I spent all morning cleaning the house.
Every dish was washed.The trash was taken out.Everything was straightened, organized, and put back where it belonged.
I walked out the door feeling accomplished. The house was clean. The chaos was contained. The laundry was (mostly) under control. Then I headed to work for seven hours.
And when I came home…
There were clothes all over the living room floor. Books scattered around. Pieces of hay from the rabbit. Stuffies everywhere. A sewing table that had somehow transformed into a fort.
And I immediately saw red.
I had worked so hard that morning to clean everything, and while I was gone, my children had created a disaster zone and left it waiting for me.
I didn’t say much. I gave my husband a quick “hi,” and then immediately called the children in to help clean up the mess they had made.
And as I stood there looking around at the chaos, I was reminded of another woman in Scripture who understood what it felt like to carry the weight of making sure everything was ready.
Maybe you know who I’m talking about. A woman named Martha.
Martha, the sister of Mary and Lazarus.
Lazarus - the man who Jesus raised from the dead. The one whose sisters sent word to Jesus saying, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”
Mary - the woman we often remember for sitting at the feet of Jesus, listening intently, while everything else around her continued to go undone.
And then there was Martha.
The woman who often gets remembered for getting it wrong. The woman who was busy preparing the meal, serving the guests, and making sure everything was taken care of while Mary sat with Jesus.
And yes… Martha did get something wrong.
She allowed her service to become more important than the One she was serving. She became so focused on everything that needed to be done that she missed the most important thing happening right in front of her. She became frustrated with Mary and questioned why Mary wasn’t helping.
But here’s the thing…
I think sometimes we are a little too quick to judge Martha because if we’re honest, many of us have been Martha. Maybe we haven’t said it out loud, but we have thought it.
“Does anyone else see everything I’m doing?”
“Why am I the only one who notices what needs to be done?”
“Why does everyone else get to sit down while I’m carrying all of this?”
Martha’s story is not just a warning. It’s also an encouragement. Because there are things Martha got right.
First, Martha was the one who welcomed Jesus into her home.
She opened the door.
She made space.
She invited Him in.
And we need to remember… Jesus coming into her home wasn’t just one extra person sitting at her table. Wherever Jesus went, crowds often followed. This wasn’t a simple dinner with one guest. This was likely a house filled with people.
And Martha didn’t hesitate.
She welcomed Jesus.
Mary may have been the one sitting at His feet, but Jesus was in their home because Martha opened the door. And I think there is something beautiful about that.
Sometimes we celebrate the people who sit and listen, but we forget to honor the people who create the space for Jesus to move.
The people who prepare.The people who serve.The people who make room.
Martha’s problem wasn’t that she served. Her problem was that she allowed serving to become more important than Jesus.
There is a difference.
The second thing Martha got right is that when something was bothering her, she went straight to Jesus.
She didn’t run to everyone else first.
She didn’t hold onto resentment.
She didn’t quietly stew in frustration.
She went directly to Jesus and said, “Lord, don’t you care?”
Now, was her heart frustrated? Absolutely.
Was her perspective a little off? Yes.
But she brought it to Jesus.
And I think we can learn something from Martha here. Jesus can handle our honesty. He wants us to come to Him with the things that are frustrating us.
The things that feel unfair.
The things that are weighing heavy on our hearts.
The things that make us feel overwhelmed.
We don’t have to pretend everything is okay before we come to Him. Martha came to Jesus with her burden, and Jesus lovingly redirected her heart.
He didn’t reject her.
He didn’t shame her.
He reminded her of what mattered most.
And maybe that is the lesson we need too. Because sometimes we are so busy cleaning the house, fixing the problem, serving the people, meeting the needs, and carrying the responsibilities that we forget to stop and sit with Jesus. But maybe the answer isn’t becoming less like Martha.
Maybe the answer is becoming a Martha who remembers Mary.
A Martha who welcomes Jesus in.
A Martha who serves faithfully.
A Martha who brings her frustrations to Him.
A Martha who remembers that the work matters… but the relationship matters more.
So tomorrow, when the living room is covered in toys again, when the laundry pile grows, when the to do list feels endless, and when I feel that familiar frustration rising…
I’m going to remember Martha.
Because she got some things wrong. But she also got some really important things right. And maybe Jesus isn’t asking us to stop serving.
Maybe He’s simply reminding us not to miss Him while we do.
XOXO Whitney