Breathe. Last month breathing seemed like one of life’s luxuries for me. My to-do list had me running non-stop. Slowing down long enough to just take in a deep breath didn’t seem to fit into my hectic schedule. My daughter was graduating from high school.

Have graduation celebrations evolved over the years? For some reason, I don’t remember all of the hoopla that is now associated with graduations when I was the same age as my daughter. I remember getting my senior pictures taken. I remember mailing the graduation ceremony announcements to close friends and family. And a graduation party? Well, that was having a few of my friends over to eat and hang out. There were no caterers. No tents. No decorations. No memory tables. No life story picture video–All About Me. In comparison to the graduation celebrations of today, I’m thinking I was gypped!

But I was more than happy to have a big graduation party for my daughter to celebrate her high school commencement. You see, I’m a party girl. I love to plan parties and celebrations to mark the highlights and milestones of people’s lives. One of my side jobs is party planning. And since this was my daughter’s party, everything had to be absolutely perfect.

In Luke 10, we read the story of two sisters, Mary and Martha. Martha had invited Jesus to their home. While Jesus was talking in their living room, Mary sat at His feet soaking up everything the wise teacher had to say. Martha, however, was in the kitchen cooking and preparing the meal. She too, I believe, wanted everything to be perfect for Jesus’ visit. But her frustration grew as she felt she was left to do all the preparations herself. Where was her sister when she needed some extra help? Martha finally acted on her frustration, and asked Jesus to tell Mary to help her. But Jesus responded to Martha by saying, “My dear Martha, you are so upset over all these details! There is really only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it–and it won’t be taken from her.” (Luke 10:41-42)

I suppose, in my quest to have everything perfect for the graduation party, I had become slightly high strung over all the details, and may have even engaged in a little proverbial dripping faucet behavior with my family. My husband finally took me aside and told me I needed to chill! Chill? Let me shed a little bit of light on why I was so far from chilling.

Two weeks prior to this graduation party, my dear husband decided to do a landscaping overhaul in the yard. Last summer, we had lost one of our big evergreen trees so we had an empty spot that was in need of being filled with something. We’ve only had an entire year to fill that spot, but apparently, two weeks before a major event is the perfect time to take on such a project! As with many projects, this one had taken on a life of its own. It went beyond planting flowers and laying down mulch. Somehow it turned into digging trenches, designing and building three fountains–complete with accent lighting, landscaping stones, mulch, flowers and prairie grasses.

Then, right on schedule, Murphy (the guy with his own law) showed up! With only ten days left to finish this project, Murphy decided to come in the form of a monsoon. Seriously, it rained every day for a solid week! We also needed to re-stain the deck and touch up the trim. Rain, painting, and landscaping don’t exactly go well together. With each passing day, as no progress was being made on these outside projects, I was becoming less chilled. Only a Martha could truly understand my anxiety!

It’s been weeks since then. The party is now over. The rain had eventually stopped, and at the eleventh hour, mind you (with a full-blown ulcer well in tact) the deck was stained, the railings trimmed, and the empty spot, where our evergreen used to be, donned three bubbling fountains my husband had designed. Everything turned out beautifully. Our backyard was filled with dear friends and family sharing in the celebration of our daughter’s accomplishment. The party was a success.

In the weeks since then, I’ve had time to breathe again (as well as nurture the recently acquired “hole” in my stomach). I’ve often wondered had Jesus been here visiting during the preparations for this party, would He have had a little chat with me? Would I have had my own Martha moment with Jesus? Had I become so preoccupied with the details of the party that I had overlooked the very reason for the party?

Martha had been so focused on the details and preparations of Jesus’ visit, she lost sight of the fact that her Lord and Savior was right there in her very own living room! Martha may have experienced all the preparations of Jesus’ visit, but did she actually get to experience Jesus?