EXCERPT FROM MY BOOK “THE CRUCIFIXION CATALYST” (UNSPOKEN MESSAGES FROM GOD TO BELIEVERS) (available on Amazon and Barnes & Nobles)

JOHN 11:1
Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of 
Mary and her sister Martha.

Bethany was a village that was less than two miles from Jerusalem and 
Jesus spent a lot of time in this town. It was also where Mary, Martha, and 
Lazarus lived. Jesus was very familiar with these sisters and their brother, 
and He loved them very much. The two sisters had personalities that were 
quite different. They may have had the same level of love for Jesus, but the 
expression of their love would make it  seem as if Mary’s love was greater.

Martha was very organized and a worrier who liked to be in control. She 
seemed to be more focused on ensuring everything was in its proper place 
and people were being responsible than she was on enjoying the interaction 
of relationships with others. She may have cared about relationships, but a
pparently, tasks were more important to her.

Mary was much more focused on relationships than with organization. She 
may have felt that order and organization was important, but she knew the 
value of positive relationships with others, and this was more important to 
her.

We can see the differences of these two sisters in Luke 10:38–42:

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.”

Unspoken message to believers:

We need to realize that there are times when relationships are much more 
important than organization. Sometimes we are focused on a good thing 
like making sure everything is in its proper place, but then we may miss 
something better and more important, like relationships. When we allow 
things or tasks to become more important than relationships, we could 
miss some valuable information someone wants to share with us, or 
encouragement that someone has been motivated give to us.

This information, or encouragement, may be something that God has 
orchestrated as part of His preparation in His plans for us. We could be 
unaware of our need for this heartfelt encouragement required for 
responding to His call. Our busyness could also result in our missing an 
opportunity to help someone else who really needs us at that moment.

Some people just want an interactive friendship above anything else. 
Conversely, the media constantly encourages us to be perfect in every 
way, but when perfection becomes our motivation for all we do and say, 
we can rapidly become self-centered and intolerant of anything outside 
of our own view of how things should be.

Jesus placed people above things, and if we are His children then we 
should develop Hisperspective and apply it to our own lives. When others 
know and see that we considerpeople and relationships more important 
than what the world has to offer, our livesbecome witnesses for the Lord.

As an example of insensitivity, imagine that you are having a tough time 
and need to discuss it with a friend or neighbor. However, when you start 
to share your concerns, they appear to be distracted or start sharing their 
own problems with you. You would quickly get the feeling that they are 
either not interested in your situation, or they feel your concerns are of 
secondary or lesser importance. The Bible shows instances where Jesus 
was focused on His mission but still took the time to stop, listen, and 
minister to those in need. How would our feelings toward Jesus be 
affected if the scriptures showed that He did not consider others as 
important and take the time to listen to their concerns?