My reflection is from Living Faith:
There is need of only one thing. Luke 10:42
“Luke bookends this story of Martha and her sister, Mary, between the parable of the good Samaritan and the disciples’ request to Jesus to teach them how to pray. The Good Samaritan might be described as a story of love expressed in action; the Lord’s Prayer, a story of love expressed in contemplative listening. Both elements are on full display of the sisters’ lives as Martha is busy with the work of hospitality in the kitchen and Mary is kneeling at Jesus feet, listening to him.
This is not a rivalry about which is better-service or contemplation, action or prayer. Might it be that the ‘one thing’ necessary is an invitation to give our attention fully to living in the present moment? Might it be that the ‘one thing’ needed is having no agenda other than simply loving the one right in front of us? Sr. Chris Koellhoffer, I.H.M.