Luke 10:40 But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. 41 And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: 42 But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.
A "Good temptation" is one in which an activity is in and of itself good, but which places Jesus in second place for any reason. This kind of temptation is much more prevalent than many Christians realize, and satan has indeed mastered the art of suggesting that there are other more important and urgent issues in our lives, that make it necessary to put Christ and the service due to Him on hold, whilst we deal with the temporal matters which demand our attention. In the instance given above, Martha was consumed with preparing a meal for Christ, who was obviously very hungry, but her sister Mary sat at Jesus' feet, drinking in the words of life which fell from His lips.
Now, in terms of emergency and importance, this is as urgent as it gets, for what we have here is God being hungry, and therefore it would seem logical that sermons and prayer meetings must of necessity be put on hold whilst such an important matter is addressed. But Christ, in His reply to the complaints of Martha, made a startling statement in favor of Mary's decision to spend quality time with her Creator, for He confirmed that He preferred to remain hungry if communion with Him was at stake. In other words, in order of priority and importance, quality time spent with Him trumped all other valid concerns, and therefore He establish beyond all question, the sacred truth that we must seek God first in everything.
"Good temptations" have also come down to our day, when we feel we must address certain important issues at the expense of spending quality time with God, and for this reason, satan has been successful for too long, and has steamrolled us into believing that there are issues that are so urgent as to warrant us putting Christ and the service that is due to Him in second place. Yes, the kids need to go to school, and we need to pack their lunches. Yes, the work needs to be done so that we can pay our bills. Yes, we must work late in order to make ends meet. Yes, the homeless and the needy need to be fed. Yes, we need to do our homework and turn it in in a timely manner, and yes, we do need to sleep when we are burnt out, and yes, we do need to watch some television at night to unwind, and yes and yes and yes.
Now, although all of these activities are good in and of themselves, yet if for any reason they cause us to put Christ in second place, then we have succumbed to the phenomena of "Good temptations" which always seem to crop up from time to time. In order for us to remedy this situation, we must determine by the grace of God to put aside the prime time of the day or night, in which we can have unbroken communion with Him, when the cell phones are on mute, and the children are asleep, and when there isn't any cooking and washing, and radios or televisions on, or clanking of pans and pots, or the clinking of cutlery to disturb and distract us from the most important aspect of our lives, that of seeking God first. When God is made supreme, and held in the number one spot of importance and priority in our lives, everything else under Him is made to fall into its rightful place, and the cares and anxieties which so often overwhelm us, fade into nothingness, in the presence of Him who sees and knows it all.
We therefore end with a passage of scripture which encourages us to seek God as a first priority, and the rest of our lives will have order, meaning, and spiritual growth, as God works within us to will and to do of His good pleasure. Let's read:
Matthew 6:30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
May The Lord add His blessing to the study and practice of His every word. God bless!