Today I felt myself get angry for the first time during this pandemic. It wasn’t at the virus, the government or even the people who refuse to wear masks in the stores. I got angry at something implied by the title of an article: “Take this Pause and Write Your Book.” My thought was, “how dare they assume that we are all sitting around binge watching Netflix!”.
Seems harmless, doesn’t it? But to me, it felt, well, false. The anger had nothing to do with writing a book, but had everything to do with the words “this pause”. Maybe it is just me, but I have yet to “pause”. In fact, I don’t know of anyone right now who is “pausing”.
We are either working at a place, or working from home. If we aren’t working, we are spending time looking for jobs. We are teaching our kids in our homes, some parents going to school themselves, navigating needs for our family members in nursing homes and so much more. We are overwhelmed. We are stressed and I feel like I am busier than ever.
So, if you are like me, we do need to take a pause – a pause to pray for endurance, a pause to breathe Him in. Yes, we should pause.
Pause in His presence.
This made me think about Mary and Martha in Luke 10:
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”
41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one.[f] Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
Why did I get so angry at the title of that article? I can tell myself it’s because it was making an assumption, but the truth is that it convicted me.
I have been a Martha.
I need to be a Mary.
Raelyn Pracht 