mary-and-martha.com

I don’t know when it happened but it seems like overnight my weight went out of control and I’m considerably heavier than I was 15 years ago. I’ve been working at home for most of that time and I guess it must be that constant nibbling through the day, rather than proper meals because it was easier and simpler to do. I did go to Weight Watchers 2 years ago and that helped but I still have to be mindful of what I put into my mouth.

Self-control is not an easy thing, especially if it’s not something you want to do. I want to still be able to eat anything I like as I did when a young girl but my body doesn’t behave the same way it used to.

I wonder how Mary learnt to just sit and not allow other things to distract her?  Did she struggle with learning self-control or was it a part of her natural make-up?  Was it possible that her desire to be with the Lord was stronger than anything else in her life?

Did Martha struggle with self-control, allowing other things to constantly grab her attention and therefore stealing precious time she could spend with Jesus? Or was it that she saw herself as ‘doing’ for him rather than ‘being’ with him?

Have you noticed that no matter how quickly you get through things, or how much you do, there is still lots to do on a daily basis?  It’s almost as though something fills up that void as quickly as you try to empty it again.

When we are constantly busy we make little time for God, just thinking ‘I must get this done first’, or ‘I’ll just get that out the way’ and before we know it another day has passed and we still haven’t achieved what we wanted to get things out of the way for.

You know that feeling, don’t you?  So do I, and so I constantly strive to develop a routine for bible reading, for prayer, for reading other things relating to my faith.  I’ll go weeks and months in a routine and it all fits in nicely and then something comes along to upset it and I’m back to my old ways again, fighting to get that time back.

Mary had the right idea and I wonder just how much she went through, to feel that she could just sit down at the feet of Jesus, and soak in all He had to say and not worry about anything else.  Did she have in the back of her mind that she would go help in the kitchen later, after she had heard what Jesus had to say?  It’s possible - what woman doesn’t have other things going on in the back of her mind?

How much better do we feel when we just stop, sit down, be still and know our God?  I know, you know it, and yet we still let things get in the way.  Why not give it a try today?  Why not right this minute? Sit still, be quiet, let your mind go quiet, and then meditate on God’s Word or seek Him for what He would have you do right now.

Someone close to me recently had to pull back from all that she normally does in Church. She had to shift her focus as there were issues arising at home which required attention. Always serving, always helping, this was a new season of doing little except sitting at the feet of Jesus and allowing their relationship to minister to each other. Sounds pretty straight forward, but of course there was a struggle. Who knows that so much of what we do can easily define who we are? Whatever profession or career we have entered into, gives us a title, a position in this world, a spot where people can notice who we are and what we are good at. If we are parents, this further establishes who we are. The jobs and responsibilities we have gives us purpose and a reason for getting up in the morning. The beauty about Mary is that it reminds us we are never to get our sense of who we are by what we are doing. This is easier to write than achieve. Serving is important - don’t get me wrong. But at the end of the day, our relationship with Jesus is what we will be defined by when we stand before Him face to face. That was what Jesus meant by Mary has chosen the better part. If you had to stop what you were doing right now, your job, the role that defines you, who would you be? Would you have a mid life crisis? Or would you feel secure in your position and worth in Christ?

In trying to be focused and goal orientated people we tend to juggle a number of balls all at the same time. I watch women who I really admire try to be the best mum, wife, employee, boss, friend and the list goes on and on. Being focused and driven often means that we have a task in front of us that we are passionately working on. For myself, when I am in the “zone” I can forget everything that is around me or even everybody that is around me because I am so caught up in what I am trying to do. Sometimes my relationship with God can become like that too. I can be so focused and driven to share the gospel and equip God’s people that I forget the reason behind what I am doing. More importantly I forget whom I am doing this all for. When Luke records the story of Mary and Martha he tells us; “But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made” Luke 10:40 (NIV). This verse stands out to me because Jesus knew that preparations needed to be made just like He knows all the things we need to do as well. The caution to Martha and to us today is “Are we becoming distracted by our preparations?” This is a question that all of us need to ask ourselves from time to time. In trying to accomplish all that God has for us have we become distracted and forgotten our amazing God, the One who loves us for who we are rather than what we do.

I think sometimes we get so caught up in whether we’re Mary or Martha, that we forget one of the things that further tied these two sisters together and included them in the historical accounts of our Lord Jesus before he was crucified and then resurrected.

They were his friends, along with their brother Lazarus. Both Luke and John corroborate this in their accounts in the bible. Martha was reported as being the head of the household so the natural assumption is that Mary was a younger sister. The family positioning alone would have contributed to their different personalities, i.e. the older and younger siblings. It is common for an older sibling to take control and run things and for the younger one to help or find something else to do. It’s also common for younger siblings to seek out something different to do so they’re not seen to be like the older one. At least in modern times that seems to be the case.

It is important that whoever we are, whatever we’re doing, we must remember our position in Christ and that He is also our friend. He has an interest in who we are, what we do, where we go, and what makes us happy and what worries us. And that the people around us are the ones we’re meant to be serving and helping. Because, after all, He is also within us and we represent Christ through our daily lives - whether we’re a Mary or a Martha. KMT