I like to keep myself busy so whether at work or over weekends, I am forever planning, organising or executing something. It is simply part of who I am. Being like I am, I once had a gentleman at church coming to me and calling me by the name Martha. At first I wanted to help him right because I thought he had forgotten my name, but then he said to me that I am forever busy, running around like Martha in the Bible. Realising what he meant, I was not sure if it was a reprimand or compliment. I mean, we all know the story of Mary and Martha in the Bible which reads as follows from Luke 10:38 – 42:
Jesus and His disciples were on their way; He came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to Him. She had a sister called Mary. who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what He said. But 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!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed – or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.
I titled this article M & M, referring to Mary and Martha and would like us to look a little deeper into their characters.
Martha loved Jesus very much. All she wanted to do was to get everything ready and in place, to host Him. This meant serving Him through her actions by using her hands. She must have been so excited that He was coming to their house and I’m sure she had a long list of things that needed to be done to ensure that His visit would be comfortable and enjoyable.
Think about it for a moment. If you knew that a TV star or very important person was coming to your house, would you not want to make sure that everything was clean and in place to host the person? I know that I would do that. I love to plan and to prepare, to decorate the table and make everything special, so our guests will feel appreciated and welcome. Well, that is exactly what Martha did. She rolled up her sleeves and got things done, ready to serve Jesus.
That is why I think she got upset with Mary who knew that all the things had to be done and yet, she was sitting comfortably at Jesus’ feet as if there were no preparations to be made. Now Martha must have been comfortable enough with Jesus, because she approached Him directly and complained to Him that Mary was just sitting there whilst she was running around.
Mary on the other hand also loved Jesus very much. Her not helping Martha did not mean that she did not want to do something special for Jesus. She however, wanted to spend the time they had with Him instead of running around like a headless chicken. She focussed on listening to what He had to say instead of trying to impress Him.
Reflecting on both Mary and Martha, which one would you say did the right thing? Well, in Luke 10 it is clear that Jesus said that Mary, at that given point in time, chose correctly. Off course that does not mean that Martha did wrong in wanting to do something special for Jesus and He did not love her any less. He just said that there are more important things, than to worry and be upset about many things.
In Part 2 of M & M we will discuss how we relate to the personalities of Mary and Martha. Please make sure to follow these articles which ultimately will end in an e-book.
Love in Christ
Princess K
