The words that Jesus speaks to Martha in today’s gospel are often spoken to me as well. “Kelly, Kelly, ‘you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing.’” (Luke 10:42-43)
I am learning to trust God more and more. I tend to think things through, figuring out what I will do if things turn out bad, anticipating that it will, and even changing my decision instead of allowing God to surprise me.
“I wrote this book because much of our talk doesn’t match our lives. We say things like, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,’ and ‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart.’ Then we live and plan like we don’t believe that God even exists. We try to set our lives up so everything will be fine even if God doesn’t come through. But true faith means holding nothing back. It means putting every hope in God’s fidelity to His promises.” (Crazy Love, p.168) I am learning, day by day, to live like this, holding nothing back; living in total surrender to God.
Martha was rebuked by Jesus not for her work but for allowing her work to make her lose sight of love. We minister to God, serve God, through our neighbor. When our giving, our service to others, isn’t motivated by love than it is worth nothing. We must be both Mary and Martha. We must sit before the Lord and listen to him as Mary did; allow him to calm our anxious heart and renew our spirit. There is much work to be done in the world but we must always do it out of love for God and our neighbor.
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