Vist at Martha's House, part 9: The Ill-fitting Yoke

Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord's feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me." (Luke 10:38-40 NASB)

Martha had been busy with preparations while her sister sat at the feet of Jesus, listening to every word. Martha was distracted and overwhelmed with the preparations and wanted help. When Mary, her sister, didn't volunteer to help out, she went to Jesus with an interesting question. "Lord, do you not care?" What she actually said was "Do you not care that my sister is making me do all this work by myself?" When was implicit in her words was another question entirely. "Lord, I did not choose to spend time with you. My choice is not working out well for me, and I don't like it, but don't you care enough to send me some help with my choice so I can keep doing what I chose?" 

Ouch. When we look at her question from that perspective, we see something we might not have noticed before. Martha didn't like the results of her choice, but she didn't seem to have any intention of making a different choice. She did not go to Jesus saying, "My choice to do housework instead of spend time with you is not working for me. Can you help me make a better choice?" She did not say, "How much preparation did You want me to make for all these people? Tell me what YOU want so I can please You." 

I am a master at being a Martha. It is so easy to see something I think needs to be done and forge ahead to do it. When I do that, however, it is not uncommon to find that the work is bigger than I imagined and there is considerably less joy in it than I hoped. More than once I have found myself at the feet of Jesus saying, "This burden is too heavy! This yoke is too painful!" Every time, our Lord has very gently whispered with that still, small voice, "That was never my burden for you. It was never my yoke for you." If we want the abundant life Christ came to bring, we must begin at the feet of Jesus. There is work that must be done, but it is in the work our Lord chooses that we find peace and joy. 

Are you overwhelmed with your busyness, burdened with your life and all the challenges you face? Instead of going to Jesus with demands that He help you keep doing everything you are doing, go to Him with open hands. Offer Him every responsibility and burden you have and allow Him to choose what remains. You can be sure that time spent with Him will be a high priority. It may be, however, that some of the responsibilities you carry are no longer His will for you. For those of us accustomed to an extremely busy life, paring down might seem a burden in itself. When you have time to enjoy our Lord, however, you may find that a pared life is richer and brings more joy than all the busyness you could pack into your days.

When the burden is heavy, when the yoke doesn't fit, there is only one place to go. Jesus. 

"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30 NASB)

Visit at Martha's House, part 7: Whose Work Matters

But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me." (Luke 10:40 NASB)

When you look closely at this verse, what Martha said to Jesus is really shocking. It appears, from the way she addressed Him as Lord, that she had an understanding of Jesus as Master. He was not just a poor, wandering preacher. He was not just a family friend. He was Lord and He was in charge. It seems as if Martha had a basic understanding of this, but Martha had a problem that most of us have as well. Martha thought that she was also in charge. She approached Jesus as if they were on equal terms. 

Jesus did not tell Martha what preparations needed to be done. Martha decided that for herself. She then attempted to perform all the work she had decided was necessary, but it was too much for her. There is no indication that Martha spent even a moment saying, "Is all this necessary? Is this what Jesus wants me to do?" Martha had made her decision and she was sticking with it. (Does this sound familiar at all? Isn't this something that we do, as well?) 

To make matters worse, Martha decided that her agenda should also include Mary. In essence, Martha's plan for Mary became more important than Jesus' plan for Mary, at least in Martha's mind. I would expect that Martha had signaled Mary more than once, trying to get her to get up and help! Mary, however, kept her seat at the feet of Jesus. 

What is astounding to me is that Martha marched right up to Jesus and demanded He reassign Mary to The Martha-Work-Crew! Don't forget that Jesus was not just a man. He was Almighty God wrapped in flesh, sitting in her home, and Martha was trying to boss Him around like she was His equal. 

Selah. Pause and consider. 

I'm not going to pretend that I've never done this, but I hope I have better sense now. What about you? Do your prayers sometimes have a "Martha-esque" tone about them? Do we find ourselves demanding that God do whatever it is we want and hop to it? 

We would do well to remember that there is a God and we are not it. His Word tells us that He has a plan, for good and not for evil. It makes sense to desire that good plan, but all too often we want our own plan, instead. Even worse, we demand that God give us what we want. 

When she first became overwhelmed with preparations, Martha would have had a much better day if she had stopped to ask herself, "Is this what I need to be doing? Is this what Jesus wants me to do?" We, too, could benefit from using our frustration with life as an opportunity to consider that maybe what we want is not what God wants. Shocking idea, isn't it? It is also a very freeing concept. 

If you're frustrated and overwhelmed with life, it is time for some serious soul-searching. Is the work you are trying to do, the lifestyle you are pursuing, that for which you long, really what God desires for you or have you made your own plan, expecting God to bless it? It may be that your plan needs to be relinquished for the one God has for you. 

What, then, should you do? Do what Mary did. Begin by positioning yourself at the feet of Jesus. Listen to His words. Seek His face. Ask for His plan, then do what He says. 

Hear, and heed, the words of Jesus: 

"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30 NASB)

A Visit at Martha's House, part 3

Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord's feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me." (Luke 10:38-40 NASB)  

There is a tendency for us to think that Mary had a wonderful response to Jesus' visit and that Martha had a totally poor response. In fact, Martha began by welcoming Jesus warmly and sincerely. She was delighted to see Him and His disciples. She welcomed Him in, found Him a place to sit, and made Him comfortable, then began preparations for a meal for her guests. It was her home and, she felt, her responsibility. The problem was that Martha let preparations for the meal and her idea of service override spending time with her Lord. She began well, but she didn't stay the course.

Mary, on the other hand, was also delighted to see Jesus. She responded to His presence by sitting at His feet, just as a student would with their teacher, and listening to Him talk. She hung on every word because she wanted those words to be alive in her life. She was soaking in His presence and nothing else mattered. It was His words, not His dinner, that mattered most to Mary.

We live in a society that is consumed with doing, with a constant barrage of activities that threaten to overwhelm us completely. In the midst of busyness, our tendency is to soldier on, never stopping to make a change. Are you overwhelmed by busy? Is every minute of your day scheduled, every day of your week too full? How much of that time is spent worshipping and learning at the feet of Jesus? 

Our Lord comes to us every day with opportunities to spend time with Him. He desires our service, and there is no doubt about that, but the first service He desires is our attentive presence at His feet. No matter what else we do to serve our Lord, we must begin at His feet, eager, listening, and willing to learn from our Master and to worship Him. Let's be sure we have the heart of Mary, seeking His kingdom and His righteousness before all else. When we do, everything else will fall in place. 

But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:33 NASB)