Suffering from Marthaplexy.........

Another weekend goes down in the history books. Is it just me or is time speeding up each year?

It's funny but if I had to guess what time of the year it is by my surroundings it would be very difficult. The weather has been unseasonably cold and the stores are all selling 4th of July stuff. Of course when it really is the 4th of July they will be selling Christmas trees and winter coats! I believe this is another way that the world makes it difficult for us to "live in the moment". If we are constantly looking so far ahead, how can we enjoy THIS day that the Lord has made?

Personally I like to live in the past, that is where the sales are! The after Christmas bargains were amazing! (LOL)

Seriously though, this weekend at church we learned there is actually a name for this condition (focusing so much on busyness, preparations and worrying about the unnecessary details of life that it spoils your here and now). It is called Marthaplexy! My husband is quite certain I suffer from this disease. No, I haven't begun decorating for the 4th of July yet but I have let myself get so caught up in daily anxiety that I have not taken the time to sit at the feet of Jesus and do the one thing that is required: spend time with Him.

So if you too are suffering from Marthaplexy, here is the prescription my Pastor offered.

1) Resign all undue responsibilities. -----This means I need to know what my responsibilities are and what are God's responsibilities. My family, house, car, bank account, body, children........they are all His anyway and I need to trust Him to handle them!

2) Relax and enjoy time with family and friends. ------Jesus modeled this behavior by having deep and meaningful relationships with others. He made time to eat with friends, fish with friends, pray with His Father.....He was not stressed out and distracted by the details of life! He knew it was in these relationships he would be refreshed.

3) Reflect on the Lord through meditation and prayer. ------As my schedule is changing I need to be really careful not to ignore daily quiet time. I am very guilty of putting it off and thinking, "first I need to do this" or "I will sit down after I finish that". However, it is in the time I spend at the feet of Jesus I will be empowered to do everything else!

OK so now I have put a name to the "condition" from which I suffer and I know how to treat it, but just like anything else I will only be cured if I follow the prescription. Not an easy thing to do in this fast-paced and driven world! If Satan can't keep us distracted, the news media can. However, I am not of this world and greater is He that is in me than he who is in the world!

Starting today I am going to make a list of all the things that I am worrying about that are not my responsibility (gas prices, the cost of living, the presidential race, the car I drive, other's opinions of me, the weather, my children's future, my past mistakes, decorating for future holidays (LOL).......and I am giving them back to God. All I am truly responsible for is my relationship with Him and if that is good, then everything else will fall right into place!

As for the second step in the prescription, God has provided me many opportunities to enjoy the company of family and friends over the next couple of months. Between luncheon invitations, sporting events, graduation parties, a certain She Speaks conference.......the calendar is ripe with activity!

And lastly, I am planning to be much more intentional about my "quiet time" with the Lord. For me this is the most difficult of the 3 steps and yet the most important. If I neglect this step everything else is done in vain. Only through daily quiet time will I be renewed and energized to carry on throughout my day.

I have no idea how many people suffer from Marthaplexy but my guess is there are lots of us. The good news is that with the right prescription we can go on to live joyful and fulfilled lives!!