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Have you ever had one of those weeks when you just don't have the same amount of energy to meet the tasks before you? That was my week. This baby is taking more than it's share of energy. ;) So, sorry for my absence over the last week, I hope to be continuing the Embracing God with the Life You Never Expected series for the next two weeks. And then starting Joshua. Yay!  Martha gets kinda bad rap because of her task oriented nature seen in Luke 10 where Mary is sitting at the feet of Jesus spending time with Him while Martha fumes about how Mary isn't helping her prepare dinner for the house full of guests. Well, this story seems to overshadow something pretty awesome about Martha, her faith. So I'm gonna brag on the out-shined by her sister lady for a bit. John 11 pins Mary and Martha's differences against each other again, showing Mary to be a feeler and Martha to be a thinker. And the beauty of this story is that Jesus shows Himself in so many ways. Not only does He show Himself to be boss over death but He communicates with the Martha the thinker and feels with Mary the feeler. Jesus makes it obvious that He meets us where we are. But this story is where Martha's faith shines. Her brother, Lazarus just died and her and her sister had asked Jesus to come days earlier. Jesus intentionally stayed in the town He was a couple more days, waiting for Lazarus to die so He could show His awesomeness. Nobody of course understood that. I mean, that's even hard to grasp today, seeing the Lord wait in showing off. Jesus arrives and sweet Martha is the one who goes out to meet Him. Mary doesn't go to Jesus, she stays in her grief and disappointment. Isn't that easy to do. Martha's first words to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that eve now God will give you whatever you ask." How awesome is that! I'm so proud of her. Her brother just died and instead of seeing Jesus as incapable, she does the opposite. It seems she actually knows that Jesus can raise her brother from the dead. Jesus uses it as a teachable moment to give her a secret about His character. Beautiful! But instead of persisting in asking questions, she gets a bit know-it-all and her getting to hear more from Jesus about what He's gonna do stops there. But Martha's faith stays steady and strong even in the hardest of times. She concludes her little conversation with Jesus, "I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who was to come into the world." written in the perfect tense indicating a fixed and settled faith, I have believed and will continue to believe. Martha, the task-oriented, thinker is a great example to us of faith. But so often this world offers the example of having faith in our feelings and experiences instead of the truth of God's Word. Reflection Questions If you were in Martha and Mary's shoes, having just lost your brother, how would your faith have been effected? What does that show you your faith is in?   Check out other posts in this series:
Potiphar's Wife; Life Unrestrained Woman at the Well; Experiencing God's Grace Rahab; Ms. Courageous meet Prince Charming Damaris; Counted Among Them Eunice and her faithful reward Midwives; What they have in common with Chick-fil-a and Cake Miriam; What's the big deal with dishonor? Dinah; When life is bigger than you imagined Lot's wife; Dealing with a heart that longs Mother of Thunder; When you want for your kids
28 Comments
Laura
8/18/2012 11:29:40 am
Thanks sweet friend. I'm encouraged by you. :) I've always loved that scene and exchange between the Lord and Martha in front of the tomb, especially in the days that I was struggling with my illness and suffering. I would recall the exchange over and over and what the Lord said, "If thou wouldest believe, thou wouldest see the glory of God." The faith of Martha is unquestionable. (In my everyday life, sometimes I see myself as Mary and often times as Martha, reasoning that someone needs to prepare dinner anyways - smile with a sigh :)).
Laura
8/18/2012 01:12:56 pm
I love that our belief enables us to see. Things happen all the time but without faith it's so easy to pass God's working off as coincidence. What a gift faith is. :) 8/16/2012 05:05:59 pm
So strange. I'm speaking to a group of 62 women this Sunday, and what I've prepared is nearly exactly this. I'm a Mary. Not always a good thing.
Laura
8/18/2012 01:14:26 pm
That is so crazy!!!
Laura
8/18/2012 01:15:08 pm
lol. True. 8/16/2012 09:05:00 pm
Hi Laura,
Laura
8/18/2012 01:16:40 pm
Yes! So glad you brought that up. Such an important point, God's grace will always be sufficient, no matter our inadequacies.
Laura, this is one of my favorite passages. So much truth about Christ and Faith are revealed in these words!
Laura
8/19/2012 02:26:50 pm
So true! I love how Jesus waits for just the right moment to help us really grasp who He is and what He's like. 8/17/2012 01:42:08 am
I attended a Woman's Retreat back in April and it all revolved around Mary and Martha and their different approaches to faith. It was very inspiring and revealing. It caused me to write a couple of posts on that, particularly because I am more of a Martha, and since she usually gets a bad rep, I was able to see Martha's redemptive qualities as I studied more and as I allowed the Holy Spirit to help me be discerning. Thank you so much for the post. Have a blessed day
Laura
8/19/2012 02:27:46 pm
What a great retreat topic idea! It seems they are both so easy to relate to!
I love Martha and think she often gets the bad rap. What faith she had. My hearts desire is to be model my life after both of these women.
Laura
8/19/2012 02:28:53 pm
Absolutely!! It's hard when your mind goes at a different pace than your body... ;) At least that's what I've been trying to figure out how to handle. I'm so glad you wrote about Martha--I relate to her so well and she always gets a bad rap! God has been gracious to me in giving me an abundance of faith. I strongly believe in His power to do the impossible. This was tested strongly when my Aunt died suddenly at a very young age. In that case, he chose to heal her eternally rather than here. I struggled with whether I was going to continue to trust in God after that, but ultimately decided to do so and haven't look back since. Of course, He has been faithful.
Laura
8/19/2012 02:30:48 pm
People with strong faith are such a blessing to the world. B/c of Martha, we all get to know Jesus as the Resurrection and the Life through Scripture. So, I'm grateful how the Lord built you for it gives Him opportunity to show off in your life and for others to look on and say "Wow" at Him. :) 8/17/2012 11:13:44 pm
Great post. Most of the time Martha does get a bad rap when in fact, as you've shown, she was faithful. I like the way you drew the analogy that Jesus meets us where we are and in the manner we need.
Laura
8/19/2012 02:31:18 pm
Thanks Laura! 8/18/2012 02:21:44 am
I struggle with both the 'Mary' and the 'Martha' that seem to be within me! I love spending time in God's Word but I also love a clean and tidy house. I could spend hours in the Word, and then feel frustrated that I have housework to do. However, I hate leaving housework undone and end up feeling exhausted between the two!
Laura
8/19/2012 02:31:56 pm
You describe it so well! I totally relate!! 8/18/2012 08:38:39 pm
Oh I so appreciate how you bring out the rest of the story with Martha, lest we think that because she is gifted a certain way that she lacks faith. I definitely feel that tension between just resting in His presence and focusing on tasks.... but what a beautiful picture of faith from the thinker/do-er! Thanks for the challenge today. You've got me thinking :)
Laura
8/19/2012 02:34:58 pm
You've nailed it saying there is a tension between resting in His presence and focusing on tasks. Hmmm... which makes me realize that even her going out to meet Jesus and asking Him to heal her brother (indirectly) was a very do-ing. But unlike the serving the meals scene, this scene shows her actions being a result of faith. She sure was an action-oriented one!
Hello- I'm here via Inspire Me Monday... The title of your post caught my eye. My whole life I've been criticized for being more the 'Martha' rather than the 'Mary' - (I've been a Christian since childhood in a very strict denomination and was a Pastor's wife for many years before the marriage ended, unfortunately) - Thank You so Very much for sharing this perspective on the 2 women!!! I really needed a bit of encouragement in these 'dark days' I have been and am facing at this time of my life... Wish I could impart this View of Martha to those who have felt she (I) was worthless... ;-} Lovely blog - glad to have found you -
This is something I had never thought about and never heard discussed before. I thought I had heard it all. LOL I'm more the Mary type and my mother was a typical Martha. You just couldn't keep her from serving. The last few times she was at our home she just had to be helping so she would unload the dishwasher, handing them to me to put away. It would have been much easier for me to get them out of the dishwasher myself, but she always wanted to help. I wish she was here to do that now. I know I wouldn't get as annoyed as I did then. On second thought, I probably would, but I still wish she were here. Leave a Reply. |
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