Well, I have finally turned into "one of those."

Yup - sad, really.

Today, I turned into one of those people who leaves their flicker (turn signal) on for numerous blocks, unaware of the little blinking light, the ticking noise and the stares and mockery of cars passing by.

It was a sad day - I turned into one of those.

Once I realized that I still had my right flicker on (did I mention I was already in the right-hand lane no less?), I jumped and threw my hand up to turn it off. It's unfortunate that I then immediately had to turn it back on because after driving straight for about 5 city blocks with the flicker on, I found I had to turn right. What a crazy experience altogether.

It made me wonder why I had left my flicker on. I have no qualms about the fact that I did not notice it still on - my music is always way too loud to hear the ticking and I'm rarely looking at the dash except to check my speed (which might be why I finally noticed the little arrow light flashing). But why didn't I turn it off after I had changed lanes? How come I had, after many years driving experience, finally turned into "one of those?"

I'm guessing it was distraction. Distracted about where I was going, distracted by the huge semi trailer trying to kill me as we rounded the corner - distracted. It's rather a distracting time of year anyway, isn't it? Christmas gets busy. I've never really understood why Christians, who might consider Christmas to be their second greatest celebration, get SO busy through this season. The Salvation Army might be considered even worse than usual, with kettles and cold/wet weather shelters open, Christmas concerts, etc. (Though these things are important - don't comment and slam me on that, it wasn't actually my point.) A season of peace? Hmmm...not in my experience. Usually a season of mania - running around, DOING many things.

Ah, DOING. There's the key. Distraction. It's OK to be doing things, like kettles and shelters, and shopping and visiting, but are they distracting us from the point of the whole celebration? This week, I was asking God about what was going on with one particular part of my life, and His only response was this:

"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." (Luke 10:41-42)

I went back and looked in the scriptures - Mary had chosen to sit at the feet of Jesus and listen to His words. Sitting. Listening. That's it. Martha was distracted by her preparations. Like Danielle's blog from a couple of days ago, it wasn't her busyness that was the issue, but the fact that there wasn't the spark of love initiating her actions anymore.

I think it's OK to be busy. I especially think it's more than OK to be busy helping those who need a hand through this season because they're hungry or cold or hurting and needing to see Jesus in a very practical way. But as we execute whatever duties we're into each day, let's remember to take moment to focus on why we are doing these things. I pray we would always find that our duties and busyness are sparked by a love for the Father, and that we would always be able to find a place of rest and peace to talk to Him about how grateful we are for the gift of His amazing Son.

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. 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!"
"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." (Luke 10:38-42)