Words by Lexy Sauvé // Image by Jennifer Trovato

“But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, ‘Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.’ But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.’” (Luke 10:40–42)

In the name of sanity and summer’s end, the last few weeks have been a flurry of de-cluttering, cleaning, and organizing in our household. I’m sure you ladies can relate to the overflowing closets and cupboards, stuffed full of one too many vintage dresses or family Christmas plates. Having our first child increased the number of items we have in our small dollhouse, and we all know how many necessities we are told children can’t grow up without: toys that get a minute of play time before being tossed aside, never to be seen again. And then there’s shelf after shelf of books that we “must have” to fill up their developing brains. All of this was becoming overwhelming to me, causing a sense of anxiety and lack of peace in the one place I should be able to find rest: my home. I felt the Lord tugging on my heart.

“One’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” (Luke 12:15)

Thus began my worthy goal to de-clutter with eternity and functionality in mind.

But last week the passage from Luke hit me right over the head. I realized that, like Martha, I was distracted with much serving.

We’re humans. We can all relate to this. And admit it, those of us who tend to be lazy in nature are struggling with distractions of a different kind as well.

I found myself spending most waking moments roaming around the house, looking for any spare corner I could shove books and trinkets into. I was ignoring my baby boy’s precious smiles. Even in the moments when he was awake, I began to wish it was nap time so that I could clean more! How silly is that? I even forgot about my afternoon quiet time with the Lord yesterday, and unfortunately, everyone in my family paid for it.

Through these verses, I felt the Lord tell me, “It’s okay to desire an organized house. It’s okay to set aside time for this goal. But, you must take time for your priorities. Those are the investments that will not be taken from you.” My priorities during the day include loving Jesus and my little boy. There will always be dust to clean, laundry to do, dishes to stack neatly in a cupboard. But there will not always be a little boy to raise and point to the Lord. In truth, I do housework in vain because the clutter and dirt will return day after day after day. But my little boy won’t. The Lord has lent him to me for an allotted time. Making my time with him one of my most important priorities each day is an investment that will not be taken from me.

Matthew 6:33 says, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

What is one thing the Lord would have you pursue right now to invest in his kingdom? Do that to his glory; he will provide the time and energy to do all the other things that he knows you need to accomplish as a mother and wife.