The Important Visitor

Last week, it was the Queen & the Duke of Edinburgh going to Ireland. This week, it is President and Michelle Obama visiting both Ireland and Britain. Loads of preparations will have been made, and high hopes will follow these visits. 
When all is over, some ordinary people will have stories to tell about how they met the important visitors. But what else? We wait to see.
In the New Testament, there is a delightful story about the Important Visitor, Jesus, calling in on the home of some friends. 'As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”
 But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10.38-42)
Can you imagine having guests coming round, and not bothering to feed them? It seems that Jesus' values are very different from what most of us think should matter. Martha was the one to do the work and lay on the hospitality, but she gets told off! Mary, who seemed quite unconcerned with practical issues, leaving the work to her sister, gets praise from Jesus.
But what matters to Jesus - and therefore should matter to us - is that we take time to listen to and be shaped by his words and presence. If we miss that - because we are too busy with our own agenda, then we have missed the point altogether. Whose agenda will I follow today - Jesus or mine? And what about you?
Best wishes,
Richard