My friends and I often refer to Marys and Marthas. In the well-known story from Luke 10, the sisters choose differently in responding to a visit from Jesus. Mary sits with him and soaks in his presence. Martha tends to everyone's physical needs.
We sometimes debate who was right, which is silly, because both are right, both are needed, both are a sign of maturity. Spirituality and service are inseparable twins that need to rest at the heart of each of us. My best days are spent being Mary in the early morning hours and Martha the rest of the day. If I sit in quietness and pray God will show me how to meet people's needs the rest of the day, I must be careful not to begrudge the opportunities to serve.
And each thing is an opportunity: to quiet the children's quarreling, to be the teacher and cab driver, the encourager of friends, the helping hands for those in physical need, the open purse for those in financial need. The key is not to let the pendulum swing too far to either side so that we exhaust ourselves in service or cloister ourselves in self-care.
We need to teach and model this for our kids. Some are natural servants, others must be forced into it. Some are inclined toward spiritual things, others must be taught the discipline of it. Both are rewarded in the end because they are taught what matters to God. Growth in these areas is a process requiring much diligence and grace...for all of us. Don't shame them for their perceived inadequacy in either area. Always encourage! (I'm telling this to myself, first!)
Last week I had the privilege of serving my beautiful friend, Emma. As I and many others painted walls in her new home, we talked about her vision for her home, where it could be a gathering place and a stop-by-anytime kind of home. I know it will be like that. She sits and listens to you like Mary, but she makes sure you have coffee in your cup like Martha. She does all this while living with breast cancer's harsh effects on her mind and body.
I love the bothness and oneness of God's design for our lives.
Listen then to this wonder! How wonderful it is to be both outside and inside, to seize and to be seized, to see and at the same time to be what is seen, to hold and to be held.
-Meister Eckhart
Oh, Jill. <3
ReplyDeleteI believe her home will be exactly like that. I always thought it would be the sort of home I would have too, and it may still be someday, but for now, it's not. My struggle is in the balance of outside focus verses inside my home focus. For some reason, the outside seems holier if I go and do for others, but maybe the serving inside my home is a Mary just naturally, because I am drawing near to the closest people God has given me, and in the daily tasks He is refining me to listen and love, and give grace.
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