16th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Gen 18:1-10
Col 1:24-28
Lk 10:38-42
“Martha, Martha, you worry and fret about so many things and yet few are needed, indeed only one.”
Recently, I went on a study trip that left me inspired — deeply stirred by a need I saw, and a strong desire to respond to it. I came home buzzing with ideas, looking up courses, sketching out plans, imagining how everything could take shape. I was ready to go.
But then… things didn’t quite go as expected. The person I thought would help move things forward hesitated. Progress stalled. I started to feel disappointed and restless. Why now? Why slow down when everything seemed to be falling into place?
That’s when I came across this Gospel reading again — Luke 10:38–42. Martha welcomed Jesus into her home and immediately got busy preparing everything for Him. She was doing a good thing — but in her busyness, she missed the better part. Mary, on the other hand, simply sat at His feet and listened.
That contrast hit me hard. I saw myself in Martha — eager, sincere, zealous to serve, but also easily frustrated when things don’t go according to plan.
Maybe you’ve felt that too. You pour your heart into a project, a relationship, a new opportunity… only to hit delay after delay. You wonder: “Why, Lord? Isn’t this a good thing? Why is nothing moving?”
Sometimes, God pauses our plans not to punish us — but to draw us back to Him. Before we act, He wants us to sit. Before we lead, He wants us to listen. Because only from that place of stillness can we hear what He really wants for us. There’s a time for action, yes. But there’s also a time for waiting; and sometimes, that waiting is where the most important work happens — in our hearts.
If you’re in a season of slow doors and quiet progress, maybe it’s not a dead end. Maybe it’s your invitation to sit at His feet and choose the better part.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Stephanie Eber)
Prayer: Jesus, slow us down when we rush ahead; help us to choose You before the work.
Thanksgiving: Thank You for the grace hidden in delays, and the peace found in Your presence.
OXYGEN 
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