about what God wants from my life.
Perhaps you have already determined where this is going, for I am not talking about something miraculous. God is not going to speak directly to me or to you, but everything He would have me know about Him and His plan for me is in the scriptures. “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world” (Heb. 1:1-2).
If we are ever to determine God’s will for us, we must then study His word. I want to encourage you to get serious about Bible reading on a regular, even daily, basis. Here are just a few suggestions to draw you closer to “the good part.”
- Get a reading plan. No plan often means no success. Haphazard reading in the Bible from one place one day and another place the next day yields little results, except discouragement and confusion. We will be reading from the Five Day Bible Reading Schedule this year at Westside but it’s certainly not the only plan available. Think about your spiritual needs, what you need to hear from God and find a plan that fits your needs and available time. But get a plan.
- Consider the power of accountability. This year we will use our Wednesday night assembly to talk about the reading for the week in the Five Day Reading Schedule. This will accomplish several goals. It will help us understand what we’re reading as the “rough spots” and difficulties are explained and set in context. It will give us applications to make immediate use of as we PATH through the Bible. However, perhaps best of all it will make us accountable. Who wants to be sitting in that assembly thinking “I don’t have a clue what is being talked about - I didn’t read this week?” When the assembly is dismissed and your nearest neighbor says “That was great - I wondered about that when I read today” who wants to have to be deceitful and say “Uh, yeah, these are really helpful” as we quickly resolve to go home and get some reading done? Every Wednesday you will be reminded to read your Bible. Read along with us and you’ll enjoy being held accountable each Wednesday night.
- Choose a passage (or group of passages) to memorize. Perhaps you are thinking that maybe you are too old for memory verses, but think of the many things you memorize each day. Phone numbers. Addresses. Social Security numbers. Song lyrics (How many of us who say we cannot memorize anymore can sing dozens of songs on the radio? How did we learn them? Repetition). The memorization of the teachings of God are far more worthy than any of these things. Pick something important to you. Maybe the beautiful poetry of Isaiah 40, which foretells that Israel would not be deserted by God, even in captivity. Maybe Jesus’ admonition about riches from the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 6:19-34). Maybe the travails of the apostle Paul (2 Cor. 11:22-33) to remind us that it is possible to serve God despite manifold trials. Repeat it until it is second nature to you, so that its application begins to sink into you life as well. The goal here is not memorization for its own sake, but memorization which gives us strength to fight the fight against Satan for another day. Even if you are reading regularly think about adding in some memory work. It gives you the ability to “read” your Bible anywhere!
None of these things will automatically make you or me a better Christian, but maybe they will help us to grow closer to our Lord and Savior, and that will make us better. Maybe, when life seems to be spinning out of control, they will cause us to remember “the good part.”