When the “Busy” Makes You Miss What Matters: A Martha & Mary Reflection

There’s a story in the Bible that has been sitting on my heart in a new way recently , the moment when Jesus visits the home of Martha and Mary.

Martha does what so many of us do:
she serves, she prepares, she manages the moment.
She tries to make everything right.
She carries the weight of expectation.

And in all that “doing,” she almost missed the moment…the presence of Jesus sitting in her living room.

And honestly?
That feels so relatable.

Because there are seasons , especially the season I’m in, where the “busy” becomes so loud you can barely hear anything else.

My Own Martha Season

If I’m being honest, I’ve lived a lot of my life like Martha.

As a mom of girls, an educator, an entrepreneur, a military spouse, and a woman trying to grow in my faith…
I’ve spent years juggling the never-ending lists, the emotional load, the decisions, the responsibilities, the things no one sees but everyone relies on.

Sometimes the pace of life makes it feel like the only option is to keep moving.
Keep serving.
Keep giving.
Keep managing.
Keep holding everything together.

Even recently, I caught myself moving through my days on autopilot, rushing through routines, battling through work demands, putting my head down and pushing through the overwhelm like it was a badge of honor.

But then I realized something…

I had become so busy serving God and my family, I wasn’t truly sitting with God anymore.

My quiet moments were getting shorter.
My prayers were getting faster.
My mind was louder than my heart.
My soul felt tired in ways sleep couldn’t fix.

And that’s exactly where Martha lived.

The Part of the Story That Changed Everything for Me

Jesus didn’t correct Martha for working.

He corrected her for missing Him in the middle of it.

He didn’t say:
“You’re doing too much.”

He said:
“You’re distracted by the wrong things.”

And that hit me like an arrow straight into my heart.

Because I realized:
It wasn’t that I had too much to do…
It was that I had forgotten who I was doing it with.

I had been showing up for everyone except the One who strengthens me to show up in the first place.

The Messy Middle Makes It Easy to Miss What Matters

This stage of life — the messy middle — is full.
Full of responsibilities, needs, roles, hormones, emotions, decisions, leadership, and pressures.

It’s the season where:

• kids need you mentally, emotionally, and physically
• your body shifts in ways no one warned you about
• the mental load grows heavier
• work demands increase
• the calendar never seems to empty
• your faith carries you even when you feel depleted

As women, we’re often the ones managing it all.

We become the “Martha version” of ourselves without even noticing:
busy, stretched, distracted, overwhelmed…
and wondering why we feel disconnected from the peace we keep praying for.

What Mary Teaches Us About Calling

Mary wasn’t praised because she rested.
She was praised because she made space.

Space to sit.
Space to listen.
Space to breathe.
Space to be present with God in her everyday life.

And that is the calling for women in this season…
not to stop serving, but to stop missing Him in the serving.

Not to stop leading, but to stop leading from empty.
Not to stop giving, but to stop giving without receiving His presence first.

My Shift From Martha to a Mary Mindset

I’m learning that being a “Mary” in the messy middle doesn’t look like long quiet times or perfectly structured mornings.

It looks like:

• saying a prayer while packing school lunches
• turning off the noise for a few seconds in the car
• taking a breath before reacting
• allowing myself to rest without guilt
• reminding myself I am not the savior, I’m the daughter
• letting God interrupt my day in small, simple ways

Strength isn’t in hustling harder.
It’s in slowing down long enough to hear God whisper through the chaos.

A Reminder for Every Woman in This Season

If you’re feeling overwhelmed…
If you’re trying to hold everything together…
If you feel responsible for more than you can name…
If life feels busy in ways you never imagined…

You're not doing anything wrong.

You are simply in the messy middle.
The same season Martha lived in.
The same season Mary grew in.
The same season God meets us in.

Your calling isn’t found in the pressure.
It isn’t found in the noise.
It isn’t found in the perfect timing.

Your calling is found in His presence.
Right where you are.
Right now.
In the mess, in the middle, in the very life you’re living.

You don’t have to earn it.
You just have to stop long enough to see it.