If you are a woman, you probably already know whether you are a Martha or a Mary. (You should think over this dichotomy, even if you are a man!) Are you a task-oriented person with a daily agenda to accomplish and a long to-do list? Or did you lose the to-do list already and are just sitting and thinking and dreaming? Can you point to a lot of good work done by the end of the day or week? Or are you caught flatfooted by the Marthas in your life, who are upset with you for not pulling your weight while you were thinking about who you were meant to be or what you were made to do, perhaps with a good many things undone piling up around you? Is there some good work for which God made you that the cares of the day are taking away from you?
Here’s a great quote by Clarissa Pinkola Estés for the Marys of the world and the put-upon Marthas:
“I've seen women insist on cleaning everything in the house before they could sit down to write... and you know it's a funny thing about housecleaning... it never comes to an end. Perfect way to stop a woman. A woman must be careful to not allow over-responsibility (or over-respectability) to steal her necessary creative rests, riffs, and raptures. She simply must put her foot down and say no to half of what she believes she ‘should’ be doing. Art is not meant to be created in stolen moments only.”
Jesus praises Mary for knowing what the one important thing is: sitting at His feet as His student, listening and learning. That was her time to go deeper, to expand, to grow. No perfect dinners or perfect reports or perfect job evaluations can make up for time missed sitting at the feet of Jesus, listening and hearing the way He opens up Scripture and life. That is time spent in the best way possible. Give yourself permission to sit with Jesus and let the rest of it go.