38As Jesus and his disciples were on their way,
he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home
to him. 39She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's
feet listening to what he said. 40But Martha was distracted by
all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and
asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do
the work by myself? Tell her to help me!"
41"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "You
are worried and upset about many things, 42but only one thing is
needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken
away from her." Luke 10:38-42
_________________________________________________
Are you are a Martha or a Mary? Today’s
scripture lesson tells of two women who have Jesus and his
disciples as guests in their house. One of the women, Martha, is
busy making all the necessary preparations; while the other one,
Mary, is sitting at Jesus’ feet. The two women don’t understand
one another. They both are frustrated with the action (or
inaction) of the other.
According to the Mary’s in the world, Martha
just needs to chill out. She always seems so busy, running to
and fro, doing this and that. She never stops to smell the
roses. She needs to learn to soak up the precious moments in
life. She’s missing it. Just sit down and enjoy.
According to the Martha’s of the world, Mary
needs to get off her rump and pitch in. Mary is so lazy and
worst of all thoughtless. Does Mary not know that dinner does
not magically appear? How can Mary just sit there and ignore
preparations that need to be made. Does she not know who we have
as a guest for dinner? It must be perfect.
Living as a disciple of Jesus Christ does not
allow us to be all Mary’s, nor does it allow us to be all
Martha’s. To take each of these women to their extremes is an
unrealistic and unhelpful model of discipleship. There are times
in our lives when we need to emulate both of these women.
Sometimes we need to be like Mary and rest at
the feet of Jesus. Our souls need to be renewed. At those times,
we need to call a time-out on the world and retreat to that
which gives our life meaning and purpose. Jesus knew about the
need for self-renewal. In the scriptures, we often find him
heading off by himself to pray. Surprisingly, he usually did
this during the busiest times in his ministry.
Jesus is also a man of action. He does not
allow his disciples to gather permanently away in a deserted
place. He does not spend everyday with them at his feet, sitting
and listening. Jesus periodically calls his disciples away, but
it is only for a little while (Mark 6: 31). The life of a
disciple is a demanding life. It involves many tasks. The key is
to know when we need to retreat and be renewed at the feet of
Jesus.
When Jesus reprimands Martha for being so busy
and caught up with the tasks at hand, perhaps it is because he
knew that she was in need of a break. He knew she needed to call
a time-out and sit at the feet of Jesus in order that her soul
could be restored.
Another value of Martha is that through her
preparations, she creates an environment for others to encounter
Jesus. Dinner needed to be prepared. Jesus and his disciples
were hungry. They came there for a meal and rest. By spending
her energies on these preparations, Martha gave Mary the gift of
space and time to encounter the divine and restore her soul.
As disciples, we too are called to the task of
creating opportunities for others to encounter God. Sometimes
this means that we spend our time at church welcoming visitors
rather than connecting with our friends. Perhaps it means
teaching Sunday school rather than going to the class of your
choice. A word of warning to the Martha’s of the world, we must
also remember that the world is not going to fall apart without
us. We need to be fed as well, so Mary - get cooking. It’s time
for Martha to take a break!
Peace and Blessings,
Rev. Leigh S. Martin
Reinhardt College Chaplain
