As Jesus and his disciples went on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparation 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!”
Luke 10: 38-40 (NIV)
Scripture: John 12: 1-8
There are times that we want other people to change. They are doing something we don’t like, and we wish they would stop! Sometimes, though, it is us who needs to change. This devotion looks at two sisters — Mary and Martha — and which sister had her priorities straight
There are times that we want other people to change. They are doing something we don’t like, and we wish they would stop! Sometimes, though, it is us who needs to change. This devotion looks at two sisters — Mary and Martha — and which sister had their priorities straight.
Poor Martha. She wanted to change Mary. Remember when Mary was sitting at Jesus’ feet while Martha was trying to get supper on the table? She couldn’t believe that Mary was letting her do all the work while she sloughed off. She couldn’t understand why Mary didn’t give things the same priority as she did.
We do that too, don’t we? We wonder why people don’t do things the same way we do. It doesn’t matter to us that the outcome is the same. If the procedures are different, man, they did that W-R-O-N-G!
It’s not always because we want to run the show. Sometimes, it is because we do not see things how they are but as we are. We say someone should do something because that is the way we do it or think it should be done.
What is worse, though, is when it isn’t just the procedure that is different. If they think another way than we do, Katie, bar the door! It will not be pretty.
So, we try to change them. Wives try to change husbands – and vice versa. Parents try to change children – and vice versa. We convince ourselves it is for their own good. Shouldn’t they be more like us? But it doesn’t work, does it?
Jesus knew Mary and Martha were two different people. God doesn’t create two people exactly alike. And besides, what Mary was doing wasn’t wrong – it just wasn’t what Martha wanted her to be doing.
In fact, in the grand scheme of things, Mary had made the best choice. So instead of Jesus telling Mary to change, Christ told Martha to change her focus. He told her to make sure she was doing the most important thing.
There are several ways we have to evaluate our focus. We have to examine if we are looking at the situation correctly. Is this really what God wants? Sometimes we need to consider the situation from a right versus right viewpoint instead of a right verses wrong circumstance.
Then we have to ask ourselves why we want people to change. Will the change really be better for them? If it is just so they will do something our way, it may not. However, if they are doing something harmful to themselves it would.
Martha didn’t change Mary – Jesus changed Martha. How can we tell Martha changed? Wasn’t she the first one out to the road when Jesus came after Lazarus had died? Jesus had made such an impact on her that she ran to meet Him (Jn. 11: 20).
Loving Heavenly Father. You do not change. You are the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. You ask us to change, though. You ask us to take our eyes off the world and the way we think things should be done to look to You and the way You want them done. It’s hard for us, though, Lord – even though we know Your ways are better. Help us to constantly keep our focus on You. Help us to accept differences in people. In this way we can lead them to You without turning them off. Amen.
What do you think? Leave me a comment below about what touched you the most about the story of Mary and Martha. Or head over to my Facebook group for some interactive discussion.
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