“Pay attention to the important things in your life…” is what I hear in the story of Martha and Mary, Luke 10:38-42
A recently appointed professor walked into the classroom. The students could not wait to get started, but without even saying ‘good morning’ the professor placed an empty mason jar on the desk and started filling it with golf balls.
Then he asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed it was!
Then he poured small pebbles into the same jar filling the open space between the golf balls. The professor again asked the students if the jar was full. Once again, they agreed! Next, he picked a bag of sand and poured it into the jar filling the space between the golf balls and pebbles. Again, he asked the students if the jar was full.
The professor then said, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls represent the important things: your family, children, health, friends, and passions. If everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles represent the other things in life that matter, such as your job, house and car. The sand—is everything else, the small stuff! If you put the sand in first, there is no room for the pebbles or golf balls.”
The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the most important things… So, pay attention to the important things in your life… the golf balls first—the rest is just sand.
