GUEST POST – Are you a Mary or a Martha?

38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 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!”

41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

When you read the above verse what is your first impression of Martha? Do you think of her as a complainer, a worrier, or both?

Have you ever considered that Martha’s worry and fret was something more? Jesus said she was “worried and upset about many things.” Let’s think about this for a moment. Martha cared about the same things we do. If Jesus was coming to your house for dinner what would run through your head? Would it be, “What shall I make? What would He like? Is the house clean? Does He prefer fish over chicken? Should I get a place setting for the table?” Or would it be, “I can’t wait till Jesus gets here. I’m going to sit at His feet all night and listen adoringly to every word He speaks. If He gets hungry we’ll deal with that when it comes up. But tonight – I’m taking a break from the cooking and welcoming my honoured guest by giving Him my full attention.”

Be honest now, which person are you? If you chose Martha, it really wouldn’t be a bad thing. Her way of caring for the Lord, of showing her love for Him, was in her service to Him and she falsely believed that Mary’s act of love should be the same as hers. So she complained. But Jesus wanted Martha to know that He wasn’t the type of person who demanded a lot of fuss. In fact, I’m willing to bet that if He did come to my house today, or yours, he would be content to order from Pizza Hut and carry on with the evening.

Yes, Mary knew what was better and while Jesus appreciated all Martha was doing, He wanted her to know that it wasn’t necessary. Sometimes, we just need to stop doing “things” for the Lord and sit back and rest in Him.

Today, spend time with your Saviour. Put on some worship music, pray, read your bible. Think about how you can honour Him. Most of all, be still and know that He is the better choice.